The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1874-06-19
For the Press.
Our Coal and Iron Fields.

A meeting was recently held in Col
umbus for the purpose as we supposed,
of organizing Company for the con-
struction of a rail road from Columbus
to McConnelsville, via Somerset. See
ing the announcement of the intended
meeting at Columbus our citizens inform
ally appointed Captain Greiner and P. H.
Binckley, Esq, delegates to attend said
meeting at Columbus. Owing to sick
ness in the family of Mr.. Buckley he
did not go, and Mr.StIllman was substi-
tuted. Our delegates went to Columbus,
but to their surprise found that the Fer
rara Coal land spectators had taken
possession and actually organized COM
pany to build rail road from Colum-
bus to the north of Sunday Greek in
Athens county, passing through Ferrara
of course, making a capital stock of
100000 and subscribing $4,000 of said
stock and thereupon elected their Off
GERS. The A. & E. rail road, commonly
called the Ramshorn road. has been in
formally talked of as their road. 1t
runs through or near every town south
wardly from Columbus, including New
Lexington and McConnelsville. Our
delegates, it appears, were captivated by
the great flourish and loud pretenses of
the coal land spectators, and have ac-
tually agreed with their friends at New
Lexington to give their influence to
build the Mineral Valley road, as they
1t New Lexington, and congra olate
themselves that now they can harmonic
with our worst enemies, and as an in
ducement to build the road, speak of the
great supply of material for transporta-
tion and its being the shortest route to
Ferrara. Why do you wish short
route to Ferrrara. Oh, my friends, have
you SO soon forgotten the great wrong
committed by the people of Lexington
in robbing us of the county seat by
fraud? No my friends, we do no. and
ought not to wish to harmonic with
them in any way. You talk about the
crumbs that can be picked up on your
Mineral Valley route for transrorta-
tion. Capt. Greiner knows that on his
Somerset and Roseville route not more
than seven miles from this place on the
land of H. P. Sellers, you pass partly
through a vein of Iron ore about 3 feet
thick and that great blocks of the ore must
be removed to lay rail road track, and on
the land on the adjoining farm of T. Ly-
ons you pass partly through a six
foot vein of coal. There coal and iron
enongh can be had to supply first class
furnace in our town for five hundred
years, and at any time during that
period if the owners of the land and
mineral may wish to extend their busi-
ness, by going southward on direct
line they will find at Brush creek vein
of better coal than any at FerraIa, Shaw
nee or Straitsville, and if that and the
iron and coal which can be picked up
by the way, will not suffice, by going a
little further by an easy grade you come
to the great salt wells on the Muskin-
gum river not far from McConpelsville,
the citizens of which town talk of join
ing the Ramshorn by 81 mile road.
II is my opinion that it is not our in
terest to let Columbus or any other town
take from us our great wealth, but we
should let it lay where it had been so
long, until we can induce capitalists to
come here and build Furnaces and For
ges in our town, which will add greatly
to our business and wealth. Let us make |
our mineral wealth known to persons
abroad, inviting them to come and see
for themselves. A few advertisements
in some of the best Eastern journals |
would no doubt have the desired effect. |
w. p. d.