The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1874-12-24
WROUGHT IRON BRIDGE co,

year in the shop Of John Laird, on Cher.
ry and Ninth streets, in 1867, they left
Laird's shops and built small structure
of their own on the south side of the P.
F. W. & c. R. r., north of the Canton
Paper Mills; here they continued opera
tons with from six to ten men in their
employ, in two little shops, one twenty
four by thirty feet, and the other sixteen
by twenty feet in size.
David Hammond was the Patentee Of
the bridge they make, and the first one
OF their manufacture was erected over
the canal on fremont ST., Massillon, nd
still remains in that position, a substan-
tial monument to the memory Of their
small beginning For aperiod Of about
eighteen months, they occupied those
small shops, plodding slowly along to-
ward certain success, which, as a coming
event, cast its shadow before. In the
year 1867 they secured the site now oc.
cupied by them, Immediately north ofth
freight depot Of the P. F. w. &C.R
Co., and erected shop thereon; this shop
when completed, was but one hundred
by thirty feet in size. n this new loca-
ton they labored energetically and sue
cessfully at their column arch bridges
until they found themselves unable to
supply the increasing demands for their
products, and on the first day of March,
1871, a stock company was organized
and incorporated as
THE WROUGHT IRON BRIDGE co.
Of Canton. TIL. Company comprised
the following stockholders David
Hammond, J. w. Miller, w. r. Reeves,
Michael Adler, and j. B. Robinson. !
w. Miller was elected President; w. r.
Reeves, Vice President; and David Ham
mond, Secretary and Treasurer. Then
with cash capital of one hundred thous-
and dollars, they greatly enlarged their
works, added new and improved ma
chinery, and on larger scale, began the
manufacture of new and improved styles
of bridges. known as column and chan
mel arch bridge, truss bridge, and other
styles Of iron arch bridges.
The present stockholders of the con-
Germ are mostly Cantonians, compare
lively few shares being owned in the
East, Under the present organization,
the company is managed by the follow
ing officers: David Hammond, Presi-
dent; Job Abbott, Vice President and
Chief Engineer; H. R. Wise, Treasurer;
VIM. Britton, Secretary. Phil N. Hicks
is the general agent Of the company,
W. G. Morse, Assistant Engineer; An
drew Choffin, Draughtsman, John c.
Allen and Anthony Frances, special
agents. In the mechanical, or manual
working departments, Michael Adj r is
Superintendent, and J. B. Robinson,
Foreman; besides, there is a Board of
Directors, composed of David Ham
mond, c. Aultman, Alexander Hurford,
H. R Wise, and Job Abbot. The inn
proyements and engagements that have
been made on their works, within a per-
iod ofa few years, are sufficient evidence
ofthe great success with which they have
met. The main shop is 3I8 feet long,
and 50 feet wide; smith shop $50 by 90
feet, the lattice shop is also I5o by 90
feet, and besides these are the paint shops
of lesser dimensions, and the office,
which is a substantial frame building.
well hnished and commodiously arrang-
ed, with all necessary and desirable i'm.
provements for office convenience. The
company also owns several acres of adj
joining land. which will doubtless soon
be partly occupied by new shops. as the
rapidly growing demand for their bridges
will necessitate such additions. With
their present capacity, this company can
turn out
ONE MILLION DOLLARS
worth of work annually, and they are
constantly working nearly up to the
standard Of that capacity. One thous-
and of their bridges, varying in length,
from twenty to nine hundred and ten
feet, have been erected throughout the
country, since their organization. The
largest bridge ever erected by them, is
over the Allegheny River, at Kittaning,
Pa and is nine hundred and ten feet
in length; over the same stream at Fox
burg, Pa is a bridge of their construc-
ton, consisting Of two spans of two hun
dred and sixty-fve feet each. The
longest span of bow-string channel arch
bridge existing in the world; also at
Parker's Landing they erected four spans
of two hundred feet each, making alto
gether 224o feet of bridging in eleven
spans, built by them within convent
ent distance Of Pittsburgh, in the years
1872 and '73.
During the first year they engaged in
arch bridges, which was
in 1870; but 1900 lineal feet were turned
out; in 1873, they erected nearly 1900
feet of the same bridges. Large bridges
have been built by them and erected at
Cedar Rapids, and Keosaqua, Iowa,
La Sale, and Kankakee, ILL.,, and they
have completed work in Kansas and
Nebraska on the west, Massachusetts
and New Hampshire on the east, Mich
gan and Minnesota on the north, and
Georgia and Mississippi on the south,
and in nearly all the interlying States.
In Massachusetts they obtained the con-
ract for putting up FIVE bridges over
Mill River, the scene Of the late disaster
Jus food; the force Of which was so great
hat Truesdale iron bridge, which was
iwept away by the torrent, now lies high
ind dry, twisted into all conceivable
hapes, and presenting an appearance
like labyrinth Of wild grape |
ines. At Lansing Michigan, where |
wo Of their bridges had been satisfactor-
ly tried for several years, they we're
Iwarded a contract for new work, on a
lid that was $4,000 higher than the bid |
f a Cleveland company. Their work |
lad been. long tested, and proved, and |
hose who awarded the contract took the
Iigher bid because they knew the Can
on bridge was the best. In allthe States
a which they have built bridges, Ohio
as the greatest number, but Iowa has
he greater number of feet of their
ridges, than any other State.
Since the organization Of the stock
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