The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1876-06-08

tai, and the former inhabltants, tnouSn
many of them were wealthy, had their
money mainly locked up in lands, town
lots, SC. Hence, new enterprises, SUCH
as the building Of factories, steam mills,
&C., were left to newcomers.
"About 1920 or 1921, Mr.. George Car
others, OF Brownsville, Pa, came to
w heei,ng and proposed thebuiiding OF "a
Window Glass Factory. Aided by
" heeling capital, he erected the neces-
sary buildings for an eight-pot furnace,
annealing ovens, &c. Owing to accidents
the first attempt at glass making in this
furnace failed. and the works we're finally
bought by Knox Il Mckee, who en-
ployed Carotters as superintendent, and
in the latter part of 1921, or early in
1892, commenced successfully the manu-
facture of cylinder glass, packing mainly
in half boxes $50 feetl with the brand,
"Virginia Works, Knox & Mckee,
Wheeling"
"We," says Col. Mckee, continued
the business satisfactorily tor several
years, turning out, l think, annually
some 1900 or 1000 boxes Of all sizes,
from 6x8 to l4x20, together with large
quantities of green hollow-ware; gallon,
mitigation, and quart bottles; oil and
porter bottles; and pint bottles innumer-
able. Our 6x8 and 7x9 glass was sent to
Boston; for other sizes the west and
south furnished market. Our No. !
glass was in high repute, and bore trans
portation to distant points, even going
to the trading posts of New Mexico.
"As factories multiplied, and blowers
became more numerous and skillful,
prices declined, and finally ceased to pay.
We followed them down from $l2 to
$3.50, and then changed the concern
into White Flint Hollowware factory,
under the firm OF Wheat, Price Il Co."
The glass works spoken of above by
Colonel Mckee, occupied the square on
which now stands the Fourth ward
school house.
.In 1879 Flint House was erected in
Wheeling by John and Craig Richie,
located on the side Of the HILL east of the
Second ward market house. This estab.
lishment was operated for several years
with great activity and success, and had
wide spread reputation for the manu-
iacture Of fine cut glassware.
Tins success, and the unriyalled ad.
vantages for procuring cheap fuel at
Wheeling, encouraged other firms to en-
bark in the business, and In 1885 the
Mcssrs Sweeney put large FLINT Glass
~ orks' into operation, in the northern
part of town, which was followed in the
course OF the next few years, by the erec-
ton of another large establishment at the
extreme south end. built by Plunkett u
Miller. The establishment built by the
Messrs. Swce""y, was operated actively
for more than IS years in Wheeling,
until in the changes of business, its pro-
prietors found it to their advantage to
move it across the river, where 1t Is now
known rs the Excelsior Glass Works,
These works, though on the Ohio side, are
operated by Wheeling capital, and have
the company Incorporated under the
laws of West Virginia. Hence, rs it is
in fact p Wheeling enterprise, 1t should
be mentioned here. Mr.. j. Bell, the
President of the company, has kindly
furnished us with the following stats.
tics:
THE goods manufactured are known
rs crystal glassware made up INTO table,
lamp, and bar goods, such rs goblets,
tumners, pitchers, bowls, dishes, beer
glasses, lamps, lamp-chimneys, &c,
About $50 persons are employed, OF
whom 10 to 10 are families. The an
nual product Is about $4,000"
Returning to the establishments within
the limits of the city of Wheeling, we
quote still further from Mr.. Bells des-
cription of them:
1.-THE works built at the south
end Of the city by Plunkett
Il Miller, are now owned and operated by
Hobbs, Brockunier g. Go. The establish
ment has grown to be one of the most
extensive in the country, and its products
descrvedly have national reputation for
excellence of quality.
another extensive and noted estab.
liShment located in the city of Wheeling.
is known as the Central Glass Works.
making flint glassware. This has been
in existence about fourteen years. 1t
commenced with one small furnace, and
noa has three large furnaces, producing
Ia 20 quantities of common and fine cut
G 'sware, and enjoys n reputation equal
20 any IN the country.
"The increase in the number of estab
lishments does not fully represent the
growth Of glass production in Wheeling,
for it is safe TO say that any one OF the
works now operating makes ten times
the quantity produced by any one run
ming in Wheeling forty years ago. The
improvement in quality. and the cheap
ness of the cost of production have been
equally marked. Articles OF great beauty
of design, excellence of finish, and un.
surpassed in purity of metal, are OF every
day manufacture, and are sold at prices
so low rs to excite surprise. 1t Is safe to
say that nowhere is glassware of equal
quality made more cheaply than in
Wheeling"
IRON INTERESTS OF WHEELING.
ByA. ". Cdmp6eit Esq.-Wheeling is
chiefly known rs the centre ola large iron
industry, particularly for cut nails. The
city and vicinity constitute the largest
nail market in the world. The growth
of this business. as indeed of all the man
ufactures of Wheeling, is due to the
abundance OF cheap fuel (stone coal) IN
the hills around the city, and TO the tacil-
tiles for reaching the markets OF the
country, either by rail or water, at low
rates for freight
The. iron out of which these nails are
made, is produced on the spot, mostly
from mixtures of Missouri and Lake Su-
perior ores, and when made is immedi-
ately in market, without cost for trans.
portalion. There are now, at Wheeling
AID SteubenviIle nine blast furnaces for
the manufacture of iron, as follows: On
tae Wheeling side Of the river, the Top
Milf furnace, the Belmont and the
Riverside" On the Ohio side, the