Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1883-12-20
IRONTON MO- THURSDAY, DECEMBER 20. 1883.

matters and render the trip more pleasant
horses were provided for the party when We
started out on our tour Of inspection, travers-
fng . delightful serpentine road, which as
high IS gained afforded grand panoramic
view Of the valley below In which Arcadia,
Ir0nton and Pilot Knob are located. In all
my travel through the mountain scenery OF
Colorado-behofding mountains, plains and
streams from snow-clad peaks-I don't re.
member Of ever witnessing more beautiful
sight than saw from Pilot Knob Mountain.
After arriving ut the mine or at the mouth OF
tunnel No. 2 we alighted and ut once started
on tour underground. We had not proceed
ed far when became aware that NO one was
provided with candles, as is usually custom
ary, and when / limited ut the darkness one
of the party remarked: "Just wait little and
you Will have plenty Of light" Hardly had
the gentleman finished speaking when just
more than ten feet from us, but In reality
over six hundred feet-right in front OF US
was beautiful electric light throwing out .
soft, mellow, blush light xll around, pene.
trating inclines, cross cuts, drifts. chambers
and all the other workings Of that part OF the
mine. "There are lights like this all through
the mine," explained Mr., Dilts; 1--WE have
dynamo electric engine at the furnace at the
base of the mountain which furnishes our
light" The length Of M thi: M tunnel we sH' are IN
and about 40 feet below the surface; tun-
mel No. Is i'm about go feet and tunnel No.
3 is In about 1000 feet. The system OF worx.
ing this mine Is known rs the Chamber and
Pillar system; the chambers being twenty
five feet wide, the pillars 20x30 feet are left
standing in the first workings TO support
the roof. BY this means of working the
mine nothing but the clear ore is taken out,
while the old system would take all the rock
with the ore. There Is vein OF slate OF sew
eral feet in thickness on top OF this ore body,
and when the mine was first being worked
ali of this slate was taken out with the ore,
while now 1t Is left in the mine. Any prnc-
tical man will see that this OF Itself Will make
the ore better, as in mining and taking out
this slate with the ore more or less OF 1t
would go to the furnace. That the reader
may understand how vein Of slate can be
on top of . vein Of ore ! will explain that
while this Is as fine . fissurc vein as ever
SAW, 1t dips from II to 20 to the southwest.
The general direction of the vein, which Is
thirty feet in thickness, is from east to west,
and can be traced on top Of ground for over
a mile.
1t is claimed by experts who have Waited
It to be one of the largest and strangest iron
leads ever discovered. In fact ] have heard
it stated THAT the supply Of ore from this
mine is ner
poses-as to now give it place with the finest
oresiin the land. The Edgar Thompson works
of Pittsburgh, will, think, boar me out In
this statement, ss they have had three con-
tracts filed by this company. The frst be be
and the third for 10O, 600 tons. The mine has
been taxed to its utmost capacity. which IL
about TOO tons per days, but this will soon be
increased to 1000 tons per day, rs the com
pany are adding SO 600 In improvements
400 and 500 men are employed by this com.
pAny in the furnace-which by the way is
one of the best built furnaces, II not the best
in the west-and around tho mines: Mr,
Simpson says: "This ore is fast gaining In
public favor on account of its freedom from
all deleterious impurities and running 80 high
in metallic iron-from a. to 67h per cent
and Is so extremely low In phosphorus. You
see the Vulcan Iron works, OF st. Louis,
Pilot Knob Iron Co., OF piiot KNOB, ana the
ILL.,, were consolidated in 1882. and we are sl
located within radius Of Is miles OF each
other. At St. Louis, or few miles below
there where our steel works are located, We
have river and rail shipping facilities for al
points on the globe, and for getting the raw
material, fuel, &C., not many iron or stee
works are situated as favorably a. We are. =
Mr. e. A. Hitchcock, president Of the St
Louis Ore and Steel Company, resides IN Sc
Louis, while Mr.. J: G. Simpson, general man. q
| Birtiey, chief of ore department., all reside
| in pilot Knob. The majority OF the minerl
| reside in Pilot Knob and lronton. The
above company pay out for labor In this VI
| had intended to give more OF description
| Of the inside workings of the mine, as It Il
the principal one In this vicinity, and in fac
about the only one now being worked. Sufhct
| It to say, however, that In walking through
1t noticed 80 many different inclines, cross
cuts. drifts and other excavations that min
ute descrip ion of each would not prove In
terestiug, but there WAS disclosed to view In
our rambles through these underground cav
erns over 1900, 600 tons OF as fine ore ~
l 10 In ha.fN al
portion OF this company's property, however
a. they own over 81, 200 acres Of land, mos
of It being In this uron) county, and rs fas
40 business demands they will open up othe
mines, which will, think, prove to be equal
" as rich and as large bodies as the Pilo
Knob. When the new compressed air drill
commence working they will be equal to
hand drills. A new main shaft IL being sunl
| on the Pilot Knob, which will be used q
| hoisting shaft and for ventilating purposes q
well.
The above reference to the Pilot Kno
mine will serve to show how xdvantaReousl
capital can be invested here, and ss Judg
Emerson remarked: "It does seem to me tina
iron works Of various kinds might be estab
lished here with every prospect OF meetin
with success, and other factories using hart
wood might do equally rs well. for within
miles of Us there IL an abundance Of the yer
/ finest Of hard wood timber, and much oft
now being shipped to other points and man
ufactured." The Judge thought wagon fac
tory of 5000 wagons annual capacity woul
certainly do well here, a. nowhere in thi
I section outside Of st. Louis is there > wago
j works Of any size. The increasing deman
for all kinds of farming implements In Mis-
souri, and the southwestern country general
i will soon cause agriculturalimplemcnt work
4 TO spring up, and towns located AZ these ar
may rest assured that they will ret the lion
share of them. Another great advantage q
this section il the nearnesss to st. Louis, ,whic
viii enable men who wish to live in the cit
and have their business in suburban town
to locate here. This has just commenced {
be done. The St. Louis Ore & Stst
Company have their. general Office In s.
Louis, while, as sisted above, one works M
located here, one in Carondelet, aud tho Co.
, Company in jackson county, Illinois. Th
!, cost Of living here Is exceedingly low CON
pared with city prices; property Il also ut
price that men Of meagre means can secuI
. home. All the advantages necessary &c
{ the rearing of. y family are also to be foun
: here. Churches and schools, especially tt
/ latter, are in great abundance, while in al
cadia IL 8 college very widely known In th
!. country. A more healthy, beautiful and
~