The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1884-11-15
hands whose product will be patented

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Co.'S (Chicago) works, located on the Hy-
drauic Basin, manufacturing fire.clay, fire
prOoing, are one of the largest clay work
ing firms in the United States, and employ
"A large number of men. AT Brickton, a
suburb one mile east, are two large fire
brick and tile works, operated by the OF
tawa Fire Clay IL Brick Co., and Messrs.
Williams l. Hess. The jacob IL Simon
Pottery is new interest which has been
very successful during the past year, The
success of glass and clay working now
points 10 time when the smoke of tile and
pottery kilns and glass furnaces will be
one of the leading features of the Ottawa
landscape.
The hay tool factory of J. f. Porter is
also one of the factories few notice, but
which, though small on the outside, is
carrying Ottawa's name all over the world.
The King Il Hamilton Mfg Co make
cultivators, planters, shelters and wagons
on large scale. The Maierhofer pillow
works are again at work making plows ,
cultvatorS and gophers. The Stormont
foundry manufactures on large scale
iron casting, scales, windmills, &c, while
the Novelty Iron Works do light manutac
turing in iron and brass of all kinds Two
large Touring mills, one using the roller
system of Cotton, Dawell d Hamilton,
manufacture orr flour. There are five
cigar factories, by A. Hess " Co., w. II.
Fowler IL CO., NJ. b. Mitchell, l.. A. Rising,
Mrs Schneider, &c: large manufactures
of clothing by Fiske & BEEN and A,
Frank three planning mills by Ihos. q II.
Colwell, II. c. Strawn and Weis " Wolf;
five carriage factories by Gay Son, II.
W. Jones, j. ID. Vette, Hill Il Formulas,
&c. hardware and tinware establishments
by f. A. Kendall Manley Il Jordan, II.
Smeeton, H9berlin Bros, and Nj. Quigley;
marble works by +. Kuyl and Baldwin d
Priseler cigar box and pump factory: by
H. G. King; large brewery by A. White
and many other minor industries.
This is simply the shortest statement of
what exists Let us add few words on
what might exist here, by naming few of
Qttawa'S advantages;
SHIPPING FACILITIES.
The Illinois and Michigan Canal runs
through the city of Ottawa for the distance
of about one mile and a half. AS the rail
roads have to compete with the canal, 1t IN.
sures very low freights The lateral canal,
"side.cut," affords an entrance from the
canal into the very heart Of the city, and
landing for the boats at the
doors of the manufactures. The Chicago,
Rock Island and Pacific Railroad, one
of the main connections of the Union Pa
cifc, runs through Ottawa, affording direct
with the far west, south.
west and east The Fox River branch of
the Chicago, Burlington Il Quincy Rail
road also passes through Ottawa, to Strea- |
tor. This road forms one link of trunk
line from Chicago TO st. Louis and the
Gulf of Mexico, bringing Ottawa within
four hundred miles of the cotton fields of
the south Among the expected improve
ments are the building of railroad from
Kankakee to Mendoza, passing through |
Ottawa, connecting with trunk lines east
and to Cincinnati, and the northwest.
There is hardly doubt that this road will
be built within the next two years.
A great variety of manufactures may be
carried on here with success. 1t is the nat |
ural manufacturing center OF a region
much more extensive than La Sale county, |
for of all the cities of the state, from Peoria |
TO Indiana, and from Rockford to Danville
it only has never failing water, power,
The improvement of the rivers, added to
the power furnished by the hydraulic basin,
at the lowest stages of water would furnish
900 horse power; and the beds of the
streams being solid rock this improvement
could be made at very reasonable ex
pense With plenty of cheap lands adj
ioing the site of power, no place In the
country offers greater inducements to capt.
alists.
Another point is the cheapness OF coal
The best quality of steam coal can be had
1t from $3.50 to $500 per ton, and with
hree or four coal fields within sixteen miles
here is never any danger of unreasonable
prices.
1t is especially well situated for the man,
fracture of glass, all the more bulky ingre-
lients being found here, and obtainable at
less cost TO manufacturers of glass than at
my other city in America. 1t is the uni
yersal testimony of glass makers that no
'ity now making glass can equal her in
purity and cheapness of sand or ability to
ldluld'lIut 'utdplNl tIt ulNdSiitd odnu
making an excellent quality of fine flint
glass.
1t also possesses superior facities for the
production of clay wares, drain tile, sewer
Dipe, fire brick, common red front brick,
tone-ware, fire prooting wares, and such
ike. The fire-clays (the most valuable
lays have never been analysed, but the
better test of fire has shown them to be
superior to any made in the west, and
,qualed so far as now known only by the
ire clays OF New Jersey. Mr.. Kirkpatrick,
IN expert on this subject, says: LA Sale
county is one of the richest, If not the
'ichest in Illinois in the deposit of valua
DE clays There are six distinct strata OF
luminous clays in the county, the
owest of which rests on the st. Peter
sandstone, and varies from four to sixteen
'eet in thickness the remainder occurring
throughout the coal measures; and some of
he most valuable of these for commercial
purposes are found in the vicinity of Otta-
VA. These have been tested for stone