The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1884-06-12
AN IMPORTANT LETTER.
The Advantages Of GreenviIlc and Ander-
son for tho New Route from Baltimore
to Atlanta.
The following explains itself:

The following explains itself:
GEEENvILLE, S. G., May %, 'S4.
r. II. Catlctt, Esq, President Salem d
S. w. r. r. Co., Salem, Ia.
Dear Sir: The attention Of railroad
men in this city has been attracted 10
your prospect of connecting Baltimore
and Atlanta by new line of railway,
and believing it to be we'll worthy the
attention of your direction to take into
consideration the policy of locating that
portion of your road between Asheville
| and Atlanta by way of the cities of
Greenville and Anderson in this State,
some of them have requested me to write
you upon the subject.
An examination of the map would in
dicate that the contemplated route through
| Western North Carolina and the upper
part of Georgia is through sparsely
settled and mountainous section. If
this is so, the local traffic would be small
and the line probably an expensive one
to build, while the prospect of securing
local aid to build it would be proportion
ately diminished.
On the other haud it appears to US
that the route from Asheville to Atlanta
via Greenville and Anderson in this
State ard running through the Counties
of Hart, Madison, Clarke, Oconee, Wal
ton, DeKalb and Fulton in Georgia,
would present fewer natural obstacles to
its construction, traverse throughout its
entire length we'll populated and pro.
ductiye country, in fact the most progres.
sive of the entire Piedmont Belt, be To-
Gated far enough from other lines to
command heavy local freight, and
direct enough to compete with any other
for through freights and travel. The
difference in distance could only be as
certained by survey. 1t must be very
small when the comparative level of our
route is considered. Greenville is 81
miles almost due South from Asheville.
1t is growing more rapidly than any town
in the State, contains 5000 people, with
street cars, gas, and electric telephone !:
has Two large cotton mills, one plaid
factory, an extensive cotton seed oil mill, (,
furniture factories aud ice factory, with
numerous other industries which the
above would indicate. About one-fourth
of the cotton mills of the State, some
eight or nine, are located in this County.
Our city has doubled its population
since the building of the Charlotte and
Atlanta railroad some twelve years ago,
and its cotton trade of $4,000 bales been
increased twenty.fold. Anderson with
some $500 population is a rival OF
Greenville in progress and prosperity:
We have now the Charlotte and Attain
ia and the Columbia and Greenville
Railroads both controlled by the Rich
mond and Danville combination. To
avoid this monopoly of which the whole
upper part of South Carolina is restive,
we are now building, with ample means,
the Greenville and Laurens r. r. to
Laurens, 3S miles. There we will meet
the Georgia Central who expect to COM
plete their extension to that point from
Greenwood, S. c., by the lst of October,
prox.
1t is the fixed purpose of our people to
extend the Greenville and Laurens Il.
R. across the mountains to Ashevile or
to unite with other parties and go to
Knoxville. Capt. S. J. Kirk with bis
corps of engineers is now surveying the
route by private subscription, and this
County stands ready to vote 100000 to
aid the enterprise whenever assurance is
given of its successful prosecution. The
mountain section, the difficult one, is
already surveyed and Capt. Kirk makes
the surprising but altogether reliable re-
port that he can cross the mountains
with maximum grade of 6S feet upon
favorable location. His report of the
entire survey to Butts Mountain Gap,
through which the uncompleted Spartan
burg and Asheville R. R. is now running
their trains to Hendersonville, will be
made in two weeks. The latter road, also
controlled by the Richmond and Danville,
we will successfully compete with from
the fact that its mountaiR section has a
grade of 600 feet in three miles or oi
2S4 feet in one of them.
The charter of the Greenville and
Laurens railway authorizes us to extend
that road to any point upon the North
Carolina line.
This city and section of country-rich
populous and enterprising as they are
are determined to have short, direct rail.
way connection with the West, instead
of the present circuitous route by Chat
anooga and Atlanta. They are also de-
termiue ed to obtain relief from the mo-
nopoly now exercised by tue Richmond
and Danville combination over a large
portion of the State. What we desire
above all things in railroad matters il
legitimate competition, and we are stand,
ing ready with our means and good will
and large volume of freights to unite
with any parties giving us an assurance
of obtaining it.
believe that the nine counties in this
State and Georgia through which your
road would pass and the city of Atlanta,
would aggregate subscription OF 81 ,OOoo,,,
900 towards it if thus located. l would
be pleased 10 hear from you at your
earliest convenience, las it is matter in n
which we are going ahead and glad il
YOU think it worth while to have you lay
This communication before your Board OF
Directors.
BY this mail I enclose you q copy OF
the Greenville Daily Ne,cs, in which are
two articles upon your western extension.
am YOURS. very respectfully,