The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1885-07-13
Che aatelliqeatar.
once : Nos. % ava q FoaEtssatis stFsst..
OLD TIME WHEELING.

I|0LD TIME WHEELING.
The 1ntroduetion Of Boilers and the Adyen
n Of SMILED Iaboters.
rfi.ttsJ IN NJ IstsltsmeF. e
J, The fourth decade Of the passing cen,
tury, with couple Of years Of the fifth
marked the most important industrial
period In all the history Of Wheeling. II
included times of great stagnation, oI
actual decadence, Of 1nprece dented pros.
perity and solid progress, unequalled by
any similsr period in the past. Pittsburgh
at "the head Of navigation was the iron
centre of the country, and Its manniactur.
efs had not very eyalted opinion Of the
enterprise Of its little neighbor, that pre-
sumed to "set up for. itself In q business
heretofore monopolized by the capitalists
OF the Smoky City. S Il y
Skilled mechanics rarely came TO
Wheeling TO remain for obvious reasons.
all their inclinations favored Pittsburgh,
Il The journey occupied at least day, BY
boat or stage. The Top Mill, with q very
limited number ofemployes, was the only
place OF its kind in The city, and when
that shut down" there were long seasons
Of enforced idleness, and when such sea.
sons came, as they often did, men went
back 70 the city that proudly boasted It's
halt dozen or more mills, lying within a
radius Of asmany miles, where the chances
for work were 80 much suter and more
numerous. Nor was the social atmos-
phere congenial. The old regias looked
with distrnst upon the white laborer, and
very few inducements were offered himto
remain within the limits OF the Old Do.
minion.
During the administration Of Blake,
Greisemer & Co., the new departure,
looked upon by many as chtmerical and
impractical, from pudding TO boiling was
made. Withits introduction, and subse-
Qnent adoption of,the squeezsrs, 10 take
the place OF the slow.goIng tilt hammer,
the whole iron interest OF Wheeling was
rsvnlntionized and Its splendid future 40
sured.
David Byron, a native Of Wales, q
skilled mechanic and practical metailur-
gist supervised the erection ofthe first
two furnaces, and made the first heat, by
tue new process. Pittsburgh had tried
the experiment q short lime previous,
with successful results. Mr.. Byron had
implicit faith in the undertaking, and pre-
dicted then, what has since been fully
demonstrated, that it would, ere, long be
the leading industry, and the source Of
great and lasting prosperity tothe city.
A change in the management Of the Top
mill about 1915, marked another import
ant epoch, whenE W. Stephens, q skilled
iron-worker and successful manufacturer
from Pittsburgh or rather from ALE
gheny town." assumed control by lease.
With him came. 3. NJ. George and Fred
Norton and their brother, Ben Fisher,
practical nailers, some OF whom have ever
since been identified with that interest in
the Ohio Valley. Enlarged facilities aud
important improvements marked Mr..
Stephens administration.
About this ulne 80 marked was the ad.
vance In the iron interest that another
mill was projected and built, on the point
where the b, & o. passenger depot now
stands. The firm name was Hunter,
Fleming & Co. ALI the members were
we'll known business men. Mr.. Bynon
did the first boiling ut the new mill here.
Think the squeezers were introduced, q
grea. improvement on the tilt hammer,
making 1t possible for a large increase in
the number OF furnaces, which was .
marked feature oil the Point mill. Many
OF the workmen at this establishment
have Since been identified with the bust
ness interestso OF Wheeling, Irontop, Cliff
ton, st. Louis, Steubenville and other
localities. fireworks were subsequently
removed to Benwood, which is to-day 1
10 k1l,l mana tha
ture OF malta.
Shortly after the Belmont mill came
into existence, and with its inception o
rev element came to the industrial sur.
lace. Practical workmen were its origina-
tors and owners, nailers, rollers, boilers,
heaters, engineers, blacksmiths, &c,
combined their labor, skill and capital.
The manufacture of nails being especially
soon made the enterprise success, and
won for its projectors tangible reward aud
recognition.
Mr.. Bynon had the honor OF making the
first "heetn at the Belmont, but only re-
manned there single day. Heperformed
the same Office at the starting OF the Ben
wood mill, where he lived and worked
until the breaking out Of the wsr, when
he left the State, spending the rest OF his
days In Missouri and Ohio. He died in
1881 In the latter State.
No single enterprise, however, exer-
cised so great an influence on Wheeling
and all Its interests, or did SO much to fix
the status, and show the true value OF the
sturdy iron workers, as the La Belle Nail
Works. II brought TO the front new cit
izenship, shrewd, far.seeing, intelligent,
with Just enough Of Yankee vim and GO
ahead.ativenessto compel success. Many
Of Its incorporators, skilled workmen, had
helped make the Belmont successful
establishment. Their names are too we'll
known in local history to need repeating
here; and in the most important political
era, when West Virginia wheeled proudly
into place, the "Mountain Star" in the
Galaxy Of States, no man played q more
important part or exercised 9 greater in
auence for good than s. a. woodward.
The Jefferson Iron Works, the leading
industry Of steubenville, and the source Of
the greater part Of It's prosperity, was
made o success by La Belle enterprise
and management. With the close Of ''the
lortiee, y the position OF Wheeling as the
nail centre ofthe world was fully assured,
although the magnitude Of her importance
and greatness had scarcely dawned upon
her own citizens.
One mill, the Washington, in Richie
town, when iron rails were the specially,
has disappeared, and left no trace behind !;
but wherever nails have been the indus
try, success has followed. Other import
ant mills have helped swell the measure
Of success, but they were not ventures;
they are Of later day and belong TO the
present.
Forty yearahaye passed away, and we,
who we're children at that time look back
in amaEement and try, inyaip, to measure
the wonderful strides Of progress, and
sound with the plummet Of thought the.