The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1886-12-23
VOL. Ill.
rHE CRANBERRY IRON REGION
peveloping q Great IrOn Country.
poolnl Cor. Manniaeturer.. Record. ]
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn,
December 10, 1886. (

DeCeInDSI ~, Aooo'
We left Ashland by rail to escape the
impending snow storm, which has
since made the mountain roads inn
passible, and reached this city by
circuitous route which took us through
Lexington and Knoxville. This was
fully double the distance which the 3
C's air line will traverse between here
and its northern terminus on the Ohio
river, No close connections are made
at those two cities, consequently we
were forty hours in making trip
that when the new railroad is built
can be accomplished in ten hours.
The day after our return | went
over the East Tennessee & Western
North Carolina Railroad to Cranber-
ry, that might compare the difficult
ties Of that route with those we had
seen while journeying among the Vir-
ginia and Kentucky mountains.
Much as | had heard of this road, l
had no conception OF the rugged char
acter OF the country or OF the obsta-
cles the engineers had to surmount.
There is no spot in all the two hun
dred miles north OF here that presents
such tremendous Instructions to rail-
road building as Col. Matson encoun-
tered while constructing this narrow
gauge road. Three separate surveys
were made by experienced and skilled
engineers, all Of whom declared the
undertaking impracticable. In No
vember 1878, Col. Matson was sent to
this field with instructions to find a
route for standard guage road. AZ
ter two months work, he pronounced
it impossible, but asserted that mar,
row guage road could be built, He
found course for it up the almost per
,pendicular side of anarrow mountain
gorge, through which a strong torrent
dashes over Jagged rocks In making
the survey he led his party up thai
stream, although the icy water was in
many places breast high. 1t was &
feat none but brave and ambitious
Young engineer would have dreamed
of attempting.
In 1880 the company decided L
make the attempt, and in Septemhe
the'work OF construction began. TIL,
last spike was driven July 4, 1882, ant
soon afterwards trains ran regularl!
between Cranberry and this place
The cost ofconstruction was 100000
This road is thirty-hve miles long
The sharpest grade begins within thre
miles Of the North Carolina line, and
159 feet to the mile. Its construction
and the development Of the countr
caused by it has made Johnson Git
the largest freight station onthe line {
the East Tennessee, Virginia Il Georgi
Railroad. The daily receipts Of Bei
semer ore average $50 tons. Beside
this, large quantities Of pig iron, stave
oak bark, lumber and country produc
are brought down from the mountain
The back country tributary to th
line has experienced great change
within four years. The people wei
isolated and knew little Nof what W;
going on ontside of their immedia
neighborhoods. They had no hon
markets and their produce of all kin,
was of little value. Col. Matson illu
trates this by an incident that occu
red at the construction camp. Oh
day man appeared with large tu
key. and two fat chickens for sal
His price for the three was twenty-fi
cents. When he received it he look
at it and fingered it for moment al
then said cts the first money L
seen in four years" AS soon as t
road was finished, general stores we
started at all convenient localiti
The merchants bought the surplus
the farms and whatever the mou
taineers broughtthem from the fores
Villages sprang into life around t
stores, and schools and churches We
built. Before the road was constru
ed the entire value of school a
church property between Elizabe
ton and Cranberry might have be-
at a liberal estimate, $500; now in
same territory the aggregate cost
these is fully $4,000. One nc
worthy effect has been the stea
elimination Of the idlers. When ev,
cabin had more produce than its
cupants could consume and there '
no market for the surplus, all too Il
to work liyed upon their neighb'
Every householder was free-hand
and if an indolent do-nothing came
his house fer meal, or for meat,
corn for his family the hospita
mountaineer cheerfully gave of
abundance But since the mercha
take all that can be spared, the
order OF things has changed.
thrifty are no less generous than
fore, but they have learned that i
mnn,isa 10 hnlntn sustain other rnel