Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1886-05-28
West Virginia Resources.

JOu iuCt 1iSoiuOub AsoS
party of Pennsylvania Railroad people
at Cumberland few days ago."
eyes," said he, "they were making
their usual annual trip Of inspection
over their many lines of road, and in
yited me to meet them at Cumberland
to talk over the contemplated new road
from Piedmont to Conference.-The
Piedmont and Cumberland Railway"
care you going to build the new
road?"
GAS the public is somewhat interested
1 have no objection to stating that we
are now making the necessary surveys,
with view of permanently locating
the line, which is intended to begin at
the West Virginia Central Road juno
ton, about mile west of Piedmont,
and follow the Potomac river to Cum
berland, distance of about % miles.
The first two miles, beginning at the
Junction, are located, and we have
some fifty to sixty men at work. There
will be no tunnels on the line, and the
grade will be comparatively light, de-
scending with the great majority of the
loaded cars"
81 am told there is great deal of
coal, timber and iron ore on the line of
the West Virginia Central Road"
"'A great deal' hardly expresses it.
There are vast tracts Of fine timber and
millions of tons of coal of splendid quail
ity. There are now six or seven coal
mines opened on the road, four of which
are working the noted big vein.' We
also have some twenty saw mills i'll OPP
GRAFTON, and more contemplated. a
large tannery is being built at Davis,
and wood-pulp mill is projected.
Very recently good quality of iroh
ore has been found near Fairfax Stone,
and it is being shipped from there to
Pittsburg."
sIs the new road you are talking of
building in the interest of the Pennsyl-
yania or the Baltimore 81 Ohio Rail
road?"
Neither. IL is purely business en-
terprise, mainly in the interest of the
West Virginia Central Road and the
development of the country it pene-
trates. The West Virginia Central
wants competing outlets to successfully
market the rich products of the country
it has opened up, and, with this con-
Meeting link to Cumberland, it would
have choice of three competing lines
of transportation, viz, the Baltimore IL
Ohio and Pennsylvania Railroad sys-
tens, and the Chesapeake IL Ohio
Canal. 1t is true this road will par
allel the Baltimore & Ohio part of the
way, but that is often done to reach
competing points. If the situation
were reversed and the Pennsylvania
Road reached Piedmont, while the Bal
timore & Ohio stopped at Cumberland,
it is likely that we would want con-
nection with the Baltimore Il Ohio, as
we now do with the Pennsylvania. We
expect to give all three lines of trans
portation at Cumberland fair share of
our business, providing, of course, the
rates of freight are equal, and they
treat us in a fair and just way. The
distance from Cumberland to New
York by both the Baltimore & Ohio and
Pennsylvania Roads is about the same
$50 odd miles"
500 you contemplate extending your
West Virginia Central Road southwest
wardly through West Virginia."
"Not at present; but as soon as the
times are more favorable, and business
will warrant it, we expect to connect
with the Chesapeake and Ohio system.
1t is about sixty miles from Piedmont to
Davis, the present terminus of the West
Virginia Central road, and about l2O
miles from Davis to the Chesapeake and
Ohio road, and we can reach connec-
ton by going down either the Green
brier, Gauley or Elk River Valleys. If
the latter route, which is little the
longest, be chosen, it would bring us to
Charleston, the capital of the State.
There is no railroad, by the way, for
fifty miles on either side of this contem-
plated connection, and the road will
run nearly its whole route through coal
and iron ore territory, covered by vir-
gin forest of finest timber"
81 am told that Davis, your present
terminus, is fast improving. Where is
its exact location"
Yes, Davis is rapidly assuming the
appearance of thriving town; it is To-
Gated at the junction of the Beaver and
Blackwater forks of the Cheat river, in
Tucker county, West Virginia, in the
center Of vast coal and timber region.
We have built a machine shop and en-
CINE house there, and we expect to make
this place the headquarters Of the COM
pany. Mr.. Elkins and myself contem-
plate building at Davis, and making it
our future residence. The company is
building a hotel there also, which will
be completed by June goth; if you
should meet with good hotel man send
him to me, as the hotel is for sale or
rent. The BlackW alter Falls, which
were made famous by Porte Crayon
years ago, are near Davis; they have a
fall of eighty-siX feet, sixty-three of
which are perpendicular. This region
is famous for mountain trout, and there
are parties from Pennsylvania and else
where there now fishing.-BaLimOre
American.