The Somerset reporter., 1888-02-08
Our Mill Property,

ouT Will Properly
The transfer of the Shurtleff, Willis, T
Burrill and Abbott mill property to Gen.
John I. Richards and Henry Richards
representing the Richards Paper Manu-
featuring Company aud certain Boston
capitalists. took place In Boston, Tues
day of last week The Richards Pa
per Company is being reorganized, aud
the manufacture of pulp here is under
stood To be for the supplying Of Gardiner
mills. The Shurtlef Pulp mill is to be
enlarged from n two ton per day mill to "A
to be rebuilt, the fumes blasted out of the
solid ledge and first class mill for man
ufactnring pulp to be put in. L is under
stood to be the plan of the owners to put
the dam on the south channel in thorough
repair, aud in the near future put the
Willis property, the Abbott property and
the Burrill property in thorough repair 10
be leased to parties to carry on yarions
industries. Operations on the Shurtleh
and Robinson mills are to be commenced
at as early a day as practicable Thus it
Will appear that bat one power in addition
to the one now occupied for that purpose
is to be used to manufacture pulp, and
the one now occupied is to be made 10
treble its product, The occupants Of the
Willis, Burrill and Abbott mills are ten
ants at will, and will probably continue
a. they are for the time being.
SO far a we have been able to learn
our people have confidence that the
present owners will improve the property
and use the power 50 that il will be a sub
Stantial advantage to the place. To be
sure they would prefer to see some indus
| try like a wooden or cotton mill that
would employ greater number of opera
/ tivcs than the pulp manufacture, but
there remain privileges that may be utii-
lied for something of this kind later
We expect no "boom" in Skowhegan, but
we do expect and think we have reasons,
with our varied industries to expect
substantial growth such as has been en-
/ jOycd for the past decade, The company
that has the property is one with abun.
dant capital, and Gen. j. r. Richard,
and Henry Richards have long been IN
business on the Kennebcc and are wei
ness men.
A word in regard to the history of tn,
various movements that have resulted il
this transaction may not be amiss here
Two years ago Mr.. w. X Shurtlef
with other owners of water rights hen
began the task of getting the titles of thu
several owners into shape so that thci
rights could be defined and conveyed il
desired. 1t was long and tedious jol
but it was at last accomplished by the re
organization of the Skowhegan Wate
Power Company into which the owner
ship of the various privileges was merge,
and from which company the varion
owners took title of certain definite powe
determined by mathematical calculation
by this arrangement Mr.. w. G.. s. kcene
through purchase, became the owner o
property and rights sufficient to max
him the owner of Il majority of the stool
of the Water Power Company
In November last Mr.. Shurtlelr begal
negotiations looking to the sale of TIN
property owned by Mr.. Kcene He bond
ed the property, putting up sum o
, money as forfeiture. His first negotia
tons were with n syndicate of New Yorl
and Boston capitalists, and the deal afte
getting well along to point where it wa
considered sure slipped through. Ill