Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1889-01-06
THE RECORD OF A YEAR.
S0uth's Industrial Advance During
1888 Wonderful Progress.
Bright Prospects for the Future-The Diversity
of Growth-Over 5000 New Enter
prises in Three Years.

Many of the great enterprises-the
furnaces, rolling mills, car works and
kindred establishments projected during
the boom of 1887, and the construction of
which occupied from twelve to eighteen
months, passed from the constructive
period to that of active work as
wealth producers during 1888 Some
of the splendid furnaces at EnsIey City,
BeSsemer, Gadsden, Pulaski, BiTmng-
Lam and elsewhere, which are destined
to play such al important part in South
ern industrial history, went into blast
diHing the latter part of the year, while
many Others are nearly ready to start up
with the opening of the new year. New
coal mines to supply the ever increas-
ing demand for Southern coal have been
opened i'm Maryland, in the ViTginias, in
North Carolina, IN Kentucky, Tennessee,
Alabama, Georgia, Arkansas and Texas
and the output for 1883 was far beyond
the production of any preceding year,
while lSS9wiu show as great a growth i'll
the amount Of coal mined over 1888 as it
viii in pig-iron making over last year
Cotton mill building has been active,
and the year has witnessed a great
expansion OF that industry. In every
line Of manufacture, covering the widest
diversity Of production, in railroad con
struction, in the opening of iron and coal
and precious metal mines, in the utilZa-
ton OF all the vast natural resources of
this wonderfully blessed section, the
progress was not only rapid, but il was
solid and substantial. Local boomS
are lost in the general development
Of the whole South, and Of the
wide diversity of this industrial ad-
vance, which includes in its scope the
greatest range Of industries, from the
making of pins to the building of loco
motives and iron and steel steamships,
from the production Of brOoms 10 the
manufacture Of pianOes, from the dig
ging of the ore to the working of steel,
and from the cutting of the tree to Its
fashioning into almost every line of
woodworking, whether it be in
rolling pins and bread trays to
furniture Of all kinds, both fine and
plain, or cars, both freight and passeu
~er The industrial growth of 1883
covers this whole range of enterprise,
and extends its sweep from Maryland to
the very borders Of Mexico. Through
this magnificent domain, vast empire
in itself, the most wonderfully blessed
country upon which the sun shines, the
thrill of new life is felt, and bright as
has been the record of the last few years,
the next half decade viii show a growth
in wealth, in population, in the utiliZa-
ton Of the DoundIess resources of Soi 4
minerals, timber and climate scarcely
dreamed of now even by the most ardent
enthusiast. We need but look back
few years TO see what has been accom-
plished already, and how firm a fouGda-
ton has been laid for future growth
Five years ago Birmingham was but lit
tie known and gave but little promise of
the Unequalled growth which has marked
its history since 1886. Admission was but
a small town, hardly heard of outside of
its own county. Decatur was a dead
country town of probably 1900 inhab-
itants BesSemer had not even been
dreamed of by its protector Shelf
field was cornfeld. Roanoke
numbered probably less than 200O peo-
pie Dallas scarcely one-iifth of the
number of which it now boasts Flor
ence and Rome were sleepy Southern
towns. living on cotton trade alone
Chattanooga was small and insignificant
cOmpared with its present position of
wealth and business. Louisville was con-
cent with the past, and Kentucky had
scarcely thought of developing
the untold mineral wealth
which now bids fair to make that
state one OF the richest III the whole
Union. Five years ago the industriald de
velOpment of the South was confined to a !
very small area and was of limited eX-
tent To-day the whole South is fun of
life and energy, and is building up as no
other country ever did before. Home |
capital is being supplemented by heavy
investments of outside money, which is !
destined to pour into the South |
in a steady stream for years to come,
while Northern and Western men of ener- |
gy, enterprise and experience are joining |
hands with the people of the South i'm
turning the raw materials of this section /
into the finished product, and thus annu- |
ally adding millions to its wealth The /
new year opens with brighter prospects |
than the South has ever before seen. and |
as marvellous as has been the record for |
the last two years, il viii doubtless be /
eclipsed by the work of 1889
The Manufacturers Record has re- /
peatedly called attention TO the increas- |
ing diversity Of the industrial growth of !
the South Small enterprises of all kinds !
are springiug mp in every direction. and !
year by year the South is increasing its
production of many articles for which il (
has heretofore been dependent upon |
other sections. An examination /
of the recent industrial growth
of that section viii show
how rapidly this is going on
Glass IA tories in Alabama and Georgia |
have proved that the South can make its !
own glass. Car works in twenty or
twenty-five places and locomotive works
in Richmoud and Roanoke demonstrate
that the South can make lis own ears and
locomotives at lower cost than they can
be made i'm the North or West Furni- /
ture and carriage factories an over the |
South are beginning 50 supply the home |
demand, while canning factories are saw !
ing hundreds Of thousands of dollars 10 the |
South. No where else in all the world is
the raw material for almost every line of /
manufacture 50 abundant as in the |
South, and scarcely week passes with |
ont some industry entirely new TO this /
section being organized to turn this raw /
material into wealth, while of enterprises |
in established lines of industry many are /
daily started.
4 comparison of the new enterprises
oruauiZqfl 9lrr.ipu he fbraa -