Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1889-03-21
THE ROAD TO WEALTH
OPENED UP BEFORE THE SOUTHERN TIER
OF COUNTIES.
An Interesting Talk With Well Known Business
Man Of the Kanawha Vallsy-Ths @. &
0.'s New POliey-Four New
Railroads Projected.

|
marked than in the liberal policy lately
adopted by the Chesapeake and Ohio Rail-
road The representative of the REGISTER
lately had the pleasure of conversing with
Maj. T. L. Broun, who is probably ss deep
ly interested in the commercial develop
ment of the Southern section of the State
as any other man, and found him enthusi-
astic over the prospects for railroad build
ing in the coming summer.
THE c. & O.'s LIBERAL PLAN.
Mr.. Broun said: President Ingalls,, OF
the c. q O., has adopted a policy which
will be of inestimable value to the people
of this section. He fully appreciates the
importance of developing local trade, and
in the future his policy will be directed to
that end. l am assured that he is now
Offering great inducements to build short
local lines OF road and thus create new
industries O. & o. engineers have already
heen sent up most of the tributaries to the
KanaWha river to make surveys for feed
ers, and az soon as the local interests can
be induced to take hold the q. q O. man
agement proposes to have a complete sys-
TEN of branching lines to develop the re-
sources Of this valley.
"The character of the proposed work can
be seen in some already done. There are
now short railroads up about seven Of the
smaller tributaries Of the Kanawha They
are from three to fifteen miles in length,
and ali open up rich coal and timber terri.
tories. Ga Armstrong creek for instance,
company of English capitalists have pur-
chased large tracts of coal land, aud they
are now mining coal and manufacturing
coke in great quantities About 200 men
are employed. These roads add an i'm
mense amount TO the annual tonnage Of
the O. q o. railroad, and the new manage
meDt desires to increase it by all means in
their power. Mr.. Ingalls, is cooperating
with these branch lines and Offering great
inducements to build others, and extend
those already built.
THE COAL RIVER BASIN
"Fhe basin of the Coal river is especially
valuable or account of its timber and can
mel coal. The. G & O have had a com
plete survey made of the whole territory,
with the view of extending a branch line
up to its source. Coal river drains all of
Boone, and parts of Lincoln, Kanawha,
Raleigh and Wyoming counties, an area of
l 900 square miles. All is a fine timber
country, and for 30 miles along the river
there is the finest outcrop OF camel coal
in the country. The coal is magnificent
i~ -al;+y. ~ssa A. --4;45- - '->---h~..~%->
BILE. The beds range from four to seven
feet in thickness, are easily mined, and
would be brought into the market By a
short extension of the lines. On the head
waters of Big Coal river, fine beds of the
best Kanawhs valley cOkiDg coal are found.
They would be opened up to market by
the same enterprise, es the camel coal
''The object Of the 9. q o. under its new
management is to supply Cincinnati and
the Southern market with coal. The COM
psny has already expended an immense
sum in making its Cincinnati connec-
tons, and now 1 am assured, will spend
more in developing the important in
terests of this section, which is the largest
coal field close to the Cincinnati market.
The @. & 0. will guarantee shipping ates
as low as coal can be shipped by water.
The report of the output fer the last year
shows this, as nearly the same amount
was shipped each way. There is hardly any
doubt that this is destined to be one of the
richest coal producing sections in the
clunsry before many years. The river is
open practically all the year round. We
bsve shorter distance 20 transport our
product than the Pittsburg operators, and
there is no reason why Kanawta river coal
should not soon mOnopOlize the southern
market
THE NORFOLK AND WESTERN.
"But am grstifed to say that the O. &
o. is not the only railroad that promises
to do much in developing this country.
The Norfolk and Western has already tun-
nelled through the mountain into Nc
Dowell county and extensive coke works
have been erected. The same thing has
been done in Mercer county. l have seen
letters from the managers of the N. q w.
road, and they infcrm me that they will
complete this line soOn-prObably this
summer. 1t will be extended down to
Twelve Pole creek and will terminate at
Ceredo, Wayne county, thus transversipg
parts of Mcdowell, Wyoming, Logan and
WAYNE counties. The country is remark
ably rich. and the Philadelphia capitalists,
who are back of the n. Il w. have in
vested largely in lands along the route.
They have already purchased large property
AT Ceredo and expect to erect works there
and make it an important business center.
It is generally understood that work will
commence in the next thirty days. One
of the first things will be TO erect a large
steel bridge across the Ohio river near Ce-
redo. This will establish the n. q W'sI
connection with the Ohio system OF rail-
roads. The work of grading will be COM
psrstiyely easy There is sn unbroken
down grade between POcshontas, Tszs"ell
county. and the Ohio river, with the ex-
cAntion of the tunnel between Laurel Fork
of Pigeon Creek and the head OF Twelve
Pole The construction of these parts OF
the road will be under way as soon as the
weather will permit. Work will be be-
Oun ON both ends of the tunnel early IN
tine spring. There is scarcely any doubt
tbat the line will he completed In the
next eighteen months and 1t will prove
one of the most important railroad enter
nrises ever undertaken in this State. 1t
will shorten the distance from Pocahontas
and Tug river coal fields TO Western points
from 600 TO 700 miles, and will bring these
valuable Goals into general use IN the
Western and Southern markets.
THE HUNTINGTON AND GUYANDoTTE
ROAD.
,Trnthe Ciuysndotte river from Hunting
ton the o. r. r. proposes to build feeder
This enterprise is already well on foot'
Surveys have been made, riehts OF way
secnred. and it only remains for the coun-
ties Of Cabell, Lincoln and Logan to vote
rocderate stock subscription TO make the
road an assured fact. 1t will probably
connect with the Norfolk and Western, and
Give that company an outlet to the north.
The vslue of this enterprise can hardly be
over estimated. 1t will make all the rch
Southwestern counties tributary to Hunt
inotop: and will add immensely to its bus
nTbere is another line of railroad pro-
acted from Charleston, s. G. 1t comes
north through Pulaski county, and strikes
the Big Sandy river pear the Mcdowell
and Wyoming county lines A great part
of the road has already been built and the
extension is a certainty. 1t will run down
the Big Sandy to the Ohio, and oonne''
there with the @. & o. System.
"Thisis enough to show that thereis goou
reason for the rosy hopes we entertain iOf