Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1889-01-23


Bradley became interested in the furnace
at Vesuvius and planted the plow factory
there. Some years before he retired from
the works, Mr.. Hugh F. Lyle, now OF
became interested in the plow-
which is still conducted there,
a short distance above the old, by Mr.. Lyle
and his partner, Mr.. William HUMPHREYS,
with established and well-deserved success.
The last of the buildings associated with
the industries at McCowa's and the South
River foundry ard pillow factory, was the
old brick mansion house, which has yielded
up it's walls in a decayed condition to
progress. They were taken down in 1851
to make way for the track Of the Shenan-
doah Valley railroad.
The Buena Vista Property.
In the early part of 1881, some OF the
gentlemen of the company engaged in
building the Richmond & Allegheny rail-
road geoligists and others accompanying
them-were announced to address Lynch
burg audience in the large Opera House in
that city. Having made close investiga-
tion along the main, as well as the branch
line to Lexington, they proposed to speak
of resources and development. Hon. James
G. Blaine, then one of the Railroad Com
pany, was announced, but be failed to
come, and his necessary absence explained.
Among the geologists present, with some
from Pennsylvania, was Major Jed Hotch-
kiss, of Staunton, with his marvelously
useful blackboard, upon which he always
and most happily illustrates his researches,
and what he has 10 say of them. When
Major Hotchkiss sketched the western side
of the Blue Ridge Mountain and its foot
hills and table lands, describing the i'm
mense quantities of ilon there buried IN
the belt from the gap of James River
northward, that large and intelligent as
semblage of people fairly rose to their feet
in expression of delight, as be portrayed
upon the blackboard illustrations of the
important truths he was uttering. In all
this, he was sustained by Mr.. Weeks and
others of the party who had made close ex-
aminations and an old sovant said that
the scene impressed him as that of giant
creating and dissolving continents.
THE BUENA VISTA IRON SECTION.
In that long iron belt described at the
Lynchburg meeting, and portrayed upon
the maps of Rockbridge as they mark its
course through the county, the Buena
Vista property holds section eight miles
long covering much of its width.
At Green Forest, a new and growing
manufacturing town on the East or noun
tain side of North River, eight miles below
Lexington, and three below the mouth of
South River. the lines Of the Richmond 81
Allegheny aud the Shenandoah Valley
railroads converge till only separated by
the narrow space of the old canal and its
entertainments. The lines of both roads
pass through the streets of this young
giant in development, and the side tracks
of each run here and there and up to the
doors of the many industrial establish
ments.
A few rods from Green Forest common
ces the lower or Southern end of the Buena
Vista iron section. There, the first and
continuing mining operations have been
conducted for ninety years, supplying the
three furnaces which, from first to last.
have been built upon the property On the
South River, as we'll as the Amherst fur
mace on James River, erected by Mr..
Samuel F. Jordan about thirty years ago.
The ore resources, as remarked, continue
along the bare hills of the mountain. The
Eastern line of the section is the top of the
mountain and continues from the mines
near Green Forest to Irish Greek, about
eight miles. The boundary shows the
property to be narrow at each end, but
widens out on the irregular Western line.
About the middle of the Territory it is six
miles wide, extending f,on the mountain
to the summit of the Western hills of the
Valley already described, and contains
about twelve thousand acres, compactly
united, their Western limits being within
four miles of Lexington. The length OF
the property on the South River fronts,
and through which runs the Shenandoah
Valley railroad, is over two miles. Mr..
Jordan, as well as his predecessors, opened
the beds along the length of the section at
several points, all revealing the ore in rich
ness and the greatest abundarce-one par
ticularly at the head of Stony Run, two
miles above the works, is represented as
rich as that from which the supplies have
been obtained. This point is about fivs
miles above Green Forest, and within one
of the Shenandoah Valley railroad at al
most level grade.
| TOPOGRAPHY, OPEN LANDS, FORESTS, MARI,
LIMESTONE, AND wATER-PowER.
The boundary of the property, as al
| ready noted, is nearly straight line on
the mountain or Eastern side, but irregus
lar on the West. At the center a block OF
the territory, two miles North and South
and six wide, holds the best of the farming
lands. The South River and the railroad
pass through it, and small streams from
the high hills of the Western side of the
Valley descend with great rapidity down
the slopes. The open lands are three
hundred acres of rich river low grounds,
and an unknown quantity of table and hill
surface adjacent. There are about five
hundred acres of original yellow pine forest,
which has scarcely been touched by a
lumberman. There are several hundred
acres of original oak-forest but little dis
| turbed in the past, and there are a thousand
Or more acres of young and thrifty growth
of oak, pine, ard chestnut, covering the
space cut off thirty years ago in obtaining
charcoal for the furnace. Large mari and
limestone beds within two hundred yards
of the furnace site, afford those indispensa
ole ingredients for ironmaking. Along
with the ore deposits, Professors Campbell
md MoCraatb ara lau;cb in tbei- oSt lima tes