The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1890-08-17
IN, THE W EST END.
HUGE FURNACE SOON TO BE
PUT in BLAST.
A SORE OF PRETTY COTTAGES.

tn Entertaining Story of the Yes,
End Furnace Company * Operation:
by Onc ofthc Times Bright Young
cn-pcrsonneI %: the Company.
Half mile beyond where the last
house is rising in the fashionable
West End section Of the city II little
town is being built.
1t is within the corporate limits oil
Roanoke and yet separate from the
city proper. The West End furnace
is the center and heart of the town
and around it Il score OF pretty little
houses have been erected and more
are to follow
The little village flashes suddenly
on the eye of the visitoras he drives
over the steep road, perfect blaze of
color The furnace with its smoke
stacks and towers of chimneys, newly
painted black, and its red east house
of corrugated iron, CLEAN in the
morning sun, contrasting strongly
with the deep, dark green of the cot
tages and outhouses.
Ii is expected to have the furnace
in readiness for the first cast by the
middle of next month, but one
wouldn't judge 50 in visiting it. All
about, III seeming confusion, lay
boilers, bits Of machinery and parts
of the intricate plant that has been
building now for oearly year But
there is no confusion. Everything is
moving along with the regularity of
clockwork, and the master hand hav-
ing control knows exactly what it is
about
The furnace, with ITS surrounding
village, lies in gently rolling valley
The hills with their inexhaustibe
store of mineral wealth, look down
upon it from every dir, ton, while
the river spla,hes around its nortiie. II
side on its way to the far off sea.
From this river. the Roanoke, water
is drawn for the use of the furnace by
immense pumps, through great pipes,
TO the large, redpainted east iron
tank with capacity of hundreds Of
thousands of gallons. The tank lies
just between the pretty little Office of
the company and the engine room
Already ore from the mines Of the
which are to furnish the
company, is coming in, and yesterday
two car loads were being unIoaded
There is plenty of limestone, too, and
long rows of it stretch next the east
house. its dull whiteness contrasting
strongly with the briSht-colored
The company will get all
of its ores from this section, It's coal
from the renowned Pocahontas fields,
and its limestone from Glade Spring.
OH the Norfolk aud Western road.
All the raw materials 10 be used at
the furnace will come from this sec
ton, and the establishment will be a
typical Southwestern enterprise.
When it has been completed, the
rolling mill to be built by the same
company will be pushed ahead
Ground for the foundation
will lie broken some time this week.
Already the great works at Pittsburg
are busily at work on the machinery.
The rolling mill is TO be erected just
east of the furnace, beyond the brook
that runs through the lands of the
company. The site has been laid off
by little stakes, covered with white
paper that show up here and there
through the tall green tangled weeds.
This mill will manufacture iron plates
of every description, especially boiler
plates. 1t is a pioneer in this field in
the South, and there is not doubt
but what it will bea most profitable
investment. 1'housande of feet of
plates are used in the construction of
a furnace alone, and all of this has
to be shipped from Pennsylvania.
There is not at this time Il mill in
the South manufacturing them, and
taking into consideration the number
of furnaces now being erected
throughout this section, field al
most unoccupied lies ready to be ia
ken possession of by this new enter
prise. Even if there was 10 call for
other than furnace plates the invest
ment would be profitable. Pittsburg
is now the great centre for their man
ufacture. and all of the iron used in
the construction of the West End
Furnace came from that place. a
great deal of delay was caused by the
Strike of the boiler makers at Pitts
burg. but this has been settled and no
moro trouble is feared. Eleven OF the
fourteen tremendous boilers required
to keep the furnace going are now in
place and the remaining three are on
their way here. =,
The rolling mill and furnace will
together employ in the neighborhood
of 500 men and this, taking as a basis,
the usual ratio will bring to this sec
ton of the city nearly 1900 persons.
The great Majority Of these people
will live on the lands of the company,
it is expected. There are tifty.two
acres belonging to them in the little
valley, including eight acres j ust
across the Roanoke river from which
a fine quantity of sand for the use of
the furnace and mills can be taken.
Perhaps half of the land will be re-
nnirnd for the two plants. the remain