The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1892-12-24
A MARVELLOUS GROWTH.
Ogden, the Junction City" of
the Great West.
SOUTHERN PACIFIC SHOPS.
Public and Paiyate improvements Made
During the Year.
The Natural Gas Finds New Placer Dig
ginSs Near ut Hand-Five Distinct
Hallway Tracks Enter
the City.
SOUTHERN PACIFIC SHOPS.

Much has been written and told of Og-
denis delightful climate, magnificent
scenery; her great Importance as COM
mercial center and railroad distributing
point; her favorable location as a manu-
featuring city and her rich farming dis
tricts, but in many instances the two
most important OF her resources, the
mines and natural gas deposits, have been
somewhat overlooked.
Where these latter lavishly abound the
other VIII soon follow as natural Sc
quence.
The great country Immediately tribu-
tary to Ogden has been abundantiy blessed
by Nature with vast mineral deposits, easy
OF access, the working OF which is but a
very small item, attended as it is with so
little labor.
The mountains surrounding the juno
ton city are scanned with veins of the
precious and useful metals which crop
out in every conceivable place. Wherever
there is a canyon or water way which has
been cut in the sides of the mountains by
the action of the elements, there will be
found signs of ore which in almost every
instance lead to we'll defined prospects in
the immediate vicinity.
VAST MINERAL DEPOSITS.
Situated about eleven miles north of
Ogden near the small CITY of Willard are
vast deposits Of iron ore of most super
Tor quality. Samples have been sent east,
and the returns show that the grade OF
the ore is unequalled by the best product
arL crft S1rrap of
the iron world. Several years ago some
local capitalists organized d company and
purchased a small smelter, which they
located at the foot of Twenty-tirst street.
The venture proved so successful that the
Colorado Coal, Coke and iron company,
whose base OF operations was and IS at
Pueblo, became alarmed and made the
Ogden child. then fast assuming the
stature OF young giant, glitter
ing offer, which was accepted and
the little plant was absorbed by the
great Colorado combine. Instead of en-
larging the shelters at Ogden, as had
been promised, the company moved the
machinery to Pueblo and all that now re-
mains of what had given such abundant
promise OF being a necleus around which
manufactures and reduction works would
have gathered, is dismantled furnace
ana some worthless machinery. Through
the untiring efforts of several public
spirited citizens of Ogden, however, such
will not be the condition OF affairs for
many months.
With the coming of the Southern Pacific
and Rio Grande Western shops will also
come iron smelters and reduction works,
the output of which will be consumed in
the shops in the manufacture Of cars,
locomotives and steel rails. These much
desired improvements have been assured,
and the necessary capital is only awaiting
1a,,f. J.
the Investment which from the start
could not help but pay large dividends.
Not only are there iron deposits north of
the city, but east and southeast. Nearly
every claim in the La Plata and Ogden
canyon groups gives large returns of a
good grade OF iron and other deposits of
ore of equally as high grade as those
near Willard and seemingly as inexhaus-
tlOle have been uncovered in the near vi
entity. With natural gas, which is only
awaiting the necessary labor to bring 1t
TO the surface, Ogden is bound to become
the Pittsburg OF the west, and with the
ushering in of the new year the tide of
progress and prosperity which this time
will know no check, will begin to flow in
and the junction City Will take her place
where she belongs, at the head OF the
commercial column.
NATURAL GAS.
When the doubts which mad existed in
the minds OF the people of Utah as to the
existance in any paying quantities of
natural gas in the valley of the Great
Salt lake, were dispelled forever by the
discoveries made at and near Lake Shore,
the citizens of Ogden began tounderstand
that in order to remain in the race it
would be necessary to do little prospect
ing for natural gas themselves and finan-
cial aid was accorded to Denver parties
minating fluid south of the city The
latest improved machinery was purchased !
and drill was put down to a depth of
nearly 600 feet but through mismanage- /
ment the enterprise which started out
under such suspicious circumstances
proved failure and the first movement
looking toward discovery of natural gas
in the immediate vicinity of Ogden was
abandoned. Early in the fall another /
and more successful venture was
placed on foot and the indications
point to the immediate fulfillment
of the prom lses of the gentleman who.
names appear on the list as promoters of 4
the enterprise. Messrs. Stephens and
Main, representing capitalists, oil and /
gas men Of Findlay, Ohio, have Sc
cured leases to several large tracks of
land lying west and northwest of Ogden,
along the lake, and Immediately upon
the arrival of some special machinery
ordered from Findlay the drills at the
first well, located in Wilson'S lane, will
be started. Derricks and buildings have