Birmingham age-herald., 1894-08-24
SLATE IN EAST TENNESSEE.

II was the fortune or Jne WrlJer OI LulS article to be born in the iron and coal re- gion of Alabama, some 50 years ago. The stale geologist had been over the ground and pointed out the vast wealth that cropped out of the hills and ravines of Jeff feTsor, Shelby, Blount aud Walker coun- ties, covering the Warrior coal fields of 4000 square miles, the Cahaba coal field of 800 and the Coosa coal field of 1000, but no
 more use had been found for these mineral
 deposits than to run a few blacksmith shops
 in the valley to sharpen blows for the
 neigh boring farmers. At the same time the Red mountain iron deposit ran for
 thirty miles up and down the southeast
 side of the valley, with layer of ore from
 15 to 30 feet thick in full view of travellers
 along the high road, without attracting
 any more attention from capitalists than
 so much sandstone or limestone. "Cotton
 was king' and iron was nowhere.
 n In the February number of Dipplncott's
 Magazine of 1S69 this writer published an
 article on southern reconstruction, in
 which he pointed out the riches ot Jones
 valley in Alabama, and sought to turn the
 attention of northern capitalists in that
 direction. Ia 1872 the Alabama Great Southern railroad and the Louisville and
 Nashville railroad crossed their tracks in
 sight of the little town of Elyton-where
 was born -and in q few months the Elyton
 Land company laid off the city of Brming-
 ham in an old cotton plantation of 1000
 acres, and set up corners for two miles
 square and began the sale of lots. There
 were at that time but two iron furnaces in
 operation within what is now called the
 Birminghani district. Now there are
 twenty five furnaces, the output of which,
 with other industries, has collected pop
 ulation of 100, GOO people and a capital of
 s40, ,000, coo. Having been an eye witness
 10 this long sleep and sudden awakening of
 human industry have some faith to be-
 leve that know good thing when l see
 it, and having providentally become ac-
 quainted with the slate deposits of east
 Tennessee l feel inclined to give to the world the benefit of my observation.
 In the southeast portion of the state of
 Tennessee the river, rom which the state
 has taken it's name, debouches from the
 Smoky mountains, which form the western
 boundary of North Carolina, and makes q
 deep valley of one mile in width and forty
 miles in length, running west by north to
 the Holston river, at Lenoir's City, twenty
 miles below Knoxville. From this point
 the united streams form large river, flow
 ing in the form great U through north
 Alabama and back again northward to the Ohio river.
 The Tennessee, or Little Tennessee, as
 the upper portion of the stream is called,
 forms the boundary between Blouut and Monroe counties in east Tennessee, both Of
 which border on North Carolina. From the top of the, mountains to the towns of
 Mayville and Madisonville, the county
 seats of these counties, is distance of forty
 miles. The intervening space is made up of mountain ranges, narrow valleys, large streams and boundless forests. Excepting the valleys, formed by the water courses, there is but little arabic land, and very sparse population. The valleys are rich and yield large crops of corn, which, for want of transportation, is generally fed to hogs, which are driven across the noun tains to the nearest markets. These val. leys can be made to produce all the food supplies for a large mining population. The locations are beautiful and healthful, and already considered desirable for resi- dences.
 In the year 1885 Col. W. A. Hoskins, who commanded the Twelfth regiment of Kentucky volunteers of the United States army in the late war, was engaged Tn prospecting on mineral lands in east Ten nessee, and finding some evidences of roof ing slate on the north side of the Tennessee
 river, near the old Indian town of Chil- howee, he purchased the tract of 23O0 acres, now the property of the Tennessee Slate company, and soon after formed a company for it's development. He afterWard pur- chased the place lower down the river on
 which he now resides, and several years after discovered the same or better slate on | it. Meantime Messrs. Hamilton and Walsh | oi Ohio purchased adjoining property south of the Tennessee Slate company and have proceeded to develop it. Some few boat | loads of slate have been shipped by the | Tennessee river to Chattanooga. Want of means has arrested shipments for some time.
 All the slate that has arrived in market has found ready sale at $6 or s6.60 per square. Two boats of the seven started were lost in the main river after they had reached the route of steamboat navigation, but no boat has ever been lost on the shoals l between the quarries and the head of | steamboat navigation. This shows con. l clusively that this river at high tide IS available for the shipment of slate and Is undoubtedly cheaper freight than by rail- 1 road, even if railroad were built to the | quarries. At the same time railroad is l desirable, and as the line of the river forms l a'natural road bed several surveys have l been made for the location of different lines l of road projected through the Smoky mountains from Tennessee to the Caro- | linas. It is only eighteen miles to the l Knoxville Southern at McGhee's station and twenty four miles to the terminus of tthe Knoxville and Atlanta railroad at 1 Maryville.
 ! Altogether, the deposits of roofing slate | have been located ou an area of about 5O0O l acres, all lying on the north bank of the l river, though 1t is possible further investi- | gations may discover similar slate on the | south benk. The river front of these lands
 extend for about five miles and reaches back about two miles. The farthest dow n | the river on which slate has been found is l on the farm of Colonel Hoskins, below the
 mouth of Abram's creek, and within a 1 quarter of mile of the river. This quarry l is also accessible to steamboat navag ation | by a good wagon road of two miles distance down the right bank of the river. On the 1 Tennessee Slate company's property there | is a train road from the mouth of Abram g I creek to the slate mill, two miles up Pan- l ther creek, tributary of Abrams creek. | The two streams give an admirable fail l with great water power near the quarries. AS to the value of this property there can
 be no question from the opinions of ex- l perienced skaters from Pennsylvania, Mich | igan, Vermont and Wales. It has been 1 thoroughlY tested by such men as ". II [.