The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1894-02-12

1t is explained that the recent sale at
auction, on an $50. 600 bid, of the prop
erty of the Bradys Bend Iron COM
pany means boom to BrSdy's Bend
Mr.. Gillette, the nominal purchaser,
says company will be organized to
Greet all the works necessary to de-
velope tho full resources Of the prop
erty. The mines will be reopenod, and
it the ore proves of high grade 1t IL
likOly an iron plant, furnaces. etc,
much like the original works. will be
established. Gillette states that the
will sXpend $50. 900, aud more
ii necessary, on the enterprise. Mines
of coal, iron ore and rich veins Of fra
clay and limestone will be worked
The new company will include
PtttSburg, Philadelphia and New
York capitalists. The tract contains
about G.OOO acres In Armstrong and
Clarion counties All that now marks
the site Of the Great Western Iron
works is the brick smoke stack. The
works were immense in their day and
some famous men were connected with
them. One Of them was Samuel j.
Nlden. The panic Of 1878, which
helped to defeat Tilden. also crushed
this business enterprise in which he
was heavily involved A prosperous
town, with 5000 inhabitants, became
the typical deserted village" Once
richly furnished residences became the
resorts of tramps. Company houses,
deserted and diIapidsted, and heaps of
"slag. petrifed by time and the ele-
ments are now the only reminders OF
what was then tho biggest iran making
plant in Pennsylvania west OF the
mountains.
The works we're erected in 1880, aud
operated under the name Of the Great
Western Iron company which was
organized by Philander Raymond, Of
New York city. For twelve years two
blast furnaces and a nail and rail
mill were operated prohEably. The
company became involved and its land
aud the entire plant wers sold at
sheriff's sale A Boston man named
Sawyer spent fortune in putting th .
mill aud furnaces again in good run
ming order. His investment was more
tnau doubled in profits in the follow
lug seven years. His death was also
the death, for time at least, of the in.
lustry. He beQreatAed his whole es-
tate to a Catholic institution In Massa-
chusetts, whose charter prohibited it
carrying on anv industry outside Of
that state In 1862 the property was
sold to William Ogden, or Chicago,
who paid $4,000 for it. Ogden
put the plant in repair at an expense
Of about the same amouut Addi-
tional land was purchased, making the
whole tract over 5000 acres The AL
legheny Valley railroad was completed
and a new town, East Brady, was
built across the river. Seven hundred
tons of iron rails were rolled each
month from the enlarged plant, selling
at about 800 ton. Not less than l. SOC
men worked in and about the mill.
The step necessary to produce this
happy state of affairs was the very
transaction that entailsd disaster. Th
property had been encumO Oered with
frat mortgage bonds to the extent of
$500, 600, given by a new cooperation
which had acquired the properly Til
len was stockhcller and the corpor
atoms counsel. Early in 1873 secont
series Of bonds for $500, 900 was issued
But the panic came on and early in
the fall Of that year the great corp )rl.
ton died.