The weekly tribune., 1894-02-02
THE iron Works
&
The Great Falls !rOnN Gives EN-
ployment toa Larg ber of
Skilled Work
Equipped With All the n Ma
chinery and Applian e.
quired in the Busin
THE FINEST IN The ],
General Description of the Con - 5
Works, Foundry, Workshop
StoreIiouses, Etc.
Monster Casting Weighing Two Il
the Largest Yet Made By the
Foundry.
Equipped With All the
chinery and Applian
quired in the Busin
The FINEST IN The

Friday afternoon a representative.
of The TRIBUNE visited the works OF the'
Great Falls Iron company, between
Eighth and Ninth avenues north and
Thirteenth and Fourteenth streets.
Arriving at the company's office and
being introduced to A. Campbell, The
general foreman Of the works, the gen
tleman courteously offered to escort the
scribe around the works and show what
might be interesting to THE TRIBUNE
readers.
Inquiry showed that the works occu-
pied whole block, the Great Northern
extension running along the north side
and the electric street railway being on
the south.
The company is organized under the
laws of Montana, the officers being l.. S.
Woodbury., PRESIDENT Paris Gibson, vice
president; G. r. Joy, treasurer; w. p.
Brown secretary.
The directors are Messrs. Woodbury,
Gibson. Collins. Brown, Shannon, Joy,
and Chowen. Miss Cerula Woodbury.
is the stenographer and bookkeeper at
the works.
The Foundry.
Proceeding at once to the foundry
proper, the party was just in time to wit
ness the largest casting which has yet
been made in Great Falls. At this time
the cupola held seven tons of molten
iron, the average amount used being six
tons. A cotton derrick spanned the
building, which is used for lifting cast
ings, kettles, or frames. In front Of the
cupola was the huge mold for the cast
ing about to be made. On account of
it's size the top of the mold only appeared
two feet above the ground, the remain
der being in an excavation below.
Everything being ready, eighteen men
stood ready to assist, and the cupola
being tapped bright stream of molten
matter Immediately flowed suggishly
through trough into an immense iron
kettle capable of holding $500 pounds
and a smaller one Of 500 pounds. AS the
stream of metal flowed into the mold
blue and yellow flames issued from the
side, lighting up the interior and casting
weird appearance on surrounding Oh
jects The casting was complete sue
take three days to cool off. The casting
is intended for an acid tank for tie
electrolytic plant of the Boston 81 Mon
tana works in this city and will be used
for forcing acid into the vats by COM
pressed air in place of steam power as at
present.
Up stairs in the foundry room is IT, G
charging department, where the cupo'
is charged. The iron consists OF pigs
-. wheels, and railroad iron and is
p'aced in the cupola alternately with
coke for fuel and limestone as fiux. On
the north side OF the foundry is an ele-
yato' of one and one-half tons capacity
This elevator is controlled by simple
ever for starting and stops autom atically.
IL Is connected with the machine sh0p
by hpt-inch wire rope. Platform
scales are in front OF the cupola '5r
weighlag the charges.
On the floor below is furnace con
Meeting with the smokestack which is
used for making brass and bronze cast
lngs. On the right of the cupola is an
air compressor furnishing draught for
the twyers, of which there are three. A
small room adjacent is used for drying
the cores of the molds, a process which
requires one night. The cores are made
of sand, and flour from the Royal Milling
company in this city. The foundry is
under the control Of w. r. Luke.
Casting Cleaning Department.
Adjoining the foundry is the cast ne
cleaning department. Ia this building
was noticed the wooden pattern of the |
arge iron tank just cast An inquiry
showed it took two men fifteen days to
be- h. = l., /
necessary required in this The TO.
net by all the modern methods in use
~ machinery or otherwise.
The Yard.
Y Outside this building was seen the lid
of this tank all ready for shipment 1t
is massive concern having two inets
and two outlets for compressed all and |
acid. Near this were numerous piles Of |
iron and wooden TASKS required for |
molds and which represent hundreds !
of dollars in value.
In the rear of the foundry are found |
stables and wagon sheds. The RAILROAD |
has switch immediately in the rear of
the foundry with movable platforms .
for loading castings which is done by
horse power. On the northwest side OF
the building is a gigantic scrap pile the
destination of which is the cupoa.
West of the scrap pile is the coke and
blacksmith coal shed, full of fuel, and |
further on is the lime house, raised suf
hciently above the ground to allow
wagon to drive underneath il and thus
facilitate loading.
Abutting along Thirteenth street is
long building used as warehouse, and
which is completely filed With bar iron,
nails, cement, and stoves.
The Pattern Shops.
This building is par excellence the OK
hlhifirn ;,l ,,,;u ;rtora,< 4, oar go, ,g ]