The weekly register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]) 1862-1909, 1897-08-04
.THE CAMDEN GLAN go.
A MAGNIFICENT ENTERPRISE
MAGNIFICENTLY MANAGED.
Located Mt SpiIma1s Mason
County, West Virginia.


important enterprise conducted in
not only this county, but in this
part of the country, and there can
be no doubt that with favorable
conditions it will take rank among
those of national rank.
The Company was incorporated
not very many months ago, with a
paid-up capital of 100000, and in
the little time it has been in oper-
alton over $4,000 have been in
vested in the plant and carrying on
the extensive business which has
already rewarded the enterprise of
those interested
The officers of the corporation
are Gen. b. d. Spilman, of Par
kersburg, President; M. q. Tyler,
of Spilman, Secretary and General
Manager, and o. A. Roush, of
Spilman, Treasurer. The Company
was formed for the purpose of man
ufacturing tile, vitri6ed paving, or
namental and building brick, to
conduct which departments of bus
mess one of the most complete
plants, with the most recent adap-
tations of inventions and novelties
in machinery, has been laid down
at Spilman.
Accepting acourteous invitation
from those in authority the editor
of the Register had the privilege of
going all over the works one day
this week, and thinking descrip-
ton of them cannot bu: prove in
teresting took copious notes of
what was shown to him and now
presents them for the benefit of
our readers.
To make the description consec-
utive it will be we'll to begin at the
beginning, not of the visit, but of
the manufacture of the articles in
the production of which the Com
pany is engaged.
About 200 yards from the plant
is the clay-pit from which an ex-
cellent quality of clay is being ex-
cavated. This is hauled to the
plant in wagons, but in the course
of little while it is intended to
substitute for this primitive meth
cd of traction a tram-line which
Will considerably expedite its con
veyance. Arrived at the central
plant the clay lis first passed through
what is called disintegrator which
brushes it into fine part cles and at
the same time removes all useless
materials, such as stones or earth.
We will now first confne our at
tention to the manufacture of the
"SpiIman Block, a splendid paving
brick. Having been thoroughly
crushed the clay is elevated to the
top story of the building where it
goes through another process of
crushing and descends to ma
chine on the ground floor, through
which it passes and is massed to-
gether in a continuous block, rath-
er longer and thicker than the di-
mansions of the completed brick
This mass passes on and a man
with lever to which wires are at
tached cuts the block into ten
bricks of rather more than the width
of the finished brick, and these
separated masses then go forward
to a machine which congresses
them and at the same time stamps
and moulds them into proper shape.
Thence they are piled upon espec-
tally constructed barrows and
wheeled to the dryer, where they
twenty-four hours in a
temperature averaging about 135
degrees. After that time has
elapsed they are taken to the kilns.
OF these there are eight at present
in work, though it is intended
to build four more. These
are of the most novel and improved
kind. Dome shaped there are in
each four shafts or furnaces, fed
from without, which heat the whole,
and the top being closed up tight,
a forced draught is caused by
means of tunnel underlying the
floor and connected with central
chimney stack, one stack doing the
work for each set of four kiIns
Each kiln has a capacity of $4,000.
or 10000 building bricks.
The manufacture of bricks from
the time the clay reaches the dis
integrator until they are. ready for
use is about twenty or twenty one
days, as they are burnt for about
ten days, cooling for five or six and