Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1900-11-16
A MOMBNTOUS
TRANSACTION
The Bethlehem Steel Company Pur-
chases Thousands of Acres Of
Mineral Land.
COAL LANDS AT CAPTAIN
Detroit and Pennsylvania Capital Will De-
velop the Iron and the Coal Fields of
Lincoln County Bright Outlook
for the Future.

The directors of the Bethlehem Steel
Company who control the gigantic
steel works at Bethlehem, Pa, that
manufacture the best armor plate in
the world, and who have millions of
dollars invested in that plant and en-
ploy almost 5000 men, have made hea-
Wy investments in New Mexico which
may be the beginning of an Industrial
era in New Mexico. Headed by Garret
and r. P. Lindernan, owners of exten-
sive coal mines in Pennsylvania, and
both mllionaires, they have purchased
1900 acres Of coal lands near Captain
in Lincoln county, and 1000 acres of ir-
on lands five miles from the coal mines.
They have commenced work on the coal
deposits and have made traffic arrange
ments with the Ell Paso & Northeastern
railroad, also built by Pennsylvania
capital, to transport the coal to FL
Paso.
More than this, an expert is now on
the ground, Archibald Mccullough, of
Buffalo, to examine the iron property,
and to report upon the advisability OF
erecting a smelter furnace on the
ground. The Bethlehem Steel Company
ships much of it's iron ore from Cuba
where it owns large iron mines, and ev-
en- from Spain. The New Mexico iron
property will give it new source for
it's ore and unless extraordinary traffic
arrangements can be made the likel-
ho.od that with TINA blast f,1rnonac
and perhaps rolling mills will be built
right in the vicinity of Captain and an
industrial town of 10000 to 10000 in
habitants be called into life in that sec
ton which will be a rival to the Colora-
do Fuel and Iron Company, and to Pu-
eblo, Colo.
The steel company has been awarded
contract to furnish 100000 worth of
armor plate to Uncle Sam, a contract
which will keep it busy several years.
Besides it turns out millions of dollars
worth of commercial steel and machin-
cry
The Lindeman coal mines at Stock
ton, Pa, We're closed down not so long
ago because they had become exhausted
or improbable to work, and since then
they have been looking for new coal
properties as we'll as for iron lands that
will rival those owned by Carnegie
along the shores Of Lake Superior
They evidently believe they have found
them in New Mexico, and that means
millions of dollars to be spent in the
+orr;+or,, a nd ap,y,lo1,,,apt Uivap to hun
dreds if not thousands of men,.
At the same time Detroit capitalists
have obtained lease of 5000 acres of
coal lands in that same section and are
at work investigating their worth. They
have found as good coal as is in any of
the other mines and are preparing to
develop it. The machinery has been or
dered and coal will be shipped at an
early date.
1t is no wonder therefore that the
Rock Island and other railroads are
headed for FL Paso by way of Lincoln
county for unless all indications fail,
that will be the industrial center Of the
southwest. There are other sections in
New Mexico, too, which will profit by
the good fortune of Captain. There are
undeveloped coal fields and iron pros
poets in almost every county and these
will attract attention as soon as the
Captain properties have been made
profitable. and it is no wild dream of
the imagination to see second Penn
sylvania, a second Pittsburg and sec
ond Bethlehem in the southwest in the
course of time