The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-12-28
new INDUSTRIES
FOR ASHEY|LLE
City Water Supply from the
Watershed Of Mt. Mitchell.
WILL BE COMPLETED BY MAY
This Supply. Which Viii Be Gravity
System, and Will Cost 100000.
viii Give the City Ct Ashsv.'Ie
Splendid Few of Water.
(specl., Dispatch to The Times,

Especial Dispatch to The Times.j
ASHEVILLE, N. c.. Dec. 27.-During
the past year a bond issue Of two hun
dred thousand dollars has been applied
to giving the city Of Asheville water
Mitchell. It is proposed to bring the
water here by gravity line. This work
is well under way. and will be completed
by May 1st next
On February last tie William Whittan
Textile Company was organized with
capital stock of sixty thousand dollars
The mills and tenement buildings and a
hundred looms put in operation on line
Of corduroy. now being shipped and sold
in the Eastern ma.ket- This plant en-
ploys about 125 hands.
The ". T. Weaver Power, Company
was organized In the early part OF the
present year with q total capitalization
Of s200.0G0 This company has acquired q.
large boundary of land on the French
Broad River, four miles north OF Ashe-
vile. and have undertaken the develop
ment Of the French Broad for power
purposes. This company has already
spent in this enterprise here S1G0.on0. The
power Is to be transmitted electl :cally
to. Asheville and vicinity. The minimum
available power from this source will be
three thousand horsepower Electric ma
chnery and water wheels for this plant
have been bought, an6 1t is the purpose
Of the company to have this plant put III
operation by July 1st next.
OIL AND GAS.
Messrs. Stewart & Sideil of New Mar
tinSville. W. Va. and their associates
have leased within the vicinity Of :.sie-
vile $500 acres OF land for the purpose
of testing this territory for oil ana gas.
They propose to begin operations not
la.ers than February 1st.
Some parties, of Bowling Green. KY.
have bought land within vicinity Of Wea-
yer Power Company plant for the purpose
Of erecting a .arge rO er flour mIil. ~
is their purpose to begin work on this
structure early in the incoming year.
A very important ente prise that Is be-
ing agitated now is the establishment of
bleaching and finishing plant. Tie par
ties most interested have secured the
available sites. and are very sangu!ne of
the early beginning of this work. which.
ii contaminated. will involve the expen-
d:ture Of a quarter OF q million of dol
lars.
PAPER MILL
Another new enterprise is q paper MIL
factory. This enterprise is backed by
millions of dollars. and will be the larg-
est industry OF the kind In the entire
South. Already are the promoters o. this
Industry. for this section. on the field OF
action and now negotia ting for the pur-
chase OF large boundary OF, land known
as the whittier Lands" located near
Fornev Creek. the land in question con-
tanning seven ty-two thousand acres. This
mill will not only make nulo --,aner. but
will also turn out the finished product.
The kinds Of wood used will be hemlock
and balsam.
An excelsior factory ros also recently
been established bv the 'rvev NJ. Dick
son uMmhe~ Co~nanv at Brvson City.
Within the past year Ashev'le and
Cra~ev Mountain Railway has he"n
COMPLETED and also considerable rail-
wav extereion work done by the Ashe-
vile Street Ra'lvay Company.
TANNING INDUSTRY.
The tanning industry IS growing to big
rronortinns in this section. The United
States Leather Comnanv has become in
tereeted in these Developments here, ,
which means great things for the iun1-
her interests Of Western North Carolina.
Several millions Of dollars are already
invested in tanneries in this section.
that is, In the tanning business. which
includes not only the business ct actual
tanning OF the hides. but in the gath
,ring of the bark. the tanning and hold
ing Of the hides until sold. And 1t Is
learned that double this amount is to
be invested along this line.
ITeuaIlv the tanneries use for the pnr-
nose of tanning hides the bark of chest
nut oak, and have ground their own
bark It has recently been found that
tannic acid is better and cheaper. SO the
Industry Of making bark into tannic acid
has grown to large proportions.
Many hote's are going up throughout
the entire mountain section. and mark
ed railway improvements are being
made. The Southern will expend s2o5.-
90 in railway Improvements on The
Ashevile division.