The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1906-02-20
OUR GREAT IRON RESOURCES.
Capt. Petty Tells of The Mineral
Wealth of the Piedmont.

Charles Petty in News and Courier.
Greenville is stirred up over the
discovery of IRON after waitin" more
;;.an a century. 4 very high value IS
Poi on the discovery up to date. They
are talking about millions of dollars
not enough to buy it. It has been our
privilege to watch some mineral dis
5overies IN this Piedmont country for
long time, considering our youth.
Before the revolution an excellent
quality Of iron was made in this
county. Before 1925 it was known
that there were acres Of iron in this
the "Old Iron District Next came
the discovery Of lead and copper. 4 !
shaft was sunk about two miles from
Limestone Springs, and some fine
specimens Of galena and copper ia
ken from the mine. Just at that time
we knew much more about mineral
osy than We do now for we had just
been Studying mineralogy and veins
and dikes and faults, and lots of
things. That mine being near my
home, concluded to investigate it
scientifically, for I felt that I was
competent T went down into the
earth, selected such specimens as l
wanted, examined them and proceed
ed to write column for the Carolina
Spartan, showing that lead, copper
and silver would never be found in
that neighborhood in paying quantl-
ties. Major Bill TRIMMER was edi-
tor of the Spartan, and in his kind
consideration for me he published
what I wrote. These Juniors in col
Iege know lots. But any way, there
was little work done in that mine af-
Ter my investigation and report. Then
The gold mines were always with US.
They have also been investigated. But
the iron is abundant.
From the old Cherokee Ford to the
neighborhood Of Landrum iron ore is
found in places. Thousands Of tons
have been smelted. Thousands Of
acres of land have been cleared to
make charcoal to make the iron. In
the neighborhood Of Blacksburg there
are acres Of iron ore and some fine
magnetic iron. There was little
furnace over in Lincoln county. n.
c., running after the war. They made !
iron with charcoal and magnetic ore.
Blacksmiths said it was almost equal
to steel. Near Cherokee Springs be-
fore the war, farmers would dig mag
netic ore and haul it to the roller mill,
now Clifton and they got a dollar a
ton more for that than was paid for
the brown hemolite. There are tons |
of the same sort Of ore about Chero-
kee Springs now, and the farmers are ;
making crops on the land. The beds
extend out towards the Southern rail
way near Campobello. When the
South and Western is finished to
Spartanburg, we will be not more
than FIVE hours from the Iron Noun
tains, where the famous Cranberry
mines are. There is the greatest
abundance of magnetic ore for miles
along the southern slope Of those
Considering the abundance Of iron
in this Piedmont country, and the dis
5ance from fuel and the fate of Mid
Kentucky, if asked for ad-.|
vice, We would say to our Greenville
friends to sell for one million dollars,
good and lawful currency, when offer
ed and not wait for five or ten mil
lions desired. But we are not giving |
advice to- prospectors and owners of
mines. Some of them know much
more than we did half century ago,
when our knowledge was astonishing.
At least it must have been so to 9TH
ers, for it is to US at this date.
While on the subject Of iron it may
be we'll to state that boiler makers
before 1860 considered the iron made
at Cherokee Ford superior TO any
they could get in Pennsylvania or
Between 1S45 and 1850
cannon balls were made at the same
IRON works. They were boated from
Smith s Ford down Broad river to
Columbia. The ore was hauled to the
ron works in wagons, much Of it be-
ing carried six to ten miles. At the |
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