The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1907-05-07
John Frank.
Journal.

Journal.
- BIRMINGHAM is one of the few
I'm southern cities that has entered
~ the skyscraping class. When
viewed from the top of one of these build
ings, the outlook is at once the revelation
of what has been accomplished and what
may be expected. Located in wide val
ley with excellent cotton lands surround
ing it. with hundreds of years OF ore
supplies on the one side and of coal
supplies on the other the future of such
place need not cause anybody to lose
sleep.
There is wanting here that provincialism
which holds places back. On the contrary
there is a kind of foresight shown that
speaks we'll for the cooperative charac-
ter of the people Theirs is willingness
to subordinate local and individual inter-
ests to the welfare OF the whole. The
latest illustration is seen in the provision
| for the new passenger terminal in when
the six leading railroads reaching this
city have united as proprietary companies
| in building a million dollar structure. Such
a spirit is not infrequent elsewhere, but
it shows that here jealousy has been sunk
/ and common interests are dominating the
policy of development, in which no one
| has taken more of the burden than the
railroads have
In its commercial character Birmingham
resembles other cities of the cotton belt.
1t differs much in it's industrial and finan-
| cial character Its industries are more
largely manufacturing and its financing
has almost from the beginning partaken
of the nature of its chief business ac-
| livity The present city was laid out in
1871, manufactured It's first iron in 1874,
put its first coke oven into operation In
1885, and now melts about 25,000 tons OF
iron daily for the manufacture of ma
chinery and other finished products OF
which iron Is the basis There are here
more than 800 other kinds of establish
ments with investments exceeding $780,
100000 and an output of S5,000,0O0 There
may DE some duplication in these figures
| but they represent the enormous variety
of Industries whose raw materials are
near at hand in the cotton fields, In the
timber districts and In the coal and iron
mines. 1t is the presence of this fund of
natural resources that is at the basis of
the locality as an investment district
The fact of pivotal Importance to this
city is the ability of the place to turn out
pig iron at the lowest known cost per
ton John w. Gates figured that this
| could be done for 50 ton less than any
where else iii the world. More than TWEEN
ty years ago the late Edward Atkinson
predicted that the Birm. ngham district
| In, ba tIta ar nf
iron and steel industry on this continent
But that was before the Lake Superior
ore beds were developed. Low cost pro-
! duction, through times of prosperity and
| of depression, gives a unique advantage
in so fundamental an industry as that of
making pig iron. 1t means that every
! industry which can reach this district,
for its supply of raw materials, will have
the advantage over other less favored To-
calities. 1t also gives the territory itself
| an assured future as manufacturing
| center, not only on account of the pres
ence of cheap iron, but also of cheap fuel,
convenient timber supplies and nearness
to the seaboard. For where city reaches
the sea, that is it's gateway to the world
market on equal terms with everybody
| else
The impression of those not familiar
| with Birmingham, or southern industries
| generally, is that manufacturing us occu-
pied with the cruder processes AID that
the markets reached are mainly domestic.
| But the Tennessee Coal and Iron COM
panys plant at Ensley, within this indus
| trial district, makes a basic steel rail
| of the very best order in plant capable
of consuming not less than 10000 tons OF
| mig iron month. In mechanical appli-
ances this city manufactures consider
| able per cent of the sugar-produeng ma
| chinery used in the cane section of the
| United States, Porto Rico and Cuba. The
south is indeed one of the best markets
| for such products as the wire mills turn
| out at Ensley in the form of rods, nails
staples. wire. field fencing and the like.
| A steel plow factory sends it's products
throughout every state and even into
| Mexico.
The statistics of shipments of cast iron
pipe and gas piping show that this is an
other industry which has a world wide
market. The success of this enterprise
shows how generally land drainage, mu-
nicipal public works and gas making
plants have been provided for in these
and other portions of the country. Much
] Of this piping has gone to the far east