The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-06-16
NOTED DEVELOPERS TALK IF BESSEMER DeBardelebeen and Bowron Write Valuable Articles PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE DeRardeleben Was Founder of Resse- mer and Is as Full of Enthu-
 siasm as Ever-Bowron
 Sketches District.
PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE

The Bessemer Board of Trade, through it's president, G. H. Stevenson, recently reduested H. F. DeBardeleben, the founder of Bessemer. and James Bowron. for many years vice-president of the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad Company, and stln one of Birmnghams most representative citizens, to write about the past, present and future of the fiourishing industrial community. MT. DeBardeleben, over his signature, con tributes the. following graphic and in- structive sketch;
 "BesseYheri Bessemeri What shall say of her, the child of my early ambi- ton, of my early manhood? What l think of her, of her present industries. future prosperity all so near the heart of the man who felt he could SC. into the future, and predict for her just what has come and what will come.
 "A man whose financial interest today is not part and parcel of her.
 "Bessemer situated as she is, Is bound to be one of the leading manufacturing centers.
 Some twenty years ago, as I stood In the flat woods and cedar glades of what is now a prosperous city, and could see how in time this place must grow, for the Almighty, who rules all, had given us the material and location. After months of prospecting, of thought and of delberation and travelling and inspection for miles and miles around, and wearing out several fox trotting horses going from end to end, from Tanneryhill on Red mountain to Rising Pawn in Georgia, could not but feel that here He had given man the opportunity for industries and manufactories of so many and various kinds.
 u,ae 1ao. ,.1 1na a.a . trance to the two coal fields that have been developed the gateway in fact to the Cahaba and Warrior coal fields. What she is now, we all know; what she will be- remains for future generations to see. Has she not the geographical and geological position? And by that position commands and owns three of the great est commercial banks in the south. Each, with the proper indorsement, will honor the greatest drafts that may be made upon them. First Is the Red Ore Bank. The next in importance is the Warrior coal field, traversed by Valley Creek. Bullard's shoals being the entrance to this great coking field. The next is the 'Cahaba coal fields There Is a township of coal in the Daily and Montevallo basin, to say nothing of the Blocton and |. Scottsville end of the field, the Monte. vallo having six workable seams of clean coal, steam, colking and domestic coal.
 These fields are intended by nature to feed some great creature, like Bessemer as she is and will be. I could easily say these banks of Bessemer will sus- tain and care for a population of half million people. There are some few of us who are fully aware of the orc situation. The red ore tributary to Bes- semer has greater in tonnage and better in quality than all the balance of the state. 1t matters not whether all the ore is smelted in Bessemer or in other parts of the district, the pay rolls will remain to be paid within the sound of the church bells of Bessemer and will remain there until the ore is exhausted, which will be many, many moons from today.
 ''Bessemer is now a network if rail- roads, many of them, I am proud to say, \ was instrumental In having built, but you will see one or more home roads built by people yet to come and locate on the outskirts of your town. in the effort to produce the cheapest ton of pig iron that the world has ever/seen. they will be compelled to find 1t to their interest to transport the coal to the ore.
 ''The picture that I have in mind and have been steadily at work for five yeara to bring about has been to see a plant so located that the ore will be lifted from where nature planted it and dropped into the stock house to be converted into pig iron, then into steel and then to the wares that can be made from same When that is done Bessemer will take her proper place and rank, and the by word of some of our people that say, Step to Bessemer, will be accomplished, for Bessemer growing up the valley and Birmingham growing down the valley will shake hands, as I always thought, and still think, at Hawkins Spring"
 Birmingham June 10, 1907.