The Big Sandy news. [volume] (Louisa, Ky.) 1885-1929, 1910-12-02
HLKHORN COAL.
atGst COkiRg Coal Field to
Be DsYGIOpGd.
'htfasHt in Railroad Building and
1Sal Purchase and Operation Of
Isl5,0OO,0ON to S2O.OOO,OOO.

he following article is taken
the Mauufaeturers Record
be purchase BY the Consolidation
Co, OF Baltimore OF lOO, 900
ma OF coal laneds in the Elkhorn
. dng coal field In Eastern Ken
||1o " and plans for its develop
.||l. ON the basis Of an annual out
|||n of 100000 tons, is Of Wide i'm
|| Anca in that Il marks the open
up along broad lines OF what
~ sgarded as the largest undeyel-
- area OF the highest grade Of
be coal known 10 exist In the
TX Try. The purchase price of this
~. ular tract was Si,5O0,000 The
4I Yille aud Nashville win spend
& "a sO00. .0o0 TO build to It, The
any will spend sl0OOiOOO on a
Il q It's own and ultimately sew
-, nllllons IN development work,
ether railroad lines win be
A total investment of S15,-
10 10 $1,000 .000O will be
~ directly aud indirectly as Il
~ Of this deal TN property
~ pwn TO contain nine distinct
Of coal but in the deal for
Tchase its value was based on
~ upon one seam. known MS Elk
horn No 81 This seam has been
pFoepected throughout the property
~
tons per acre, or an estimated To-
~ tal OF soc, ,OO0, 600 tons which at an
w annual output OF 100000 tons,
would be sutficegt to last for 200
years. II Is not to be supposed,
however, that this company, backed
by the millions OF capital which II
controls and with so vast terri
L tory for expansion, win not within
reasonable period Increase It's
output beyond that OF 100000 toIi
year, Beyond the quantity con
tained In this particular seam, upon
which development will now be cen.
tered. are the eight other searhs,
A quarter OF a century ago the
Manufacturers Record published
some facts showing the remarkable
,ssA high grade OF Elkhorn coal for COX,
Ing purposes AT that time spe'
- cial correspondent pointed out that
that section OF Kentucky was destin'
cd by reason OF the remarkable pur.
ity Of the coal for coking purposes
10 become one OF the great cokins
coal centers OF America Later on
about l6 years ago, when the Mer'
ritts OF Duluth controlled the Mesa
ha ore range they contemplated the
purchase OF about 10000 acres II
this Elkhorn field owned by Boston
capitalists, and Mr. T. j. Mitchell
then, as now, one OF the highest
authorities on coke-maklng in The
Connellsyille region, was employed
by the Merritts to investigate tho
property with view to its pur'
chase, having In mind its consolda
tion with their Mesaba ores anC
the building OF q new railroad tC
unite these two vast interests. Tbs
report Of Mr.. Mitchell was very
strong IN commentator Of Elkhorr
coal as a superior coking proposi
tion. and his report to the Merritti
would doubtless have resulted II
the combination being effected bu
for the fact that a panic struck tn,
country, and the Merrltts, wh'
thought they had command Of grea
wealth, lost the control Of tn,
Mesaba property, which afterward
became the real backbone of tn,
organization OF the United State
Steel Corporation.
Thus that district of Easter
Kentucky long known for the re
markable quality of its coking coal
had to wait for the propitious TIM
for It's broadest development, |
was without transportation facilities
and II was only after years of ef
fort that the Chesapeake and ohi'
Railroad was induced by the Bil
Sandy Company OF Boston and thei
associates, owning the land oil
which Mitchell had made a fayorabl
report 10 undertake the great tasl
OF building line through tina
country. This road was completed a
cost of several million dollars jus
about the time that the panic o
1907 came upon the country an
that caused the temporary haltin