The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1914-04-01
LAKELAND PHOSPHATE CO.'S.
PLANT LOOMING UP!

One OF the most important indus
| trial enterprises now in course of
construction is that of the Lakeland
| Phosphate Co., located within a
mile and half of the corporate lin
it's of the town. A visit to the scene
of construction a few days ago op-
ened to the gaze scene of cOnGid-
cradle activity and a development
already looming up quite extensively,
scores of men being engaged in the
|erection of the various units of con-
|structiOn which when complete will
consist of a power house containing
one 1,100-horse-power Lentz engine
to operate the electric generator
and 750-horse-power engine to op-
(erate the turbine pump. There will
also be a $50 kilowatt generator to
supply the electric power and cur
rent for Illuminating purposes.
There will be three boilers Of an ag-
gregate 800-horse-power also an air
compressor to lift the water supply.
The power house will be 90x90
feet with a reinforced concrete stack
It's feet high. Only the most mod
ern machinery will be used at this
plant; everything will be operated
by electricity at the lowest cost of
production The plant will have a
capacity of 10000 tons of finished
rock per month and the tract of
|over 1900 acres will furnish sup
ply lasting for many years. This
rock is of the kind known as high
grade pebble. The Coast line has run
a spur on to the tract and rails are
laid to all the various points of op-
Grafton. A number of neat and
comfortable bungalows have been
erected (some of which are already
occupied for the accommodation of
the white employees and cottages for
the negroes All of the lumber used
in the construction work has been
cut and sawed on the ground and
the tract contains a large quantity
of good timber available for future
needs. A sixteen-inch we'll, six
hundred feet deep, with fifty-foot
head, will furnish an ample supply
of good water for all purposes and
on the site of the we'll already com
pleted, a steel storage tank of 90
900 gallons capacity is going up,
The commissary has been leased to
Clayton and O'Doniel and will be
under the management of Fred
O'Doniel, who has already fine,
large, clean stock Of goods on hand
This new industrial development
means much for Lakeland as it will
add several thousand dollars a
month to our payroll and a tre-
mendous increase to the outgoing
railroad tonnage, to say nothing of
the exchange of a now idle product
for some of the worlds currency.
1t is expected that the new plant
will begin active shipping opera
tions in August. The officers of the
Lakeland Phosphate Co. are: c.
W. Deem, president; I. E. Mem
minger, vice president and manager;
W. D. McRae, secretary and treas
urer. All of these men are well
known and have large experience in
their respective lines of activity.
One very important feature to be
noted is the large investment of To-
cal capital, held entirely by Lake
land men for Mr.. Jenkins Jones, one
of the stockholders, can well be
called a local man. There are no
bondholders or interest bearing Sc
curities to provide for and when the
plant is completed and ready for op-
Grafton it will be owned and con-
trolled solely by the stockholders,
all of the profit coming back for re-
investment.
q