The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1915-11-03
PAGE EIGHT.
CIIARLESTON'S EXPORT COAL
TERMINAL NOW COMPLETE

CHARLESTON'S EXPORT COAL
TERMINAL NOW COMPLETES
Southern Railway Has Placed Pal
metto Port on Parity With Other
Big Ports.
Charleston, S. c., Oct 30.--South-
ern Railways export coal terminal,
recently completed at Charleston at
cost Of approximately 100000. gives
Charleston facilities which will on
able 1t to compete on an equal basis,
with any other port on the Atlantic
seaboard for traffic in coal for car
riage over seas and is therefore an i'm
provement Of great interest and i'm
portance not only to Charleston, but
as we'll to the entire Southeastern
territory. particularly the coal produc-
Ing sections. Coal can now be loaded
and as cheaply as at any other Amer
lean port and freight rates have been
so adjusted that coal operators ship
ping through Charleston will be on
parity with producers exporting
through Norfolk.
The terminal embodies the most
modern ideas for facilities Of this
character. Coal is dumped from cars
byturning them bottom upwards and
falls into hopper from which it is
fed into the holds of ships by a belt
conveyor and telescope chute which
not only make very rapid handling
possible but eliminate to great de-
gree the breakage which results when
coal is dumped into ships by gravity
from elevated pockets.
The coal handling machinery con
sits Of a car bumper and loading
tower both of which are operated on
tirely by electricity. They are located
on a steel and concrete pier, 375 feet
in length, fronting on water 80 feet
deep at mean low tide. The pier is
connected with the mainland by a
creosoted trestlc, $500 feet long.
Cars are pushed into the bumper by
a switch engine. When power is ap-
piled, the car is automatically clamp
ed and turned-body, trucks, and the
section of the track on which ii
stands-to such an angle that The coal
pours into the hopper. When the car
is empty the bumper returns TO its
normal position. AS another loaded
car is showed into the bumper it push
es out the empty, which then runs
to the end Of the pier and by means Of
kick back" is returned automatical-
ly to the storage track.
hopper into which coal is dumped
from cars, the belt convcyor, and the
telescope chute by means OF which
coal can be delivered to any part Of
to great extent.
Both the car dupcr and the loading
tower arc movable and can be shift
ed to serve different hatches, so that
pier it is unnecessary to move it until
full cargo has been received
The capacity or the plant is from
1900 to 1000 tons per hour. a car
can be unloaded in about two minutes
and the plant will handle cars UP to
100 tons capacity, though for the
present SO ton cars will be the hcavi-
est sent to it, The plant can handle
in one day as much coal as was OK
ported through Charleston in the en-
tire year Of 1918.
The terminal is complete in itself
but should business beyond its capaci-
ty develop provision has been made
for the addition of similar units.
In connection with the coal pier,
storage yard of 400 cars capacity
has been constructed at Charleston
and additional passing track facili-
ties have been provided on the lines
leading from the coal fields.