The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1922-09-20
STOVE MAKER IN
RADIO TALK ON
INDUSTRY HERE
Birmingham Making Stoves
For Own Use and Other
Markets, HartSfield
Declares

The second OF the series of talks on
Industrial and other developments in
Alabama and Birmingham to be
broadeasted by the radio station of
the Matthews Electric company
throughout the country was made
last night by B. II. Hartsfield,e pres
ident and manager of the Birming-
ham Stove and Foundry company.
Mr.. Hartsfield has made a conspic-
uous success of stove manufacture in
Birmingham. SO much SO that his
plant has been forced to increase
capacity from time to time and Is
doing so now. The plant has been
on full turn continuously for months.
These industrial talks are being
made under auspices of the Cham
Der of Commerce, the first being by
Manager o. L. Bum.
Mr.. Hartsfield traced the history
of stove making from the time OF
Benjamin Franklin, who invented
the first open front heating stove
made In this country in 174S. rms
stove, with alterations, Is still made
and bears the name of Franklin.
Stove manufacture in this country
naturally started in the north and
erayitated to st. Louis and Cincin-
natl ut was from these sources
for years that the southern trace
was supplied, the raw material De
inr furnished largely by Birming-
ham" said Mr.. fairfield. Getting
to the point where the south dis
covered It's advantages for making
stoves" Mr.. Hartsfield raid;
Industry Comes South
"The shipping of our iron north TO
ba converted into the finished prooucl
and returned south was extremely
uneconomic. as the double freight hau
to be added to the cost OF tn seoss'
which Increased the price to the Ill
innate purchaser. Then, too, this
noIicv made of the south merely a
producer of raw material and as such
a dav laborer for the world, receiving
a day 1aborer's remuneration, whiie
other sections employing the more
biehlv skilled labor benefited in like
proportion by larger pay rolls as
we'll as by the profit of the manufac-
turer. As in the case of the texture
industry, which has in the last oecaoe
or two removed largely to It's source
of supply of raw materials, SO we
are witnessing a similar developlneht
in the iron trades.
Built ON Nature
Birmingham Is now not only man
ufacturing her own needs in stoves,
ranges and heaters, but in other iron
and steel lines, besides a largo sur
plus going into the markets of the
country. With her illimitable stores
of iron and coal, she was intended
by nature to be the source or supply
of a great portion of our country
and of the countries to the south of
srt... nnndAf10nE
at work to fulfill the purposes OF
nature.
Raw Materials Here
1.-THE plants engaged in the manu-
facture of stoves in Birmingham are
the most southerly of all such plants
in the United States. Here nature
assembled in advance for them all of
the raw materials they would need.
From this point they may be distrib-
uted throughout the entire south and
South American countries by shorter
haul and at less cost of transporta-
ton.
1.-THE iron ore is taken from the
hills almost within our city limits
and converted into the very highest
grade of pig. sought after by stove
manufacturers all over the country
and given preference where freight
rates do not make its use prohibitive.
Likewise Is coking coal mined at
our very gates and In our mammoth
batteries of by-product coke ovens It
is converted into the finest quality
of foundry coke required to melt the
pig.
Make Every Kind
There is manufactured here every
variety of cooking and heating stoves
and cast iron cooking vessels. No ac-
curate data of the tonnage OF pig
iron consumed is available. but 1t is
large. Hundreds of men are employ
ed in the industry, supplying the
homes of the southland with heating
and cooking devices made In the
south by southern labor and of south
ern materials and suited to southern
fuelsn