Watauga Democrat. [volume] (Boone, Watauga County, N.C.) 1888-current, 1925-07-30
FORD MAY BUY
E. 7. RAILROAD
Story Came From johnson Citv of
Railroad Sale-Cranberry
Mines Reported Sold

L. j. Hampton, writing from Elkin
TO the Winston-Salem Journal gives
out the following:
From prominent visitor who
spent Sunday in this town with
friends comes the report as stated
to him by the president of the cham
Der OF Commerce of johnson City,
Tenn. of the purchase by Henry Ford
multi-milEonaire auto manufacturer
OF the East Tennessee and Western
north Carolina railway, narrow
guage line which runs from the Ten
nessee line to Boone, N. C.
The EIkln visitor was also told that
Henry Ford had purchased the Gran
berry Iron Mines, locatd at Gram
5erry, Avery county, which had been
worked for twenty years and more
producing the finest grade of iron
of any mine in the United States.
Ore from the mine at Cranberry, re-
Intd and smelted, is used for cru
chile and other steel.
! The East Tennessee and Western
North Carolina railway is said to be
one of the biggest dividend paying
short lines in the United States. The
tremendous lumber business carried
on III the country it traverses is now
one of the biggest revenue produc-
ing factors. But when the Cranberry
Iron Mine was in operation the raw
unsmelted ore was its biggest freight
product, this being carried to John
son City, Pulaski. Va, and other.
points for refining.
The opening of the Cranberry mine
again will give to hundreds of people
employment that will mean a great
measure of prosperity for that sec
tion of the country. 1t is said that
the old owners of the mine after
working it for upwards of twenty
years had barely tuoched the great
ore deposits. The principal tunnel of
the mine extends for perhaps mile
and a half under the mountain at
Cranberry, and the ore is dumped
from mine cars directly into railway
gondoliers, making it an economical
operation The ore deposits are said
to branch in different directions from
the farthest point of the main tunnel
and it is understood that it is from
that point that the ore lies in thick
veins awaiting development
There is also report current here
that Henry Ford has purchased the
branch line running out of Abingdon
Va. to Damascus and is interested in
mines located at the latter place.
Men who are in position to know are
confident that the great auto manu-
facturer still has in mind the project
of finding an outlet to the Atlantic
Seaboard of his own. However, about
the only tangible proof of this is the
fact that for months there were par
ties of surveyors in the Blue Ridge
northwest of Mt. Airy surveying for
what was guessed to be a railroad
grade. They were close mouthed, so
no definite information was gained
from them, but it was generally sur
missed that they were either employ
ed at the behest of Henry Ford, or
George L. Caretr, coal magnate
Now that the Ford Motor Company
has fleet of vessls on the high seas
flying the United States flag and un-
der American registry for the trans
portation of the products of Mr..
Ford's factory to all the parts of the
civilized world, it is argued that this
is likely only increased Mr.. Ford's de-
sire for railroad of his own to sea
pert on the Atlantic seaboard. His
bids for ships ownd by the United
States shipping board is also another
factor to be considered.