There is a decrease of 16,648 tons in the year. This decrease is
more than accounted for by the stoppage of Belfont, a matter incident
to the introduction of steel at the nail mill. Otherwise, and among
the remainder of the furnaces, there is an increase of output over
1887. During the year Alice stack was blown out, and the blast put on
Blanche stack. The production of Alice is put at 14,000 for the year,
and Blanche at 1,100. This makes the total product of the Etna Iron
Works, last year, 28,450 tons. Hamilton and the Iron & Steel have
materially increased their yields. Hecla nearly doubled her product.
As will be observed, the first five furnaces named use coke, and the
other five use charcoal. As to the Etna Co. furnaces, we may note that
Alice was in blast 8 months, Sarah 11, Vesuvius 10 months and Blanche
only twenty days.
The Lawrence mill ran 201 day turns and 232 night turns, during the
past year, making in that time 10,674 tons of finished iron. These
figures show more days and nights employed than in the year before,
when 270 days and 119 1/2 nights were reported, with a product of
11,504 tons. In 1887 the mill made its greatest output, and last year
came next.
The Belfont mill reports a run of 38 weeks during the year, and a
product of 174,800 kegs of nails.
The Kelly mill reports 41 weeks in operation and 160,000 kegs if
nails.
Neither mill will come up to its production in 1887, when the
Belfont reported 206,000 kegs and the Kelly 182,000. The aggregate of
weeks employed at both mills is the same as in the year of ‘77, but
there were more fragments of weeks in ‘88.
IRON RAILROAD
In sympathy with the decline in the iron business, the
transportation on the Iron railroad fell off materially in 1888. In
1887 the Iron railroad did the greatest amount of business in its
history, the total tonnage being 220,895. Last year the tonnage fell
to 166,583, a decrease of 25 per cent from the preceding year. We give
below the tonnage for the past and two previous years.
1886 1887 1888
Coal 70,800 67,697 49,773
Lime 63,567 79,519 59,742
Ore 36,332 36,410 49,373
Pig Iron 1,702 3,408 2,647
Merchandise 3,652 13,836 5,047
-----------------------------------------
Totals 106,035 220,646 165.562
One thing that accounts for a great deal of this decline is the
manufacture of steel nails, into which Belfont has gone the past year.
This has stopped her forge, and cut off the demand for coal, all of
which fuel used to come over the Iron Railroad. Then, again, this
steel nail business has resulted in the stoppage of the furnace, which
as not made a pound of pig iron in 1888.
SCIOTO VALLEY R.R.
During the past year, there was received at this place, on the
Scioto Valley R.R. 127,937 tons of freight on which $68,238 was paid
for transportation. There was sent from Ironton 106,070 tons, on which
$38,880 was paid for freight.
There was a decrease in the amount of freight received, compared
with 1887. In that year 193,054 tons were received and $106,323 paid
on the freight. But the number of tons forwarded from here exceeds
that of last year. In 1887 the exports amounted to 90621 tons and the
freight on it $35,267.
By these figures, it will be seen that the amount of freight
handled in 1887 exceeded that of 1888 by 50,668 tons and the revenues
by $36,672
FOUNDRIES
The Foster Stove Works made 257heats, melting about 1000
tons of iron, and making 8000 stoves.
The Whitman Stove Works made 260 heats, using 435 tons of metal.
They made 600 ranges, besides many stoves and other castings.
The Hanging Rock Foundry made 160 heats and melted 240 tons of
metal.
FIRE BRICK
The output of firebrick for the past year is shown as follows:
Ironton Fire
Brick.....................................................................2,000,000
Petersburg Fire Brick
Co...........................................................1,450,000
Standard Fire Brick
Co..............................................................
830,000
Total...............................................................................................4,300,000
(from transcriber...does not add up.. but figures not easily
discernable)
This is a material decrease from the product of 1887, the decline
being 1,500,000 , bit a half million increase over 1886. The cessation
at the Standard is the cause of the decrease. That has been idle more
than half the year. Notwithstanding the decline in the product, the
work has been quite brisk, a greater variety of forms of manufacture
making up some for the decrease in the output.
LUMBER
The sawmills were not kept as actively engaged last year as in the
year before. The reason of this is that the supply of logs was not
equal to the demand. The product was as follows.. lumber feet board
measure:
Newman and
Spanner.........................................................4,000,000
R.N. Fea?on.......................................................................1,000,000
Chicago Lumber
Co...............................................................610,000
Crowell &
Co.........................................................................400,000
Penn Lumber
Co.....................................................................300,000
Total.......................................................................................6,300,000
(as appeared)
This is a good yield, considering the limited supply of logs and
the fact that some of the mills were not in existence but a part of
the year. In the case of the Chicago Lumber Co., their product
represents a run only from Dec. 13 to Jan 1, scarcely over a half a
month. It is altogether likely that next year their output will run to
over 12 million feet.
TELEGRAPHING
In 1888, the Western Union did a business representing $10,474. In
the money order department the receipts were $028 (newspaper typo?)
and disbursements $720. These amounts are not included in the $10,474
above stated. The total number of messages handled (sent and received)
was 33,274. Newspaper telegrams sent contained 87,278 words. These
figures show a considerable increase over those of 1887. There were
2,705 more messages sent last year than in the previous year, and
8,421 more words of newspaper dispatches. The entire statement shows
an increase of 20 per cent, over the 1887 business.
IRONTON POST OFFICE
Amount of stamps, stamped envelopes and postal cards sold at the
Post Office of Ironton, Ohio for the four quarters ending December
31st 1888:
Quarter ending March 31st
1888......................................$3,408.26
" " June 31st 1888........................................1,806.71
" " Sept 31st 1888........................................2.040.40
" " Dec 31st 1888........................................2,686.40
(copy very blurred, not totally accurate, total doesn’t add up)
Total......................................................................................$9,887.08
(blurred)
The receipts for the four quarters ending Dec 31st 1887 were
$9,079.03 showing a net increase for 1888 of $808.03 over receipts for
1887.
COUNTY AFFAIRS
During the year the Probate Court appointed 46 administrators, 12
(? blurred copy) executors, 35 guardians. 13 wills were probated, 15
persons were judged insane, 9 persons sent to the Reform farm, and 2
to the Girls Industrial Home. 16 persons declared their intention of
becoming citizens, and 24 persons were naturalized.
There were 453 marriage licenses issued during the year. This
number is just 15 less than the year before.
At the Recorder’s Office 682 deeds and 428 mortgages were recorded,
against 770 deeds and 361 mortgages in the previous year. 4 leases and
203 mortgages cancelled.
100 prisoners were confined in the county jail, a decrease of 23
from the year before. 8 persons were sent to the penitentiary, the
longest term being for three years.
165 new suits were brought in the common pleas court; of these 14
were for divorce. There were 33 orders of sale issued.
CITY MATTERS
During the year there were 565 criminal cases before the Mayor, an
increase of 28 over 1887. Of the number arrested 516 were males and 49
females; 374 were single and 191 married. The amount of fines
collected was $584.30. 264 persons were committed to the city prison
during the year.
The number of civil actions before the mayor was 76, of which 41
were for the recovery of money. The amount of judgments rendered was
$3,575.99
MORTALITY
There were 119 burials in Woodland , against 82 in the year before.
St. Joseph’s reports 19 which is two less than in the previous
year.
Sacred Heart cemetery reports 22 bu- (here the copy ends)
