Graphic Story of Pioneer Iron IVon IronWorks Works of Cedar of the pioneer lon r Iron Industry y of or Cedar City as given ilven In a paper by Pres Wm R R. Palmer at the dedication o ot oC the Ute Utah Trails and Landmarks Association marker at the City Park Monday President mt Oeo Geo Albert Smith Members Mem bers tiers of or the Utah Trails and Landmarks Land Land- mUD marks Association Fellow Citizens It gives me great pleasure to s see nee our historic places given recognition as this one Is today by the Utah Trails and Landmarks Association The tablet tab let teL marking the site of the plon pioneer r Iron Industry which Is to be unveiled and 1100 dedicated d In this service is numbered numbered num num- berM 30 In the series of markers tint that ha have been placed by the Association We are duly grateful for their cooperation cooperation op co and for the added prestige that the Ute buffalo skull will give live to our ota monument That trade mark will wUl be beto beto beto to the Ute stranger who reads the certificate certificate cate ate of authenticity of ot the history re recorded rev re- corded on the beautiful bronze tablet Lest Leat there be misunderstandings I wish to explain that this marker Is In Inno Inno Inno no tense sense a duplication of the splendid work rack done a a. few years ago by the Daughters of the Pioneers when they wised the Liberty Pole made of Iron Monty County iron in honor of the pioneer Iron makers maters The Liberty pole honors the he Iron workers while this monument monument monument ment marks the site of a pioneer Industry Of all the products of mans man's genius It has haa been observed by some sage that tha t paper has rendered greatest service that paper has contributed the fullest tulles t measure of assistance to the progress PeS of af man This roost most commonplace commodity com has enabled man to record h his is thoughts and to preserve for others th the e wisdom of the wise Through the medium me me- num of paper the cumulated learning g of the ages has been preserved an and d made anode available to the student and thru threta u It eta 18 use lse we have a record of the ex ex- of the h race to guide us awa away y from the pitfalls of the past All AU the light of past ages Is reflected to us through myriad sheets of paper and upon the unsoiled face race of others we chart and direct In a II measure our course out Into the unknown future If paper has be been n the right hind of cf then Iron surely has been n her trusted left hand Almost eve every useful article we e touch even paper papa It Itself itself It- It self lieU Is made from Iron or by the us use e of Iron If this common article o of f trade were suddenly taken from u uthe us s the world In a day would be set back to 10 the atone age and so devastating would be our loss that scarcely a a. thin which now contributes to the comfort comfor t and progress of modern modem civilization n would be left to us The pioneers of the State of Deseret Desere t soon BOOn discovered the o of f Iron In the bull building Jin j of a 1 common- common wealth They hamper I were constantly hampered hamper hamper- ed and handicapped by the lack of It I an and every little scrap had carefully t to tobe tobe 0 be be- conserved Broken chain links worn r 1 out cut ox shoes well welt spent wagon tires tire s or t broken kettles wi were pre re worth 25 cents cent s a n pound lit at t any shoo shoe At th the thelow e low Jow price that ler ater r has hu touched Inthe in inthe I the depression on wh hl h rack racks us th the the e price of p pioneer rev 8 V Iro tro V-M V aims alst alstat t I at a ratio of 16 IS to 1 with the tho whit 1 metal sl sixteen een ounces O of won wo-n cut o ox x shoes to or ot ore onn r rt r r cIl rs sn silver siler r. r Iron was scarce and ind high priced a when hea t It had to be hauled iron fron Flor Florence Flor nce o or r St. St Louis Lous across the plains with ith oo OJ OK e teams for a a. very little cf of it made a heavy vy load t The Tate discovery of our beds of ore 1 in inthe Inthe n the early days of 1850 gave gate promise o ot t f trend I rend l r from what wh t appeared to be an at a a most moat Interminable iron famine With Wit h t characteristic resourcefulness rn Young began the development of the new discovery He resolved to manufacture manufacture manu manu- manu 11 facture Iron for the n needs s of the State of Deseret and before the year 1850 1830 closed he had organized Iron count county and the settlers settler were ere set on their way lay way here Parowan the first settlement was to be the agricultural base blue for the settlers in this Is far flung outpost must be No November 1831 Cedar Cedar Ce Ce- dar City was founded J by men whom who m largely had been aele selected ted and sent here because of thet their thelt knowledge of the mining and smelting of ores In February 1832 the Cedar colon colony y began beran the erection of a a. blast furnace e and by that act an Industry was definitely definitely de- de j de-j finitely launched The 3 35 men In Cedar Ceda r that summer were divided into two groups one half halt to develop the farmIng farm farm- farming Ing possibilities and the other half halt t to o build up the Iron works I I The Record Book of the Iron company com com- company pany reads as follows May 1852 1832 I President BrIgham Youn Young called a meeting at the home of Brother Ross Rou In Cedar Fort for the purpose of organizing organiZing organizing or or- the into a company for the manufacture of iron Richard Harrison was chosen by vote of the as Superintendent of the Iron Works and Henry Lunt clerk I During the Summer a great deal of work was performed consisting principally prin- prin prinI I in building machinery for th the e Blowing Apparatus erecting Blast Blas t Furnaces digging stone coal and building build build- ing a a. road to the same I I On the of September the blast was put on the furnace and charged with l iron ore that had been The fuel used wed was stone coal coked and dry pitch pine wood In the raw state ate I l On the morning of f the the furnace was as tapped and a small quan quan- quasi quasi- of Iron run out which caused the hearts of all to rejoice I These few terse words recorded the happenings of the m most t dramatic hour in all aU Southern Utah history To 10 be be beor or not to be be was the momentous question ques ques- tion that hung on the outcome of the tapping of that furnace The whole summer had been spent In building and hauling and preparing for this first try tryout out For several days strong men had swung their sledges and the valley had echoed with the ring of I I suet Steel as the boulders or of ore were being reduced to the proper size for the furnace charge On that memorable September 29 1 1452 the men had spent the day In carefully preparing the I furnace for its first run A thousand times the question had been asked What if tr It fails falls Toward sunset the entire population gathered at the Iron Works to see the tho torch applied Amid prayers and speech making the blast was turned on and all through the j I chilly night men women and children huddled around camp fires to watch I every development At day break came cameI I the zero hour when the tl said Brother Adams It ought to be I ready now get your rod and try it it In breathless ea eagerness the whole populace po po- crowded to the face of the furnace to read their fate in the prod I of that stokers pole A hard years year's i work was In that experiment and If i ItI it t failed I it I meant for most mast of them another an an- other move mo Robert Adams tapped th the e 1 furnace and a moulten stream of iro iron n came pouring out Instantly their pen pent t I I up anxiety broke loose in one great grea t spontaneous outcry With one accord every ery throat opened in a wild shout not of cheers or hurrahs for ch cheers cheer rs s could not express their religious emo- emo but in shouts of hosannah hosannah hosannah to God and th the e i Lamb Men been and n wept for jo Joy y and thanked their God Cod for His good goodness ness Hess to them On the spot a committee commit commit- tee of five lve were selected to carry samples sam sam- pies ples of or the Iron to Brigham Young and and before nightfall Richard Harrison Harrlson Thomas Bladen Thomas Cartwright George Wood and P. P K Smith were o otheir on n i their way to Salt Lake City While this a struggle struggle was down here in Iron county th the President in Salt Lake City wa was a s i planning to promote the Interests o or of f t the Iron industry by securing more mor e capital for it The Sixth General Genera 1 Epistle of the First Presidency issued ed I in Sept 1831 1851 called upon the press l 1 dency of the church in Europe to organize organize or or- a company for tor the purpose o of f j manufacturing iron in Utah Acting g r upon that call Erastus Snow an and d I I Franklin D. D Richards in charge chane of or the th th e n British Mission interviewed all church members of means and solicited the their thel r support Three men came forward with substantial subscriptions Thomas Tennant Tennant Ten Ten- nant 2000 pounds sterling Thoma Thomas s Jones pounds and Christophe Christopher sr r Arthur father Hather of C. C J. J J Arthur known know n to most Q Cedar Odar people pounds There were tre o other oher her smaller contributes These British capitalists were called calle d I together a 9 at t 15 Wilton Street Liverpool U I 1 on April 28 23 1853 1839 at which time they the y r or organized The Deseret seret Iron Company Compan with Erastus Snow pres and Franklin Frankli n i D. D s secretary In the fall of 1832 1833 Snow Sno and Richards Richards Rich ards came home and reported their r r mission to Brigham Young He sen sent t t th them m on to Cedar CIt City to bu buy out th the te e Pioneer Iron company corpany and they ar ar- l ar-l rived here about one month after that tha t t dramatic first run had been pUshed plashed Quoting the record again On th the p of November ember Snow and Richards Richard i s arrived armed had several meetings and ex ex- ex instructions were given by the them m urging the absolute necessity of manufacturing man man- iron as quickly as possible On the of November a meetIng meetIng meet meet- Ing big was held in the schoolhouse by th the the e of or the Iron Company when n i it was VIas resolved that the company sellout sell eel 1 out to Snow and Richards Also resolved that the company compan y r agree aree ree to take tAIt whatever Snow and Rich Rich- ands a say they will give and that It be left entirely with them At a meeting held in the School 1 hl house that evening Snow and Ric Richards hards j oNI offe ed the company 28 which h i the company unanimously accepted The Ibe next nert day November 30 30 1852 a bil bill bUl 1 of ot sale w was drawn n up and executed and lid the property duly passed to Eras Eras- tw tue Snow and Franklin D. D Richards agents arents for the Deseret Iron Co n It has generally been understood that I the Deseret Iron Company manufactured manufactured the first iron in Utah The above history will serve to correct this Im I I In the succeeding years ars the Deseret I Iron company produced here many fenny hundreds of articles such as La hand or or dog dOll Irons Irona molasses rolls flat irons and sundry castings for horse power t i and found and other machinery which ready sale throughout the territory Their Iron made wonderful castings but they were Iere never successful in prof pro- pro I f a good mal able bar The only piece of pioneer workmanship that survives Is the old bell cast cant in 1833 j I which Is 15 now among the treasured relics relies of the daughters of the Pioneers I f of of Cedar City Of this bell John V V. Long a visitor here in May 1833 1883 wrote That bell that bell that real bell bellof I of home manufacture that bell pro- pro from the ores of these mountains moun- moun I tales and cast In Sri struggling Cedar City that bell which was 5 a real bell and not a cracked skillet did ring and though its tone was not to so lound shrill clear and s as we have heard yet it called us to church and we went The Deseret Iron Co with the purchase purchase pur- pur chase of the Iron works also acquired ground around described in to their records as asa asa a large tract of land extending from Cedar City eastward to the mountain Cedar City at that time was in the Old OldFort OldFort Fort a mile mUe of here and the tract of ground around of embraced this that we we are standing on They planned and surveyed here a townsite townsite town- town i site for the iron workers to be called Deseret Iron Town It It extended 87 67 roads south from the furance stack and that I is approximately the south line of this park In the center of or the townsite was I a square 20 x 20 rods reserved for the school house meeting house and other public purposes Around the square ran a six aix rod street Out from the four sides of the street were platted 58 lots 2 rods wide by 16 18 rods deep On these lots and facIng facing facing fac fac- ing the square were to be built bum uniform uniform uni uni- form fonn cottages The homes were to be set back 20 feet from the front line Foundations of cut stone were to stand 18 Inches above ground and the front walls were to be 8 ft high Back Bacle of the homes were to be plant planted gardens and orchards Thus the Iro Iron n workers were to live as a compact and separate unit This marker we are de de- de dedicating i to today lY stands almost on th the e spot set apart in that plan for the Iron Town school house I 1 In 1834 and before this colonizing plan of the Iron workers had taken II effect Pres Young visited Cedar On Sunday morning he arose early and took a walk up to the iron works and scrutinized the valley alley round about In meeting that afternoon he said he did not like the location of or the settlement He feared they were were VI too much exI ex- ex I posed to floods He advised that when they built their new and better homes i they go en on the hl higher her grounds south and west of the iron works Next day Isaac C. C Haight and others went with the President upon the grounds he re- re commended He stepped of off the width of a street from the southern line of Iron town o n then set a a. stake which tra- tra d It Ion says sas became the starting point of our present town survey It became I the tt-e Northwest corner comer of the Isaac C. C Haight lot which is across the street east from the Presbyterian church Brighams Brigham's advice ad was to build the new Cedar south and west est from that point Later on the adice and cooperation opera co-opera- tion of Erastus Snow Iron town and Cedar City were ere consolidated into one city but the Idea of small lots with long loni compact blocks that would permit per- per suit mit the iron workers worker to live close together together together to- to gether was adhered to Cedar was destined de- de stifled to be a a. manufacturing city and her progress in that direction was as not to be hampered by men trying to run a 3 farm fann on a city lot The Iron town plan was modified and evolved e into our present 8 x 12 rod city lots with 18 of them on a block I know of no other settlement in the west founded by the Mormons Monnon where such a plan obtains The Iron Company met one reverse after another but for tor seven se years ears they struggled on Every ounce of surplus energy and resource was poured pour- pour ed into the enterprise and the Iron manufacturing Industry presents a chapter of matchless determination and E sacrifice to achieve e a purpose in t L me ne race lace or me the m most t discouraging hardships and handicaps The women i I 1 made candles and tallow bitches for the works had to be lIgh lighted d. d and when i I L greases or tar ran rm low either for lor light or lubrication the butter of the i colony was VI-aS commandeered The men built roads to the coal and to