| Show IRON COUNTY IRON AND COAL much is being said in the east at the present time of the wonderful mountains of iron ore in iron county this state and the indications now are that the present year will witness extensive operation and development in this section to be followed in the near future by the establishment of blast furnaces and iron works the interest now being manifested in the iron and coal deposits of the locality named is very largely due to the efforts of colonel S B milner of this city whose attention was directed to their existence and value by the editor of the mining review over two years ago the result being that the colonel at once began an investigation which led to the location of twenty five claims covering some of the best iron in pinto iron di district it was still later that colonel milner brought the enterprise to the notice of R H dear and fred lurch of minnesota through whose joint efforts the colorado fuel iron company of pueblo was induced to enter into contracts for the working and exploitation of both iron and coal fields owned by the gentlemen gen named as outlined in a special from pueblo to the st louis globe democrat as follows by contracts just closed here between the owners of undeveloped iron ore and coal lands in southwestern utah and the colorado fuel iron company of this city it is evident that a new and important iron ore region is is to be opened at once on a magnificent scale it is apparent from the plans of the colorado company and an european c concern that is is completing negotiations there that there will not only be a new mining field opened but a new manufacturing district and one that will have an important bearing on the american trade of the pacific islands the contracts now closed are between certain minnesota iron men named R B dear and F W lurch who have been interested in the vast ore beds of the mesaba masaba range for years and the fuel and iron company the latter agreeing to mine what is practically a minimum minimum amount of tons yearly at a royalty of 15 cents a ton from the lands of these minnesota men and to construct a railway there connecting with this city miles north in addition to the leasing of eleven mining claims to the company the owners have leased acres of coal lands car carrying carrein r a class of coal that is now available for coking into a furnace coke under the process that is owned and operated by the loiters of Chica chicago ao this coal has been considered worthless for iron making purposes but experiments peri ments with the new coking process prove its adaptability for making the best grades of iron there are also limestone ledges in the district as well as fluxes of other minerals A concern composed of some soma european capitalists and with 2000 in hand for immediate necessities has been endeavoring to buy the dear lurch lands but has failed it has now optioned option ed for a portion of remaining ore bearing lands and proposes to erect smelters shelters sm elters and rolling mills there and to construct a railway to a harbor on the pacific miles away where a port will be opened for the shipment of finished iron and steel to the orient both the denver and rio grande western and the oregon short line are building across the country on lines that will come close to these deposits and the pueblo line is now within ninety miles from the north A year ago the nearest railway point was miles a iway way M much uch of the iron in these lands is of a grade that will make bessemer steel and on other parts of the deposit the ore is of a high phosphorus porus and will be suitable for the open hearth process of steel manufacture there is is an average iron iron assay of about 62 per cent and all the vast deposit is a hematite most of it a soft ore like that of the mesaba masaba range in I 1 minnesota where it is mined with shovels and steam predictions by iron men who have seen these deposits and have noted the ease of mining the he quality of the ores the nearness to fuel and flux and the proximity to a market in the orient are that one of the most notable developments of the decade is likely to occur in that region soon |
