History of
Paulding County
by Prof. Everett A. Budd as printed in the Historical Hand-Atlas:
History of Northwestern Ohio and History of Paulding County, Ohio.
H. H. Hardesty & Co., Publishers: Chicago and Toledo. 1882.
[Photo: Melrose (Ohio). 1890 circa. Center for Archival Collections, Bowling Green State University (OH). Ohio Memory Project.]
Statistics (from 1882)
The population of the county in 1830 was 161; in 1840, 1,034; in 1850,
1,766; in 1860, 4,945; in 1870, 8,544; in 1880, 13,489. Number of
acres of arable or plow land as returned in 1880, 47,199. Number of acres
meadow or pasture land, 7,230. Number of acres timber land, 205,970. Total
number of acres in county, 260,399.
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Source: History of Paulding County by Prof. Everett A. Budd as printed in the Historical Hand-Atlas: History of Northwestern Ohio and History of Paulding County, Ohio. H. H. Hardesty & Co., Publishers: Chicago and Toledo. 1882.
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Manufacturing
Industries
The heavy growth of timber in the
county has invited several kinds of manufacturing establishments into
it. Among these may be noticed the two furnaces for the smelting of
iron ores. One of these is known as the Antwerp Furnace, and is
located on the Maumee river at Antwerp; the other is known as the Paulding
Furnace, and is located near Cecil, on section 23, Crane township.
The ore is obtained from Lake Superior region and is transported by the
lakes to Toledo; from there is was formerly brought by canal to the
furnaces, but is now shipped over the Wabash, St. Louis & Pacific R.
R.
The Antwerp Furnace is owned by Bradley, Cobb, Kimball & Company; it
is operated by Thomas Fitzsimons. It was built in 1865; the height
of stack is 42 feet; height of boshes, 7 feet; height of hearth, 6 feet;
height of tuyeres, 40 inches; diameter of throat, 3 feet 6 inches;
diameter in boshes, 8 feet 10 inches; of tuyeres, 3 1/4 inches; number of
tuyeres, 3; temperature and pressure of blast not known.
The cost of ores at the furnace is $10. Charcoal is used for fuel
and is obtained at the furnace kilns at a cost of 7 1/2 cents per bushel.
The flux is corniferous limestone, and is obtained from the Maumee river
near the furnace at a cost of $8 per cord. a charge is composed of
600 pounds of ore, 30 pounds of flux, and 30 bushels of charcoal.
The number of charges in twenty-four hours is 50; the production in twenty-four
hours is 13 tons.
Two-thirds of all the iron produced is gray, one-twelfth is white, and
one-fourth is mottled.
The kind of engine used in blast is upright; diameter of steam cylinder,
26 inches; size of blast cylinder, 50 inches in diameter and 26 feet long;
stroke of piston per minute, about 30; pressure of steam, from 40 to 50
pounds; the blast ovens used are Pollocks. The average length of
campaign is eight months.
The proprietors of the Paulding Furnace are Graff, Bennett &
Company. It is operated by the Paulding Iron Company, limited; S.
Frank Eagle is the present superintendent.
The furnace was built in the year 1864-5. It was burnt down in the
Fall of 1875, and rebuilt the following winter. The dimensions of
the furnace are as follows: height of stack, 40 feet; height of
boshes, 8 feet; height of hearth, 6 feet; height of tuyeres, 32 inches;
diameter of tuyeres, 3 1/2 inches; diameter at throat, 38 inches; diameter
at boshes, 9 1/2 feet; number of tuyeres, 3; diameter at nozzle of
tuyeres, 3 1/2 inches. The temperature of the blast is 900 degrees;
pressure of blast, 1 1/2 pounds per square inch. The Lake Superior
ore is used. It is obtained from a mine near Marquette, Michigan, at
a cost of $10 per ton. Its percentage of iron is about 66.
The fuel used is charcoal, and is obtained at teh furnace at a cost of
about 7 1/2 cents per bushel.
Limestone (upper corniferous), is used for flux. It was formerly
obtained from section 17, Defiance township, Defiance county, Ohio, at a
cost of $1.50 per perch at the furnace. The amount of charge is 500
pounds of ore, 22 bushels of coal, and 50 pounds of limestone; the number
of charges in twenty-four hours is about 80.
The amount of iron produced in twenty-four hours is about eleven tons.
All kinds of iron is made, and about five-sixths of all is gray.
A horizontal blast engine is used. The size of steam cylinder is
eighteen inches; the pressure of steam is about sixty pounds.
The annual production of iron was, in 1869, 2,788 tons; in 1879, 2,494
tons; 1871, 2,725 tons. The price of iron in 1869 was about $44; in
1870 about $38; and in 1871, about $40 per ton.
The amount of fuel used in producing a ton of iron is about 140 bushels.
The furnace is situated on the Paulding & Cecil Railroad, and the ore
and wood are brought to it by rail.
A mill for the manufacture of elm hoops was erected at Paulding in the
Fall of 1880, and is now in successful operation, by the firm of Holcombe
& Evans. The machinery is run by two large engines, which are
furnished by three boilers.
The machinery consists of al large circular saw for sawing the logs into
bolts, one cutter, two planers, two pointers, and four coiling
machines.
The number of hands employed is about fifty, and the number of hoops
manufactured is about 36,000 per day. Col. W. C. Kewen is the
present superintendent.
Extensive stave factories are located at Antwerp, Junction, Paulding, Fort
Brown and Timberville. Many sawmills are located in every part of
the county, and their lumber products form an important article of export.