Rensselaer Journal, Volume 11, Number 18, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 October 1901 — STEEL TRUST’S RIVAL. [ARTICLE]

STEEL TRUST’S RIVAL.

Western Concern That Has Properties Extending 1.200 Miles. The billkMr dollar steel trust has a lusty rival in the Colorado Fuel and Iron company, the greatest Industry west of the Mississippi. This compan} now owns and controls nearly 400,000 acres of coal land and 5,000 acres oi iron ore. With its great steel works at Pueblo, CoL, it is making a second Pittsburg of that city, Jt employs 16,000 men, representing, with their families, one-tenth of the population of Colorado. The income of this company last year was 613,000,000 and its expenditures a trilie over 810,000,000. It takes over 8600,000 every month to satisfy the demands of the payroll. Commencing at Sunrise, Wyo., its properties form a chain 1,200 miles long to Fierro, N. M. The links of this chain are 28 coal mines, nine coking plants with 3,500 ovens, and at Pueblo, CoL. and Laramie, Wyo., the only steel plants between the Mississippi river and the Pacific coast In addition to these industrial concerns the company owns 80,000 -acres of grazing land and about 2,000 of the town lots In the city of Pueblo. In addition to furnishing a vast tonnage for several transcontinental railroads the company operates 100 miles of railroad of its own. From its coal mines the C. F. & I. marketed last year over 4,000,000 tons of coal, or 70 per cent of the entire production in Colorado. Last year it produced 60,000 bushels of coke, or 95 per cent of the product of thestate, and hundreds of new coke ovens are now. in process of construction. From its steel mills 728,000 tons were marketed, and.-orders were refused for over 250,000 tons m<fre. The C. F. ft I. company has grown to what it is with a capital' of 825,000*000. It has recently increased this capitalization to 840,000,000 by the issue of 815,000,000 of 6 per cent bonds, with a like Issue of common mand. The 815,000,000 is to be spent at Pueblo-enlarging the steel plant to a capacity of 1,500,000 tons of finished product each year. The' new manufactures are to be tinplate sheets, wire nails and other profitable products of like character. These new mills will, it is estimated, increase the value of the output of the company by 200 per cent.