Blast Furnace Records. [Volume: 8, Issue: 5, 1889, pp. 272-274]

No. 5.]

CHARCOAL IRON WORKERS.

273

3205 days (about 8j years). The length of various blasts and the
results obtained in each are as follows:
Bushels of
Gross tons Tons of charcoal
Length of Campaign. of pig-iron pig-iron per ton of
Total days. Stops. Net days. made. per day. iron.
1st Blast,.. 677 7 670 29,040 43 94
2d ".. 799 7 792 33,124 42 95
3d ".. 331 11 320 15,279 48 89
4th "..510 14 496 26,868 54 88
5th "..586 10 576 29,237 51 92
6th ". 361 10 351 20,451 58 95
3264 59 3205 153,999 48
"The iron is weighed out at 2260 pounds to the ton. The charcoal
is charged to furnace by measure, 2748 cubic inches to the bushel,
the weight averaging 20 pounds. It is made from one-third hemlock, black ash, elm and soft maple, and two-thirds from beech,
sugar maple, oak and birch woods, in brick kilns owned by the
company, 20 of which are of 80 cords capacity, and 30 of 55 cords
capacity each.
" The furnace is 45 feet high, bosh 10 feet 6 inches in diameter,
with crucible 5 feet in diameter and bell 5 feet, equipped with Weimer charger and seal. It is blown by a Weimer engine, 60-inch
air-cylinder, 4-foot stroke. Steam is supplied by two batteries of
steel boilers (two boilers in each battery). Boilers 30 feet long and
48 inches in diameter, one battery only being used at a time.
Blast is heated by one 24-pipe Player and one 35-pipe Weimer
suspended stove; the average temperature of blast being 850~,
as blown into furnace through four 3j-inch tuyeres.
The ore used is brought from Lake Superior mines by rail to
Escanaba, thence by vessel to Fruitport, and discharged directly
into the stock-house adjoining the furnace. The limestone used for
flux is brought from Kelley's Island, Lake Erie, by vessel. The
fuel-supply is obtained at and near to the furnace, along the line of
Chicago and West Michigan Railway, 40 miles being the longest
haul of charcoal by cars. The average yield of the ore-mixture
varies between 58 and 61 per cent.
The second record which we present is of