The Richmond Virginian., July 30, 1910, CITY EDITION, THE PROGRESS SECTION, Image 11

About The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920

Image provided by: Library of Virginia; Richmond, VA

                
SOUTH BOSTON PROSPEROUS METROPOLIS OF RICH TOBACCO SECTION
l'p»0 Residential Seftloa.
MILLIONS SPENT
ON NEW BUNGS
Handsome* Structures Being
Erected All Over South at
Enormous Cost.
MONEY SEEMS PLENTIFUL
Sums Spent on Individual Edi
tions Frequently Range Into
Five Figures.
(From AT m
•.lecturer's .Record. P- il'l
more.)
From the 1' Southern States and
from Oklahoma and Missouri irt-:
Manufacturers Record has re cived
this week letters from architects, con
this week letters from architects, con
tractors, builders and others at va
rious points giving details of improve
ments aggregating many millions of
dollars In cost uuder the auspices of
State, county, municipal or Federal
governments, for corporations and for
individuals, recently completed, now
under way or definitely planned. These
letters, which till nearly live pages,
reveal a notable activity in building
operations of many kinds. In road 1
and street Construction and in home- j
building, in railroad and levee work,
in bank and office building, and in
sewers, water works and other public
utilities.
Last year showed a decided ret ival
of such operations In the South, and
though at some points there is now
a bit of slackening up because of
tightness in the money market, the
general situation in the South has be
come normal, and for that section
normal means activity ail along the
line In city and country.
Une firm of architects, for example,
has since the first of the year com
pleted plans for six churches aggre
gating in cost 1159,000, three resi
dences ranging in cost from $12,0uQ
to $9,500, two jails costing $33,000
and stores und offices costing $35,000,
and has under way plans for three
churches aggregating $77,000 In cost.
At another point a construction com
pany is bringing to completion a
$250,000 bank building and a con
tractor will finish within the next
three months a bank building cost
ing $1,500,000, and has just started
upon a factory building to cost $200.
0000. In a suburb of a Texas city
contracts are nearing completion, rep
resenting an aggregate expenditure of
nearly $500,000, and in a Florida city,
where a railroad system is preparing
to build a passenger depot 9 60 feet
front and 100 feet deep, the general
situation is described as "ten-thous
and-dollar residences are more nu
merous now than flve-thousand-dollar
residences were a few years ago.”
Work in filter beds for a municipal
trainage plant costing $360,000, upon
a three-mile extension of a railroad
costing $90,000, upon* macadamizing
about three miles of public highway
costing $50,000 and upon a mile of
embankment aero** a marsh costing
$32,000 represent the activities of an
other contracting firm. A $100,000
building, part steel and part reinforc
ed concrete, for a retail grocery com
pany, and a $700,000 office building of
steel and either reinforced concrete or
tile, a $15,000 clubhouse, three school
houses costing $65,000. a $60,000
Young Men’s Christian Association
building, a $40,000 planing mill outill,
$20,000 water work* an<f electric light
plant, 1,200,000 cubic yards ol levee
work, a $25,000 heating contract,
$400,000 worth of lock and dam work
$n river Improvement, a $40,000 base
ball park, an $80,000 hotel, a $t«,u00
•ostoffice. a $226,000 hotel, a $75,000
•fllce bonding, a $150,000 drainage
contract, $200,000 of street Improve
ments, a $125,000 sewerage system, a
$15,000 country club, a $50 000 store
building, a *100,000 boulevard, a
$400,000 work of tunneling, $33,000
of tinners' houses at one point and
many private dwellings, ranging <n
cost from $1,200 to $30,000. are
among tt>e many other Items mention
ed U Um letter*
ILL IS BOOMING
UP IN IBOM)
Splendid Apple Crop Yield Large !
Profits to Many Orchard
Owners.
LAND SALES REPORTED'
Soil Adaptable for Fruit Grow
ing in Demand at Good
Prices.
I
--
WAYNESBOItO, VA . .1 u1 y 20.— I
. Sealed bids for the site for the lie"’ i
I'nlted States postofflce building were
opened In the treasury' department In
Washington on Tuesday last There
were ten bids, ranging In price from j
1500 to $12,000. and covering some of (
the best looatlons as to the business
center and accessibility.
Work on the new -Blue Kldge high
way" from Waynesboro over Blue I
ltldge mountains is progressing rap- I
Idly .and macadam Is being laid at
rate of 200 ^eet per day with a full
force of men. A traction engine pass- j
ed over this newly laid macadam
on Thursday and the test showed the
work well and truly done. Septem- i
Iter 1 Is the date set for the comple
! tlon of the part of the road on this
side of the mountain. Grading in '
1 the adjoining county of Nelson on
the east of the ridge Is llnlshed to a
point near Afton and the right of
way of this new road Is being cleared
In Albemarle county, starting at the,
county line near Afton. There Is a
full set of road-making machinery ;
now in place in Albemarle county j
which, together with the Bet In Au
gusts. Insures the prompt completion
of this ten miles of macadam road.
The board of supervisors of Augusta
county at Its meeting held in Staun
ton on Monday last, heard the peti
tion of Mr. Fred W. Scott, of Koyai
Orchard; Mr. W. A. Hlfe. president
! of the Waynesboro board of trade, j
and H. M Magie. the secretary, and
a resolution was passed appropriat
ing an additional $3,000 of county
funds for this macadamised highway.
Apple Crop Large.
The apple crop In the Waynesboro ,
I orchards will be the largest In the ]
history of this fruit section. The
j "Bose CHIT" orchards will pack from
' 8,000 to 10,000 barrels of apples from
their eighty acres of bearing trees.
The "Punch Howl" orchards that
were recently purchased by T. K.
Ntnlnger, a former orange grower of
Florida, will pack 1,000 barrels from
i the fourteen acres of bearing trees
Dr. S. W. Fletcher, director or the
Virginia Experimental Station at
Blacksburg, who owns the "Elm
; Spring" orchards near Waynesboro,
; estimates his crop at 1,500 barrels
] and the total estimate for the "Cisco"
orchards, which were recently sold to
a storage company in Kentucky, 1b
I $,000 barrels from their 2.000 bearing
; trees.
Mirny Oirnimn bold.
Recent sale* of apple orchard prop
! ertle* In the Waynesboro section in
I elude fifty-eight acres and "00 bear
| lng W'inesap trees to Kev. C. A. Lang
ston, of Cleveland, Ohio, consldera
i tlon $3,200; twelve acres with 100
i York Imperial trees to Mrs. L. C.
Richardson, of Erie.,. Pa..; constdira
tlon.11,300; 125 acres with 1,200 Pip
pin and red apple trees to Edward
Donnelly, attorney of Pittsburg, Pa.;
20 acres with *00 red apple trees to
F. E. Pearsall, of Chicago. III., con
sideration $2,750, and Mr. Guernsey,
of New York City, has purchased
four of the five acre tracts of the
| Shenandoah Valley'Apple Lands Com
I pany, of Waynesboro, and will plant
i and build a home on this land and
: occupy same when his trees reach
I bearing age.
Plans are complete and resolutions
have been adopted for the letttng of
the contract for the new $30,000 Pres
byterian church. The plans adopted
were prepared by R. G. Vance, cash
ier of the First National Bank or
Waynesboro, and were chosen after a
very careful scrutiny of many >om
petttlce plans, Mr. Vance being an
alder In this church and a laadlnw
spirit la this movement.
i
Some of South Boston's Tobacco Facto
rtf*..
Real Estate Man Believes Depre
ciation in Values Afftets
IIis Business.
That the slump in the stock mar
ket of the last several weeks has
affected the realty rituatlon In Hlch
mond in no uncertain manner is the
opinion of a promtnent Eleventh street
real estate man who sees a two
fold effect from the depreciation of
stock values.
"In the first place.” he says, “the
man who owns stock and Is determin
ed to hold on to It Is not going to
turn any of his spare money loose
and Invest It in real estate or In anv
I thing else, for that matter, as long as
he sees his holdings going down In
value day by day.
•Then there is the other man who
sees his chance to make money by
i Investing In depreciating stocks on
' the strength of his belief and confl
| dence that they will return to their
normal value, sooner or later. That
man Isn't going to dabble tn realty,
either, under such circumstances. He
is going to put all hts ready cash and
, some credit, perhaps. In stock which
' he regards as most solid and stib
stantidl for the money he has to n
vest.
itch ip tn Auxun.
Real estate men, as a rule, admit
that business Is slack with them, but
! they do not all incline to the theory
I that the drop In stocks has had an)
special effect on the situation. Most
of them express confidence that busi
ness will pick up tn August, and be
In full blast again early In the fall.
Already, they say, familiar faces In
i the business section are reappearing
after an absence of a month or two,
and that means that many of Rich
mond's substantial citizens who have
i probably been seeking recreation at
the seashore are returning home to
their business, while their families. In
many lrnltances, will perhaps seek
mountain resorts for the remainder of
the summer.
With a few exceptions, there were
no sales of any consfguence during
the week, and If they were the agents
i were not ready to give them out to
! the press. A sale worthy of note was
one made by Harrison & Orant for
T. M. Hundley. The property consist
, ed of 400 feet on the south side of
> Stuar avenue, and it passed Into pos
I session of a wealthy banker of La
I trobe, Pa., who see* great possibilities
: In Richmond realty. He bought the
property as an Investment, and may
build on it later.
May Build Hospital.
Another sale reported to have been
consummated was that which involv
ed eighteen acres of land In the
West End ntar Rio Vista, which Is
said to have passed Into the hands of
a prominent Franklin street physi
cian, who la seriously considering the
feasibility of erecting’a private bos
pltal on the property. It la stated, ■
however, that he has no Intention of
building on It for some months, at
least. The price paid for the land
was 118.000, it U eald.
T. M. Hundley has recently pur
chased a small tract at Weathampton.
and It Is said that he will erect a
handsome home on it at an early date.
In the same neighborhood Jullen
Gunn has Just broken ground for a
palatial home for himself.
, Golsan & Xash, who n*»ke a spe
; olalty of Weathampton lote, report
business fairly active, although they
would like to see It more so. 1’urlng
the week they consummated sales ag
gregating $7,450, which Is not so bail,
they say, for the midsummer season.
Amos <k Poindexter report an ag
gregate of $10,000 worth of business
during the week In city and county.
With some good things on the string
that are likely to develop Into saies
ere the lapse of another fortnight.
Other agents say they may have
something of Interest to glee out next
week.
PLAN TO REOPEN
HOTEL IN MANASSAS
(Special to The Richmond Virginian.)
MANASSAS. VA.. July SO.—The
Prince William Hotel, built by the late
Robert Portner. and operated aa the
chief hostelry of Manassas until the
banishment of the aaloona. when It was
closed. Is about to be reopened again.
The property, which la owned by the
Eastern College and has been used as
a ladies' dormitory since its purchase
front the Portner estate, has recently
been leased by W. R. Lewis, proprie
tor of the Warren Green Hotel, of War
renton, -who will open It ns a place
of public entertainment on October 15.
and will be conducted In an up-to
date manner. Mr. Lewis declares his
Intention to make this hotel, In point
of local and commercial advantages,
second to none In the State.
At a meeting of the supervisors of
Prince William county, held this week,
a committee was appointed to confer
with the supervisors of Fairfax county
looking to the establishment of a Joint
"bridge over OccckjUan run. at Wolf
run shoals. The citizens of both coun
ties have felt the need of this Im
provement for some time and will hall
Its advent with great satisfaction
According to Information received
through the Prince William county
clerk's office, the total assessment of
lands In District No. 1, known as
"above the run,” Is I2.1SO.OOO, against
J1.4S6.355 five years ago.
Professor H. F. Button, principal of
the Manassaa Agricultural High
School, has purchased what Is known
as The Institute property, on Grant
nvenue, and will convert It Into a hand
some residence In the near future.
GOLSAN WILL MAKE TRIP
TO MAINE IN AUTOMOBILE.
Mr. H. L- Golsan, of thef real estate
firm of Golsan & Nash, expects to leave
August 4 for OH City, Pa., where Mr*.
Golsan lias been spending some time,
i From that rjty he will motor with his
| wife to Winter Harbor and other points 1
j In Maine. He will be back about Sep- j
i tember 1« .. •
THE BERKELUHE
NEW jSPWRTMENT
Twentieth Centurv City Homes
Under One Ihx>f—Greater
Richmond's Venture.
The new apartnfent house at the
corner of Harrison and Franklin
streets. In the most fashionable resi
dential section of the city, Is rapidly
nearing completion, and will be ready
for occupancy by September 1.
The erection of this handsome five
story building Is something of a new
departure In Richmond. It is true
there are numbers of handsome up
to-date apartment houses hereabouts,
but the Berkeley Is the first to meet
the demand of the apartment dweller
whis desires spacious rooms, extra
wide halls and enough floor space and j
large enough rooms to admit of en- .
tertalnlng handsomely If he desires I
so to do. In other words, it Is the
only apartment house yet erected In
this city that has only one apartment
to the floor, a*, this Is regarded as
a distinct advantage over the other
kind. In which there are numerous;
entrances and exits that give the idea1
of a "community" rather than a home.
The architecture of the Berkeley
Is colonial, a style which Noland- .t
Baakervllle, the architects, handle
with rare skill. The rental of the
Berkeley Is being handled by N\ W.
Bowe & Son, one of the leading real
estate firms of the city. The general j
appearance of the Berkeley Is that |
of a charming dwelling house, with
the entrance for the first apartment
through a beautifully proportioned ;
porch on Franklin street, and to the
apartments above through a hand- ,
some side entrance on Harrison street, |
where access Is had to the upper j
floors by means of an electric cleva.-,
tor and an Iron stairway.
A library and drawing room occupy,
the Franklin street front of each 1
apartment, affording a spa-ee of ■
thlrty-twH) feot, beyond which. Is 'he
wide reception hall, from which the j
main hall tsix feet In width) opens
through a wall planned Colonial arch, j
Each suite consists of four large ,
bedrooms, with closets; twe tiled j
bathrooms, two servant rooms, a din- I
ing room, which is 20 by 14 1-2 feet, |
and beautifully lighted with two large
west windows, and a pantry nnd
kitchen, with freight elevator, buck
porch and stairway. There are also
two linen and trunk closets In each
apartment.
The mantels are an exquisite feat
ure of each room, being especially
designed for this building by the nr
chltects, and the woodwork, electric
fixtures and plumbing equal that of
any private residence In the city.
..The Berkeley was not built until
there was a demand for this class
of twentieth century apartment house.
Richmond people eeem determined to
hare the b«at of everything.
'if
Itnni()<>«« Section of Mnfn Street.
SOUTH BOSTON GROWS
RAPIDLY IN BOTH
WEALTH ANDB EAU
Halifax Metropolis Located in Heart of Prosperous Tobacco!
Section and Handles Vast Quantities of
Bright Weed
TWO MILLION POUNDS WERE SOLD
DURING THE YEAR JUST ENDED
WSj
Citizens Display Much Thrift and Energy in Building Fp Place
Ravaged by Flames a Few Years Ago—Manufacturing
Plant? Busy and General Conditions Highly
Grati fying.
By JOSEPH P. MADISOV,
(Stuff rom-sponikul.)
SOUTH BOSTON. July 30.—Three ;
years and a half ago South Boston t
had a Are that swept away one-third i
of the town. Including practically the >
entire business section. t
To-day new South Boston, the sec
ond largest bright tobacco market In ^
the world, shows no vestige of the ;
flames. Its business area Is one solid
row of brick stores and manufactur
ing establishments, and prosperity Is ^
In evidence on every hand.
With a population of 4,000 souls,
South Boston Is the metropolis of Hal- ‘
lfax county. It Is pierced by two 1
railroads—the Southern anil the ■
Lynchburg- Durhamdlvlalon of the
Norfolk and Western, which give It 1
first class traffic facilities for the pro- <
motion of Its enterprises and Indus- :
tries. 1
During the past year 18,576,252 ■
pounds of bright leaf were sold on 1
Its market, and for this amount near- 1
ly $2,000,000 was paid out In ready '
cash. These figures speak for them- j
selves and clearly show the .lmpor- i
tance of the place as a tobacco mar- |
ket. . ,
Employ 600 Hands.
The American Tobacco Company,
the R. J. Reynolds Company and the
Edmondson Company all have thou
sands of dollars Invested In the town. ■
Four mammoth drying machines.,
seven large storage houses with a
capacity of 10,000 hogsheads each,
and a big stemmery are the chief
establishments of these companies
which employ no fewer than 600
hands, mostly colored labor.
South Boston not only Is the mar
ket for vast quantItles of brtfht leaf
raised in the cour.ty tributary to It.
but It handles a great deal of to
bacco shipped from distant points and
stored there. one of the tobapco
companies even ships much Connec
ticut tobacco to the place to be strip
ped and then shipped to other points
for manufacture.
The town serves especially as a
storage place for thousands of hugs
heads of tobacco owing to Its ex
ceedingly low rate of Insurance and
other advantages of an unexcelled
nature
Storage House Going Vp*
The Edmondson Company Is now
erecting a new storage warehpust .
covering an acre of ground. The
structure, like others of Its kind In
the place, will be strictly fireproof
It la located oh the Norfolk and
Western road and will add materially
to the storage capacity of the place.
Tobacco, however, Is not the only
1 Industry In South Boston. The town
has a cotton and knitting mill with
a capital of $84,000, which give em
ployment to 200 hands. it also has
a shirt manufacturing establishment,
operated by the firm of Stebbins, Law
son, Spraggins and Company. This
concern, oapltalixed at *10.0,000, em-.
ploys fifty hands and keeps five men
j on the road the year round. The
I Barbour Buggy Company, of which
! the town mav well be proud, with a
I capital of $400,000, does business ap
1 proxlmattng half a million dollars a
year Men) solicit business for It
j throughout" the South and more than
300 peraohs find employment with it
at hums., The company operates a
hardware and lumber business In con
neetton with its manufacturing plant.
Paved With Stone*.
Main street, the chief business thor- i
. ■ a : ‘
>ughfare, Is lined on each side wltl* %
stores that cater mostly to ret
trade in the town and country. T(«<(
street Is paved with cobble stOCC
throughout the business section. Offjg|
ment sidewalks afford a comfort
means of locomotio nfor podoktrli
not only along Main street, but aid
the leading residential thorougitfar
The business of South Boston^
transacted through the medium tf 1
Panklng institutions, with a combi
capital of nearl ya quarter of million ,
dollars and with deposits aggreg '
a million and half dollars In the baa
season. These Institutions are Bat
>f South Boston, capital 150,000,
plus and protits $51,000, de
$210,000; First National Bank, cap
$50,000, surplus and profits $3,<
deposits $200,000; Boston Natloil
capital $50,000, surplus and prob
$5,200, deposits $120,000; Pla
and Merchants National,
$100,000, surplus and profits $53,01
deposits $398,000; Savings Bank,
tnl $10,000, surplus and profits S1.&1
deposits $60,000.
Hunks I’ur -1 Per Cent.
All of the banns pay 4 per cent
deposits. They are looking for a
cord breaking season, the coming
despite decline of stocks In New log
and other signs of depression that
feet South Uoston not in the least
Property values In South,
have Increased three-fold In Uie
decade. To-day the personal
and realty is valued at $2,200,900,
tnwn'ta xrate is only $5 cents on
$100, while the State and county
6 5 cents, making a total rate of
$1.40, which is considerably
that of many other progressive
and towns. The bonded debt is Stf
000. .
When South lice ton was swept,
tire Its citizens went to work gf
redoubled energy. building a
town in place of the old. To
modern high pressure pump s
with duplicate steam and e
pumps, stands as one of the
merits to thetr nover-say-die
The Dan river, which runs al
the town, supplies the watei
system. An up-to-date fire
ment, with modern equipment,
other direct result of the des
flumes. Still another result
new building code, which allolj
frame structures itr the h
triot.
These improvements meet ev
quirement of the Southeastern
Association, and affords the f
tire rate enjoyed by only tti
modern and up-to-date cities.
Proud of New School.
Of no Institution within its .
is South Boston prouder than
$2t>,0QU fourteen room st
ing. which lias been pronou
finest of Its kind In tho Stat
located In the center of a two
and was erected with funds
from a specie* bond Issue W
local banks agreed to take «
less than an hour’s time
result of the election was pr
Mr. H. J. Watkins, assistant:
of the Hank of South Host®
second honor man at Bant
ney In 1S70, was largely
for the awakening of Internet
11c schools on -the part of t>M
Mr. aWtklns, an experienced
from the adjoining county
1 lotte. haa been a resident
i Boston for twenty yearn.