Virginian in 1908 -- H. H. Rogers

[NW Mailing List]

Bluefield Daily Telegraph
October 22, 1908

PUT $30,000,000 OF OWN MONEY INTO ROAD
------
Virginian Has Been H. H. Rogers' Hobby Since Organization of Tidewater Company Four Years Ago
------
    The New York Tribune of Tuesday has the following in regard to the Virginian Railroad [sic.]:
    "Henry H. Rogers has been elected president of the Virginian Railway, which is a consolidation of the Deepwater and Tidewater railway companies, succeeding W. N. Page.  This road has been Mr. Rogers' particular baby since the organization of the Tidewater company, in March, 1904, and he has spent millions of dollars on its construction.  When completed, it will form a line 446 miles in length from Deepwater, W. Va., to Sewell's Point, Va., near Norfolk, and will open up the rich bituminous coal fields of West Virginia, in which Mr. Rogers is largely interested.
    "According to the latest reports, rails have been laid and construction completed on 373 miles of the road, and grading and tunneling on the remaining portion are said to be almost entirely finished.  It is estimated that by February 1, 1909, the line will be in operation from the coal fields to tidewater.
    "In February, 1907, the Tidewater Railway borrowed $10,000,000 on 6 per cent notes.  It was a time of money stringency, and the loan cost the road about 7 1/2 per cent.  In May of this year the Virginian Railway sold $17,000,000 worth of 6 per cent notes, the proceeds of which it was stated, would be used to retire the former issue and to complete the construction of the line.
    "When completed, it is said, the road will be one of the best constructed lines in the country.  The grading and ballasting are of the best, and the bridges will be so constructed as to permit of the hauling of 4,000-ton trains.  It is the opinion of practical railroad men that the total cost of the road, including equipment to move 5,000,000 tons of coal a year, will approximate $55,000,000, which will make it one of the most expensive roads of its length ever built.
    "Mr. Rogers is said to have put $30,000,000 of his own money into the project, and in addition, to have incurred $10,000,000 personal liability.  It was currently reported some time ago that even his vast resources had been so strained by the tremendous absorption of cost by the railway that he had been obliged to dispose of many high-grade securities to meet the drain upon him."
------
Gordon Hamilton
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/nw-mailing-list/attachments/20081116/071baaf5/attachment.html>