Soon the name “Iron
Mountain” will be only memory in Missouri. A
half century ago the deposit of iron ore bearing that name was the most famous in all the
land. For years the output from these mines
was hauled by teams to Ste. Genevieve for transportation on the Mississippi river. Later on – three score years ago – the Iron
Mountain railroad was built from St. Louis to haul the iron ore to the big smelters and
steel mills of Carondelet. Manipulations by
Big Business killed the iron industries of Carondelet and the mining business a long the Iron
Mountain road declined.
Iron Mountain was an oval shaped hill standing alone.
Except for the core of the mountain it was of a loose soft formation, offering an
easy proposition by hydraulics for securing the ore. The
mountain is gone – mined and shipped away.
For three quarters of a century the Iron Mountain railroad has been one of the
chief arteries of commerce in the middle west. . . Jay Gould, the railroad wizard, saw its
possibilities and made of it a connecting link in his vast system of roads. It has earned vast sums of money, enough to keep
other lines connected with it from becoming bankrupt.
It has furnished yachts for the male members of the Gould family and has bought
titles for some of their girls. It has been
historic from ante bellum times, during the years of civil strife and since that period,
but it must lose its identity to suit the pleasures of its managers.
There was a time when the name of a railroad signified its geographical location. Now, through the combination of many roads into
“system,” the name signifies a combination of power and interests, rather than a
route, which we may wish to travel.
The right to change the name of their own property cannot be denied to these
manipulators of railroads, but in the hearts of the older people is a regret that the name
of the line by which their journeys have been made must be changed.
“Iron Mountain, the Scenic Route” has gone into the discard. Pilot Knob, Arcadia Valley, Gads Hill, Tip Top, The
Shut In and other places famous among lovers of Ozark scenery, have been taken off the Iron
Mountain railroad and placed upon the time tables of the Missouri Pacific.
This may be good financiering, but it is void of sentiment and of appreciation for
the traditions that make a country great through its legends, its history and its clinging
to the glories of the past.
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