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IRONDALE
Irondale, just north of Port Hadlock, was so
named because a large iron ore smelter was built there in 1879.
Samuel Hadlock, along with other local businessmen, created the
Puget Sound Iron Company. The plant employed some 400 men and
produced high-quality iron, which was shipped primarily to San
Francisco. The plant closed in 1889, but was reopened several years
later as the Western Steel Company. The president of Western Steel
was James A. Moore, president of the Moran Brothers Shipbuilding
Company in Seattle, which built the battleship USS Nebraska in
1901. Western Steel was supposed to be instrumental in building a
railroad from Port Townsend to Portland, Oregon, and there was
speculation that Moran Brothers might also establish a
shipyard.
In 1909, the City of Irondale, one square mile
platted in May, had a population of 1,500 and plans were made to
accommodate a population of 20,000 within three years. One year
later, the town the had a bank, a newspaper, three hotels, two
brick buildings, 30 businesses, a hospital, scores of new houses,
graded streets, electricity, telephones, a water and sewer system,
and no unemployment. The steel mill, working around the clock, was
producing approximately 700 tons of steel per week. The Seattle
Post-Intelligencer declared in 1910 that Irondale had the potential
“of becoming the largest and most important manufacturing city in
Western America.”
But suddenly in 1911, Western Steel declared
bankruptcy, causing Irondale’s collapse. After a brief period of
operation during World War I (1917-1919) to use up stockpiled raw
materials, the plant was dismantled. Today, Irondale is basically a
residential area for the Port Hadlock Tri-Area.
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The cache is a WWII era (army green) metal
ointment can, approximately 4" x 3" x 1". There's room for geocoins
and other tiny trackables, but PLEASE -- NO SWAG.
Thanks!
Special CONGRATS to bumblingbs for being
FTF!!