Newspaper Page Text
THE ATLANTA OEOROI AN AND NEWS.
An Alabama Town of Natural Resources, Destined to Become
a Great Industrial Center.
One Thousand Valuable
Lots To BeSold'at $100
Each. Among Them Are
Improvements Worthfrom
$1,000 to $70,000. Some
One Purchasing $100 Lot
Will Get Some of These
Improvements.
Beautiful North Alabama
Town is Located so'as to
Command Most Advan-
tage o us Transportation
Facilities and Offers Both
the Artistic and the Prac
tical Inducements Sought
by Prospective Investors.
By J. E. MeLAUCHLIN.
Id the ordinary proposition that la
unfolded to tho pubUe by tbooo who
with to promote tho Interest of a town
or ooaimunlty there l> morr or lex ex-
iftftttlon In atatlnx tho edvsntxges to
b« Obtained.
Tho promoter, of Bridgeport are In a
peculiar and enviable poaltlon when
they tell the public what tidy have to
offer. They hart only to tell the exact
facta and Invite Investors to their town.
Bridgeport's Commencement
Durtns the teat decade of the nine
teenth century and a few yaara prior to
that lime, the attention of Northern
cipltaliata waa direct ad to many alien
in tha Booth aa attractive aiimmer re
aorta and locttlona upon which mil
lionaire towna could be built.
Colonel A. J. McBride, who la known
by every Atlantan aa a wide-awake
real eetate promoter, had devoted con-
alderable time to developlnr Southern
towna, aapeclally la Alabama and Qeor-
(la.
Cpth one of hit proapectlnx tours
through north Alabama. Colonel Mc
Bride stopped over at the point where
tho tires moat progreetlvo Southern
states—Georgia, Alabama and Tonnes-
aeo—come to a point, 'alone the banka
of the Tenues It a rtrer. It occurred to
Colonel McBride that this waa the
place for a town. Aotliur upon this
Idea, he eat about immediately to In-
tareat Northara Inveatora and capital.
Mq_'M (i project to build a town at
vPfiUiort. A company was formed
and tha necessary lands In that vicinity
wars acquired.
The town of Brldteport was started.
A score or more New Tork capi
talists came to this place and Invested
their money In the project and laid the
foundation for what will some day be a
areal City. Streets were traded aad
tha walks paved wtih broad alone stabs.
The at rest a. which were laid off by an
expert landscape gardener, are run ti
aa to follow like natural (alleys and to
SyOld heavy grading, leaving beautiful
elevated lots tor the erection of resi
dences. Tbla grading and laying off of
tha town waa done at a considerable
axpanse to tha founder, of Bridgeport
and waa done In aa substantial a man
ner aa to be forever permanent.
A aawerage system wee installed
throughout the town aad a ry.tem of
waterworks, equal ta that of much
latter cities, In fact, sufficient for a
city of arty thousand population, waa
put ta. The supply of this water comes
from the tide of a mountain
three miles from the city aad Is aa
'pure aa nature ever furnished to man.
Tho enormous spring from which the
water eyatem te fed It Inexhaustible.
The natural fores from thle supply of
water edit throw a two and one-half
1 Inch stream ef water over say l.uHdlng
, In the town.
This nature) auply of water Is eup-
pllmented by a pumping station, and
neae men, wbq addressed the banquet,
ere and expressed their Intention of in.
eating In Bridgeport And Investing their
money, which will mean an army nf
manufacturers aad merchants talking
Bridgeport.
The Bridgeport Realty and Truat
Company baa completed plans for ex
ploiting the advantages that will come
to home-aeekera Investors and manu
facturers, and will begin an energetic
and systematic campaign of advertis
ing.
One Thousand Lots Te Be Sold at Once.
The Plan.
The Bridgeport Realty and Truat
Company own two thousand lota In the
town. They will place on the market
at once half of this number In a propo
sition that has tha greatest attraction
for the real estate Investors.
The Iota will be sold at a uniform
price of 1100 each, and every lot la
worth every penny of that amoum. if
the town makes even the least advance,
rnent
Included It, these lots are certain
lots, aa follows: Some one who
pays 1100 will gat a lot. with tha
office building shown In the arenm-
panylng Illustration. This building la
a four-story atone structure, entirely
occupied and cast 170,000. One of ths
double houses of Kilpatrick place will
tit put In aa one of the lota. These
houses are double apartments, eight
rooma to each aide, with cold and hot
water and bath, with cemented base-
ment. Each apartment cost 17.000 and
la ranting at 140 per month. Each of
tha five cottages shown In the Illustra
tion accompanying goes In tha
tale of the thousand lots. They are
substantially built and rent for ten dol
lars a.month; a 7-room house, with
bath, on Cunningham avenue, renting
at 111 per month, la another of the
prlxea to be gotten with a lioo lot.
Tha company also agrees to pay isoo
cash for live of the lots on the day they
are allotted by the purchasers of tha
1.000 lots.
These special lots will be one fea-
* ik« —I _ L ..IS.. ^ ni.iMkaa
DOUGLASS AVENUE COTTAGE. ,,
Owned By The Bridgeport Realty A Trust fompany.
KILPATRICK PLACE.
Owned By The Bridgeport Realty A Trust Company.
era capitalists' in the early nineties
After spending a considerable amount
of money In forming the town, the pan
ics of lit! and lit! gavs chilly feet to
the majority of these investors, and
they laft thalr Alabama properties to
taka care of themselves, while they
were back In the North giving atten
tion to larger Interests.
During these years of financial dis
tress Charles P. Scofield, who was ons
of the prime movers In the establish
ment of Bridgeport, remained there
With hie Interests and never lost faith
In the down be an Investment, but
watted for the -opportunity to again
begin active operations toward develop
ing It *
Early In thle year the Bridgeport
Realty and Trust Company was organ.
Ixed and a charter for it was secured
on February IS. This company Is thor
oughly organised, with a cash capital
of tlM.000, and Is composed of some of
the leading business men of the South.
Its officers are: President, W. I. Well
man. of Huntsville, Ala* treasurer of
the W. H. Rowe Knitting Mills of that
town: Vice-president. Leo K Steiner, of
Birmingham, Ala* member ef the bank
ing firm of Steiner Brothers, of Bir
mingham; sec re too’. Charles T. Sco
field, Bridgeport, secretary Bridgeport
Coal and Coke Company and manager
of the city waterworks. Mr. Scofield
being originally from New Tork; treas
urer, A. A. LtSueur, of Bridgeport,
president of the Bank ef Bridgeport.
The directors are; W. I. Wellman, Mil-
ton Humes and T. W. Pratt of Hunts
ville Ala.; Leo K. Steiner and Wlleon
R. Brown, of Birmingham; A. A. Le-
Sueur and Charles P. Scofield, of
Bridgeport. Among the men who will
direct the affaire of the Bridgeport
Really and Trust Company are some of
the lives! wires In the country, and all
of them have large manufacturing In
terests, the welfare of which they will
witch closely.
The object of the Bridgeport Realty
and Trust Company Is to prmnote the
Interest of the town. Induce Investors to
come to their town and see what the
advantages are, and to sell real estate.
Every member of this company la
very enthusiastic over the future of
Bridgeport, and say that tha only dif
ficulty they will have Is In getting man
ufacturers to Investigate their claims
and assure themselves or the econo-
rales that can be practiced by locating
their plants In Bridgeport.
Greeter Bridgeport Movement Fairly
Launched.
Already an sir of progresslvenass
pervades the atmosphere of this town i
that It destined to become one of Ala
bama's moat Important cities.
Around a banquet board.
The Aldhousa block Is a tour-story
granite front and pressed brick office
building that would look good In any
city. The Hotel Hudson It of sufficient
site Slid equipment te accommodate
guests to a town of' several. thousand,
in Hudson avenue Is a row of business
houses, which gtvaa visitor* to Bridge
port the Idea that they are' In n com
mercial town. Kilpatrick Place le a
row of modern apartments, fronting
east with broad, slab paved walks and
a naturally graded street. Each of
theee eight apartments are divided Into
twn sections. They nr* built of brick
PEYTON BUILDING.
Owned By Ths Brldgsport Realty A Trust Company.
to tha itaoad Boor and finished with
weatherboarding, ■presenting not only
a handsome, hut, a substantial appear
ance. Ini tile western portion of the
town Is the high school building, named
Besides tfieee. there are many cottages
anti buklpeas buddings, another hotel
and a few small manufacturing plants.
,. Bridgeport Hemes.
There are many beautiful hemes-In
Bridgeport. .They are of arttdtlo de
sign aqd beautiful finish; Indicating tho
refined taeies of their owners. Two
hundred additional bouses could find
ready rental.
turn of the sale, besides a number of
beautiful residence and business lots
that will be the property of some of the
purchasers, and each will get the value
of their money.
Colonel A. J. McBride in Charge of the
8ale.
The sale nf these thousand lots will
be announced through the paper* and
the definite plan of allotment will be
outlined. Colonel A. J. McBride, whose
offices are at 118 Empire building. At
lanta. will be In charge of the sale, sml
any Information In regard to the plan
or about the town will be furnished
upon application to him.
As stated above, Colonel McBride was
the real originator of the scheme to
build Bridgeport. He 1s taking a lively
Interest In the activities that are In
progress there now. and his entire time
will be devoted to the developments
that are planned for the making of
Greater Bridgeport.
Bridgeport It a Reality.
The facta that are recited In the
foregoing sketch of Bridgeport were
obtained by the wrjfer on a personal
visit to tha town, and none of the
statements la exaggerated. After mak
ing a trip over the entire town, It "'»*
readily seen that a plain statement of
tha facte would make an unreasonable
story, so the writer has endeavored to
minimise, rathar than magnify. <hr at
tractions offered by the company that
will develop Greater Bridgeport.
houses are so
ocaree that people are living In house
boats and stnblrs. No belter Invest
ment can be found than In building
houses for rent at Bridgeport. Houses
can ba built for sale on ths Installment
plan at handsome profft. The demand
for houses makes their sale or rental
easy.
The builder haa choice of materials.
Lumber Is cheap and the )<>cal saw and
planing mills can furnish nil required.
Building atone can ba had from home
quarries at small axpenea fvr quarry
ing and hauling. The day about
Bridgeport makes excellent red and
buff brick and there la cheap fuel to
bum them. Gravel, sand ant crushed
limestone ran be had for concrete mak
ing. tfhen cement can be obtained
from tha new plant concrete will be tho
favorite bulldlag materiel.
The Schools.
Favorable business conditions alone
ran not makw a home. Tho atmos
phere of the school and church Is nee*
The public schools of Bridgeport ore
constantly Improving In efficiency. They
will be better than aver next year.
The legislature of Alabama haa In
creased the school appropriation a inll.
lion dollars. That means better echoole
—better teachers. Thsra are three pub
lic school buildings In Brldgsport, two
of which aro for whits pupils. The
central school it a handsome, well-
equipped structure.
The Alatennga (Ala.-Tenn.faa.) Col
lege le a private Institution ifor higher
education. It has courses preparatory
for college and business Music* art
end elocution ere also taught here. It
his a large patronage from the sur
rounding territory.
Bridgeport’s Transportation Facilities.
This beautiful town of Bridgeport-
on-ths-Tenneasee W located on the
Tennessee river, about twenty mils*
east of Chattanooga.
At this point tha river la navigable
and a large part of tha freight is trans
ported by water.
Thera art about seventy trains peas
Bridgeport every twenty-four hours.
The great advantages that thle ce
ment plant will have In Its location at
Bridgeport Is In-tho supply of tho prop
er rock formation. Tha satire surface
of the earth around Coponhagan con
sists of limestone and a certain portion
of shales and enough aluminum sub
stance to get the required union be
tween rock and shales In the product
of high-grade cement. This peculiar
rock formation extends for several
miles west of the Copenhagen plant
and assures the Dixie Portland Cement
Company of plenty material for decades
to come.
Company is Formed te Develop
Bridgeport.
As formally stated, the town of
Bridgeport, Ala., was started by North-
. recently
given by the Bridgeport Realty and
Trust Company, ths promoters of the
town were assured of the co-operation
of three score and ten leading bust-
BRIDGEPORT REALTY A TRUBT COMPANY.
(OFFICE BUILDINO)
ALATKNNOA COLLEGE.