About Atlanta Georgian and news. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1907-1912 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 24, 1909)
J ATLANTA—THE HALF-MILLION CITY” EDITION OF THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN AND NEWS. How Three Brothers Built A Big Atlanta Enterprise From a Small Beginning Ran- ONE OF CITY'S FINEST, dall Bros. Have Risen ...... ■■ . _ Story of Atlanta Ice Co.’s Growth Is Interest ing One. -jt- m After a quarter of-a century of prog ress. embracing a small and modest be ginning and a robust Increase with every year, Randall Brothers, dealers In fuel and building materials and man ufacturers of lumber, doors, sash and blinds, have reached a position of the utmost prominence In Atlanta business circles, maintaining four large and flourishing coal yards and a lumber mill and warehouse covering seven acres of ground on one of the most do. slrable factory sites In Atlanta For 25 years the copartnership of W, L. Randall, H. G. Randall and P. H. Randall—never Incorporated—has fought its way up to the front rank by means of pluck, clear judgment, cease less Industry and tireless energy. There has never been one year of back- pedaling In the history of the copart nership—never a twelvemonth but has added Its substantial gain to tbe pat ronage and the facilities of the frater nal combination. It was In 1885 that the three broth ers, with little to back them save en ergy, pluck, loyalty to one another and faith In themselves, organised a small cbal business In old Atlanta. The little business, carefully nursed, extended on a clean and healthful basis by square dealing and scrupulous fairness, took hold rapidly. It grew so fast, Indeed, that in 1888 a side line was Introduced and the handling of lumber, shingles and laths was taken on In addition to the now well estab lished fuel business. During the following decade and a half, a steady growth In both lines of business followed. Other coal vards were gradually needed and as prompt ly added, for the brothers were quick to take advantage of their rising pres tige and to Increase their trade as op portunity offered. In the lumber business, too, things were on the boom. In fact, before the completion of the partnership's second decade It was seen that the" contrac tor’s supply department was destined to become as great, If not a greater, factor In the future of the business as the coal and fuel department with which it had been started. Thus it came about. In 1903, that Randall Brothers established a big planing mill and manufacturing plant In connection with their lumber busi ness and began on an extensive scale the manufacture of doors, blinds, sash, mouldings and all the other forms of Interior finishings. Their specialty, however, was a form of sash specially devised by them, known as “Putty hock Sash,” which today forms' the lender of their' enormous business. , Almost at the same time, Randall Brothers brgnrf handling time and it full Una .of builders’ hardware, thus completing their facilities for supplying every demand, knowp to the contrac tor’s trade. The result of these moves The Atlanta Ice and Coal Company was organised In 1802 by the Trust Company of Georgia. From what was considered the smallest and poorest Ice plants In the country it has grown to what Is perhaps the largest and best Ice plant In the South. When the company began business It had five- old, aban doned plants. Immediately after pur chasing, two of the old plants were torn ■ down and the other two gradually Im proved until now they can not be recog nized as the former dilapidated plants. The total capacity of the plants In 1802 was only 275 tons, and a capacity for storage of about 3j)00 tons. Today the dally output Is about 575 tons, while there Is n storage capacity of 15,000 tons. Tho company's central plant Is located In Pledmont-ave. and Is considered one of the most modern and thoroughly equipped plants In the United States: Operated In connection with It Is a large cold storage plan! and a brine pipe line from which Is supplied refrigeration to' the large meat and pocking housey In Alabama-st. The company owns other plants In the city which arc also well equipped with modern and most Improved ma chinery and are operated on a thor oughly up-to-date style. The company supplies Ice for refrig eration to tho fruit shippers throughout the fruit belt of Georgia.- This fruit crop last season required about 20,000 tons of- Ice for refrigeration purposes This Is significant of the extensive busli ness of the company. The.company Is also extensively engaged In coal opera tions. It handles annually about 200,000 tons of steam coal. This Is In addition to a very large amount of domestic coal which Is sold. The present officers of the company are: Ernest Woodruff, president; W. E. Chapin, vice president, and J. C. Gen try, secretary and treasurer. They have been actively associated with the com pany for a number of years. CENTURY BUILDING. On January 1 the name of this superb office structure will be changed to the Atlanta National Bank building, It being owned by’ that Institution. . . , Photo by Edwards. THE CAPITOL OF THE STATE OF GEORGIA. , This superb structure, modeled after the national capitol at Washington, is a marvel among American pub lic buildings in that it wee erected at a cost leee then the appropriation for the purpose, and a small sum was rsturnsd into the state treasury. was Instantaneous. With tho prestige for fair dealing and honest values al ready established-In their past career, tho new ventures of the partnership expanded with wonderful rapidity, swiftly becoming one of the -foremost enterprises of the kind In the South. In fact, so great lias bean the prog ress of the three brothers that at present, with neither of them beyond middle age, the copartnership pre sents an enterprise that includes four coal yards, a thoroughly modem plan ing mill and warehouse, and a general seope of business that turns over to Atlanta labor a monthly payroll of more than 25,008 and that does an an nual business of moft than 2300,000. From the one small coal yard oh Marletta-st. have sprung-the four great yards on Marletta-st; Boulevard and (ieorgla-ave.; MeDanlel-st.. and South ern Railway shops; and 153 South Pry- or-at. Tho planing mill and warehouse, lo cated at 600 .Marletta-st., occupy seven acres-of ground and transact an an- and practice, and free opening to all citizens of the town. It Is as much a local Institution ua tile public library or the Are engine houses, it. Is more than local, for outsiders may use Its privi leges for a nominal fee and national swimming competitions are held there. Annexed to tho bath house was erect ed a couple of years ago a gymnasium building for the free use of all the In habitants, young and old and of both sexes. It Is used to Its capacity. It la In charge of a supervisor who cams a 13,000 k -year salary and has a corps of assistants. Tlie Los Angeles recreation center Is designed to be an "evening resort for the many hundreds of youths and young men who live .In tho boarding houses and lodging houses of the vicinity.” Costing nearly 260,000, It forms one part of a system of outdoor und Indoor recreation cuntera conducted by the municipal board of playground com missioner*. Mass., the famous "richest town In the world.” the community which is In but not of Boston. lit Chicago, where the whole grand scheme for providing public recreation, health Instruction and physical exer cise has been worked out on a model bnsls, gymnasiums are prominent ports nr the' dozen South Parks recreation renters and arc being Included In simi lar Inatltutloua In other sections of the city, ■ .There are playgrounds for little chil dren, other playgrounds for older chil dren, athletic fields for young men und for young women, outdoor wading pools and swimming tanks, open-air gym nasiums with full equipment of appa ratus, and Indoor gymnasiums ade quately equipped and Intelligently su pervised for all. In Brookline the starting factor was a municipal bath, with a large swimming pool, competent Instruction In the art of swimming for alt who wish to learn. nual business of nearly a quarter of a million of dollars In lumber, dressed and undressed, Interior * woodwork of the most exacting grade and.finish, and all the contractors' ntid builders’ hard ware and supplies‘known-to the craft. . The 'business progress of Randall Brothers has boon In full-keeping with the progress- of AtlAnta itself. The spirit of the three ynung men of a quarter ot a rentury ago has, been tha spirit of Atlanta-.'and: of .progress, and the position of the present copartner ship occuplos the same place in At lanta that, the Gate City hblds In the ranks of tlyt Pities of-the New South. From their offlcea In tho Peters building, the three brothers'—still the simple copartnership of old—direct tho destinies of their still growing and Increaslngbuslness. an oxample of the fortune of pluck, brains and - square dealing and Its results when applied to a sturdy and progressive city. Chicago Leads in Scheme For the Recreation of its People. . In the. matter of recreation centers three places are chosen by a writer In The American lily ns examples of whitt tlijs country Is doing. They nre Chicago, Los Angeles and Brookline, no time inspecting the newest lines of Robinson Shirts. They are perfection Boost your sales by putting in a full line of “Robinsons.” Every pattern is a seller,
