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Roane Iron Company

 Organization

Biography

Roane Iron Company was located in Roane County, Tennessee. It was founded in 1867 by General John T. Wilder and two other Civil War Veterans- Captain H.S. Chamberlain and Major H. W. Rockwood. The surrounding town was named Rockwood after its founder and was primarily comprised of the iron company's employees.

At first, Roane Iron Company depended on the Tennessee River to transport its products. This meant that most of its business was with the nearby river cities of Knoxville, TN, and Chattanooga, TN. In 1879, Roane County became as stop on the Cincinnati-Southern Railroad. This greatly broadened Roane Iron Company's customer base.

Roane Iron Company filed for bankruptcy in 1930 January, due largely to the economic devastation of the Great Depression.

Citation:
The Roane County Chamber of Commerce, "History- Prehistory to End of the Civil War", Roane County Chamber of Commerce (2015).
Citation:
Williams, Samuel C. "General John T. Wilder." Indiana Magazine of History 31, no. 3 (1935): 169-203.

Found in 1 Collection or Record:

Douglas Chamberlain papers

 Collection
Identifier: MS-007
Scope and Contents This collection contains business records, newspaper clippings regarding local history and the Roane Iron Company from 1916 to 1982. Many of these clippings are a column about the history of Roane County, especially the role of the Roane Iron Company in local history, written by Snyder Roberts. Also included are clippings related to local history, and a group of photo clippings of a 1973 area flood. Also included are a group of transcripts from a bicentennial lecture forum organized by the...
Dates: 1916-1982
Found in: Manuscripts

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  • Subject: Business enterprises -- United States -- History X