The following company history for the Peerless Portland Cement Company comes from the "Peerless Union City Michigan" booklet published by Tom F. Robinson in March of 1903. (To view the pages for the Peerless Portland Cement Company from the booklet, go to the bottom of the posting.)
Question ....does anyone know the reason that the Peerless Portland Cement Company in Union City closed and what year? Reading through the company history in Union City gives one the impression that it was a very profitable and thriving company when this article was written in 1903. If you have any input, please email me at rchard1960@gmail.com
PEERLESS PORTLAND CEMENT COMPANY
hat Michigan's great subterranean wealth does not
wholly consist of iron and· copper ore, salt, etc., has been plainly evidenced within
the past five or six years, during which time the development is well under way
of another underground source of wealth by the opening of the finest marl
deposits in the country for the successful manufacture of Portland cement. Until within a comparatively short time the
importance of Portland cement was realized by comparatively few people. While its use has been very large for many
years, the demand for it has immensely increased during the past ten years. New uses
for the product are discovered almost every day, and, in fact, this has been
termed, and not inaptly, the cement age. Cement is now used so largely in all
architectural construction that it requires millions upon millions of barrels
to supply
the demand in this direction alone. Over 13,000,000 barrels of cement were used in
this country in 1902, and the needs for 1903 are estimated at 20,000,000 barrels.
Today, Portland cement is recognized as one of the
vital necessities in architecture, engineering, and building on land and water,”
says one of the foremost authorities of the present day. “It’s supreme value for constructive purposes
lies in the peculiar property of hardening under water as well as in air, so
that it finally becomes a solid rock; in its great tensile strength; and in the
facility with which it is handled as well as in the ease with which it can be
molded to take permanent shape. For
these practical reasons new avenues of usefulness are daily being opened for
Portland cement. There is not an
engineering design to-day wherein the specifications do not call for a liberal a
number of upright kilns to burn cement in Union City and this proved the
inauguration of an industry which now promises to be one of the most important
in the state. Since the establishment of
this plant in Union City great changes and improvements have been made in the
process of manufacturing cement, and the factory here has ever been ready to
adopt these improvements as fast as their value has been proved. Not only this, but the Peerless Company has
been instrumental in aiding the work by originating many changes in the old time
methods of manufacture.
The plant of the Peerless Portland Cement Company
is not only a mammoth one, but it is a model one as well, and it contains a
number of original features not to be found in any other factory in the world. A very satisfactory grade of cement was made
by the old upright burning kiln method, but the process was of necessity slow
and expensive. In consequence the plant
was reconstructed early in 1902. The
enlargement and improvements necessitated an additional expenditure of
$350,000. The burning is done by nine
immense rotary kilns, each seventy feet in length, the output of cement being over
twelve hundred barrels per diem. Everything
about the plant is modern and up to date, and from the time the raw material enters
the factory until the finished product is ready for shipment, none but approved
are taken for analysis. If the
composition proves to be lacking in any respect, the required ingredient is
added and the whole mass mixed, sampled, and analyzed as before. This is repeated as many times as necessary in
order to obtain the correct chemical composition.
The slurry is then elevated and run into large cylinder
tube mills half filled with flint pebbles. As these
mills revolve, the slurry is ground to a fine silky paste. Samples of this paste are tested every hour to
be sure that there has been no change in the composition. This is where the incomparable facilities of the
Peerless Company are of the greatest advantage. For besides the possession of a variety of
grades of raw materials, they have better facilities for mixing large
quantities at one time. As the slurry
leaves the tube mills, it is conveyed into large storage vats, with a capacity
of two thousand barrels. Here it is kept
in constant motion by the aid of compressed air, thus avoiding all settling and
assuring additional mixing. From these
vats it is again elevated and passed into the battery of eight of the latest
pattern rotary kilns. This is
undoubtedly the most interesting part of the plant, and is one of the finest rotary
plants in the country. A number of
innovations have been introduced here for increasing and improving the output, for
which the Peerless Company may well feel proud. This supply of Portland cement; “this demand
is universal throughout the civilized
world, and it will be many years, if not centuries, before the supply will be equal to the
demand."
Another writer under recent date says: "I believe
that the unlimited quantities of shell
marl, practicality pure carbonate of lime, deposited in many parts of Michigan,
will prove to be one of her richest legacies. The copper country has proved to be a veritable Eldorado. Michigan iron mines have made men multi-millionaires. Michigan forests have been converted into fabulous fortunes. The coal belt has enriched thousands. The salt rock here is of such enormous
proportions as to supply the whole world for thousands of year. But the latest and not least important
industry is the manufacture of
Portland cement."
It is not the intent of the writer, however, to enter upon
a detailed account of the hundreds of uses to
which Portland cement may be put, but rather to sum up the history of the industry in Michigan by giving a
brief account of the
Peerless Portland Cement Company of this
city. The Peerless plant may with
justice be termed the pioneer cement plant in the state. Early in the sixties there was a little one
kiln plant in Kalamazoo, which was abandoned after a brief existence. In 1896 the Peerless Company built scientific
methods are used and the result is that Peerless cement stands every required
test and is in great demand for all classes of building and construction.
The company owns several thousand acres of valuable marl land and clay beds of exactly the right
kind for the manufacture of high-grade cement. A brief account of the process of manufacture
employed in the Peerless factory will prove of interest: "The marl is dredged and loaded on cars and
hauled to the factory by a railroad owned and operated by the company. There the marl is weighed and dumped directly
into a mixing- machine, where water and the right amount of clay are added. After a thorough mixing in this, it is dumped
into a pug mill where the mixing process continues. After a sufficient pugging the mass, then
called ‘slurry,' is run into a large vat, which has a capacity of one thousand barrels of cement, and
furnished with mixing and stirring devices. There are three of these vats in the factory. As soon as one vat is filled and thoroughly
mixed, two samples immense battery comprises eight rotaries, each being seventy
feet long, ten feet longer than those in any other Michigan mill. The slurry runs in at one end and in its
progress through the kiln is thoroughly dried and burned, dropping out at the
other end in the form of clinker. The
fuel used is pulverized coal, which is ignited and blown into the kiln at one
end. After the clinker is passed through
the cooling machines, a steel conveyor delivers it into a set of very heavy steel
rolls, where it is reduced to the size of rice. Then it is conveyed to the hoppers which feed
the eight Griffin mills and here it is ground to a fine powder. Peerless cement is of exceptionally fine
texture, and as this is a very important matter, the powdered cement from the
Griffin mills is reground in large tube mills and it will, therefore,
be found that Peerless cement contains a greater per cent of impalpable powder
than other cements. This accounts for
its great sand carrying qualities."
Few people are aware of the importance of a
well-equipped and carefully conducted laboratory in a cement factory,
and here the Peerless Company is
particularly fortunate. In fact, much of
the success attending the production of Peerless cement is due to the
laboratory work and to the care which is exercised in testing the material at
every stage of manufacture. At the marl
and clay beds samples of the raw material are regularly taken to the laboratory
for analysis. Repeatedly during the
mixing process are tests made. Nor does
this thoroughness and care in mixing stop with the slurry, but is carried
throughout the entire process of manufacture.
The efficient system for averaging and mixing the raw material is alone the best
guaranty one can have of the strictly uniform quality of the product. At each new stage the material is tested and
approved. The finished cement, too, as
it comes from the grinding mills is tested twice each day and a careful record
kept on file in the laboratory. A sample
is also taken from each car shipped and a complete test made.
The plant of the Peerless Portland Cement Company is not only a
mammoth nee, but a model factory as well. The buildings cover acres of ground and are of
brick, cement, and steel construction. The
power to drive this immense institution is derived from one of the finest power
plants in the state. Four Scotch Marine
internally fired boilers furnish steam for driving a 500 horse-power
Hamilton-Corliss engine, a 400 horse-power Fitchburg tandem compound engine, and a 300 horse-power simple engine. A 677 horse-power
generator transforms a goodly portion of the power electrically, and twenty-odd
electric motors drive a number of the machines.
Rope transmission is used from one of the engines. The whole plant is lighted by electricity generated
upon the premises - an important feature when it is considered that the factory
is run night and day during the entire season.
The storage facilities of the institution are
unsurpassed and provide for the storing of over 100,000 barrels of cement. The factory lies close to the Michigan Central
Railroad and switches enter the shipping department.
A vast amount of money has been spent by the Peerless Company
in the effort to reach perfection in the manufacture of Portland cement, and
that they have done so is evinced by the widespread popularity of their product
and the fact that it has responded with credit to the most exacting tests made. The gentlemen at the head of the institution
have been untiring in their efforts and they are to be congratulated upon the success which has been attained.
The officers of the company are: President,
A. W. Wright; Vice-President, S. O. Bush; General Manager, J. R. Patterson; Secretary
and Treasurer, Wm. M. Hatch; Assistant Manager and Chemist, A. Lundteigen.
J. R. PATTERSON
Who has been the capable general manager of the Peerless
Portland Cement Company of this city since September, 1899, was born at
Buffalo, N. Y., July 28, 1861, and his early life was passed there and in
Canada. Twenty-four years ago he went to
Chicago and within a year thereafter he became engaged in the cement business,
a line which he has with success followed ever since. For twenty years he was one of the leading
dealers in cement in Chicago, doing a large business under the firm name of J.
R. Patterson & Co. His extended experience
in this line has been of great value to him since he was called to take charge
of the Peerless plant three years ago. At
that time the factory here was not the extensive and modern plant that it is today,
and the main work of placing the institution in an up-to-date condition and
upon a paying basis fell upon the shoulders of Mr. Patterson. Through obstacle after obstacle he pushed his
way with indomitable courage and perseverance and the result of his efforts is
the plant of the Peerless Portland Cement Company as it stands to-day. Mr. Patterson is a heavy stockholder in the
enterprise and in his work he has been backed up by his fellow stockholders as
well as by the capable assistance of his associates in the management of the
business. Mr. Patterson is a thorough business man, alive to the needs of the
moment and with dear discernment as to future conditions. His is a pleasant and courteous nature and he
is in consequence decidedly popular in business and social circles. He was married June 3, l895, to Miss Nola Harned
and they have one daughter, Hazel. The
family occupy a handsome and modern home on Barry Street. Mr. Patterson devotes his entire time to the
interests of the Peerless Portland Cement Company and he is known throughout
the state as one of the successful manufacturers of this product. He is also interested in various other local
enterprises, and he is looked upon as one of Union City's hustling and progressive
citizens.
COL. WM. M. HATCH
Who holds the responsible position as secretary and
treasurer of the Peerless Portland Cement Company of this city, was born in
Battle Creek, Mich., Jan. 14, 1872, and his home was in Calhoun's metropolis
until he came to Union City, Feb. 26, 1896. He graduated from the Battle Creek High School,
and soon thereafter entered the offices of the Advance Thresher Company of that
city, a position which he satisfactorily filled for six years, receiving
in the meantime deserved promotion. At
the date of the organization of Company L, Second Infantry, M. N. G., in 1896, Mr.
Hatch was elected as first lieutenant, and in July of the following year he
succeeded Captain Caldwell as captain of the Company. On April 23, 1898, the date of the declaration
of war with Spain, the company was ordered to prepare for mustering into the U.
S. service, and the members went south under the name of Company D, 32nd
Michigan Volunteer Infantry. After the
dose of the war Captain Hatch remained at the head of the company until a year
after he comes to Union City. During the
period of his captaincy the company was considered one of the best in the 32nd
regiment and made an enviable record. During
the past three years, Col. Hatch has served upon the military staff of Gov. A.
T. Bliss, the position carrying with it the title of Colonel. Fraternally, Col. Hatch is affiliated with the
local Masonic lodges and with Battle Creek Lodge No. 573, Benevolent and
Protective Order of Elks, and he also belongs to the Military Order of Foreign
Wars. In a business way he retains the high
esteem of his associates, and socially he is most popular in this city and in
Battle Creek.
ANDREW LUNDTEIGEN
Assistant manager and chemist for the Peerless Portland
Cement Company of this place, is a man eminently fitted for the position, as
regards both natural qualifications, education, and practical experience. He was born in Norway, Sept. 29, 1862, and his
early life was passed in his native country. He pursued a course of study at the University
of Christiania, in Norway, and he has made chemistry his life-work, especially
as regards the application of the science to the manufacture of cement. That he has been eminently successful in his avocation
is evidenced by the fact that he has held positions as head chemist with some
of the largest cement factories in this country. He came to America in 1886, and he has ever
since this time been interested in the manufacture of Portland cement. Just previous to coming to Union City in the
autumn of 1899 he had charge of the laboratory in a large cement factory at Yankton, S. Dak.
His reputation as one of the best cement
chemists in this country led the management of the Peerless Company to seek to
secure his services. They were
successful in this, and no small share of credit is due Mr. Lundteigen for the
completeness of the plant as it now stands and the excellent reputation of the
product upon the market. The quality of
the output of a cement factory depends so much upon the management of its laboratory,
that a factory of this sort can ill afford to employ incompetent chemists. In this instance the Peerless management was
extremely fortunate in securing the services of the gentleman whose name heads
this sketch. Mr. Lundteigen occupies a
handsome home on Barry Street, the structure being built almost wholly of
cement.
In former years Portland cement was only used in rough construction,
but all the beauties that are now created by architectural designs are being
brought out by cement concrete moldings into any desired form and tint. Constant tests are being made and experiments
that bring out new ideas in construction.
It
has been demonstrated that residences
constructed of concrete cost only one half as much in fuel to heat as of any
other material. The combined power of chemistry
and machinery has brought about wonders. Cement stone is to-day being made that will
not laminate and decay with age. Entire
houses are now being built of cement, and Chas. F. Limmins, the California
educator, who has employed cement in the entire flooring of his dwelling,
writes: ."When cleaning-day comes, the hose can be turned in upon the
drawing-room floor, and, in fact, the entire establishment flushed with
water."
Under the heading, "Michigan Leads in the Plastic
Age," the Detroit News-Tribune says
editorially: It is a matter of common knowledge that the use of Portland cement
is steadily increasing. Its use in concreting
for foundations and basement flooring and for street pavements, account for a
certain part of the increase. It is
becoming a recognized fact that it is easier and generally much cheaper to make
an artificial stone, molded to size and shape, than it is to quarry a rock from
its parent bed and hew it into proper form with mallet and chisel. Cement offers itself to every caprice of the
architect. In many, if not in most,
cases it is better for the required purpose than natural rock. It makes
admirable sidewalks. It can be molded
into all the forms that are possible with terra cotta, and it can be so molded about a steel column as to give it the
appearance of a hewn pillar of rock, adding to the supporting strength of the
steel and protecting it from rust. That
it is a permanent building material is well established. The splendid hotels at St. Augustine, Fla., are
examples of its utility in large buildings. The homestead of James Vreeland in Monguagon
Township, built in 1876, is another example of its utility for ordinary building
purposes for the building is as solid as if hewn out of the living rock.
Michigan is one of the greatest producers of cement
because of peculiar geological conditions. The slate is gently rolling. Most of the streams are sluggish, and many
counties abound in numerous lakes of shallow depth and muddy bottom. Some of these lakes were the creations of old
beaver dams which backed up the waters of swamps and slow streams, until they filled
the low ground about them, when the great processes of nature began, which ultimately
transformed them into lands of the most fertile type. Water-lilies, arrowhead, and marine grasses
spring up, and each year they scatter their dead leaves and stems over the
bottom to form a soft muck. Myriads of
crustaceans and mollusks appear in the bottom, and each generation as it dies
leaves its shells, which are almost pure carbonate of lime. The lime collects in a stratum, the thickness
depending upon the length of time the pond or lake is in existence, and the
prevalence of food for such animals. Time
and the action of the elements reduces all the shells to lime, and presently
along comes an investigator who scoops up the marl, as this deposit is called,
combines it with siliceous sand, and bums the two in intimate mixture until he
has a fine, gray powder which when mixed with water will unite together with
the firm cohesion of a rock.
"Another source of cement supply is in the
outcropping beds of limestone, some of which are of particularly fine quality
of carbonate of lime. This stone crushed and roasted in combination with the
other ingredients of cement makes a very convenient and altogether perfect
source of supply. The limestone beds are
merely older formations than the marl beds, which have to lie many ages before
they cement themselves into solid rock. The
cement manufacturer sets up his business wherever he finds the material most
convenient to his hand. His market is
constantly expanding as the demand for cement grows from familiarity with its usefulness."
The query has been made: How long will the material in Michigan
for the manufacture of cement last? Practical
men, who have investigated the subject thoroughly, believe that the supply is
almost inexhaustible. This question asked
at the different factories, shows that the material in sight would supply the
factories now built, and in process of construction, at the rate of 30,000
barrels daily, over one hundred years, and the field is scarcely opened.
The question has often been asked if the consumption of
cement will warrant its greatly increasing manufacture. The introduction of improved American
machinery has reduced the cost of manufacture until it is within the reach of
thousands, who a few years ago were forced to deny themselves of its use. It now
enters into the construction of all kinds of structural work, bridges,
roadways, sidewalks, foundations, and even
into buildings, both in cities and on farms.
It
is the one material that is impervious to
heat, frost, and dampness.
Twenty years ago only 13 per cent of the cement used in
this country was of domestic manufacture. Ten years later our consumption had increased
and only 25 per cent was imported.
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