Wikimedia Commons/Archives Of Ontario from Toronto, Canada
William Milnes’ Industrial Resurrection of Flood-Destroyed Shenandoah
In 1870, a massive flood swept away most of Shenandoah, Virginia, taking 30-60 buildings with it.
Yet from these ruins, William Milnes Jr., an English immigrant who owned 32,000 acres, saw an opportunity.
He first brought the railroad through in 1881, then built the Big Gem Furnace in 1882, which pumped out 110 tons of iron daily…