The Works Of Messrs. Schneider And Co.

I. INTRODUCTION. BEFORE developing into the great industrial centre which it is to-day, Creusot has passée! through many varying phases, alternating periods of prosperity and difficulties having marked the earlier years of its existence. But when the works—then only on a com- paratively small scale—passed into the bands of Messrs. Schneider Brothers, they progressed rapidly, and have steadily advanced until, to-day, they form one of the was only recognised 250 years later (1502), when the first rude efforts to obtain mineral fuel, were made by the inhabitants of the farm and adjoining village. Nearly three centuries later, in 1782, a company was formed, under the direct patronage of Louis XVI., for the installation and working of the Royal Ironfoundries of Montcenis, a village near Creusot ; these works obtained their supplies of raw material from the mines of Creusot, which had then Texte Latin •> ,V<« Gutllerntujf, htimilis aMas S.i/te/i Marlini t '.ùiCHSis, et not ftduensis, nulum facimm nHtversii <]Whi in mistra prgsentia constiluliis Jienrictts de Shtiteslor reci^H'H’it se rendtdisse, eoneesstsse et in perpe- titnhi tradidisse uobili vtro Hupum, duci linrp-nndx, quic- qnid hafvlmt idem /iennens ni hatere debebat in I 'HM)ei sublus .Moitteenrs el in villa de Crotol, el in Jinapi i s el appendietis diclarum villarum, in htmiinibus, terris, pratis, ttemftiibus et omnibus rebus ahis quibuseum<]tie, pr'o ^uadra- prnta librts Diyionensium, yuas a diclo duce reeOffnoril ! eoram nobis dictus Henricus se recepisse in petunia nume- rata Qux omnia promisit el lenetur idem I fennens jura- mento sno super hoc corporaliter pra’stito, super se cl super omnia bona sua mobilia el immobilta ubicumque fuermt, etdem duet et ipstus heeredibus contra omîtes duffen- dire et in perpetuum garanlire. lu cujus rai testimonium ad preces et instantiam dielt Henrici, prj?sentibus litteris sigillorum nostrorum apposuimus munimeula. Actum anno Domtni millesimo ducentesimo quiiquagestma tertio mense netobris. • i i -i I' i* r Ç « £ j > ? t ? rotl fit Än <3a s. e -ti 4 5 ? I 1 5>. 4^ 'Tf } Traduction « Nous Guillaume, humble abbé de Saint - Martin - d'Aitlun, et nous Gilo, officiai d'Autun, à tous savoir Fig. 1. faisons que séant en notre présence Henry de Monesloy j reconnu avoir rendu, concédé et livré J perpétuité à noble ' homme Hugues, duc de Bourgogne, tout ce que ledit Henry avait ou devait avoir dans la Villa-Dci l’tlle-flieiA sous | Montcciirs et dans la Villa de Crosoi 1 ’ille du Creusot, et dans les /mages cl apparentances desdites \ ilia, en hommes, terres, prés, buts et toutes attires choses quelles quelles soient, pour quarante livres dijonnaises, que ledit Henry a reconnu par-devant nous avoir remues dudit duc en argent compté. Toutes chosef que ledit Henry «j promises et aux- quelles il est tenu par son serment qu'il a prêté étant corpo- rellement présent, s’engageant de sa personne et ait rtsqm- de tous ses biens meubles et immeubles, à les dé/endre contre tous au bénéfice dudit duc et de ses héritiers, et à les garantir en paix à toujours, lin foi de quoi, à la prière et1 à la requête dudit Henry, nous avons apposé aux présentes lettres la sanction de nos sceaux respectifs. Acté I an du Seigneur mil deux cent cinquante-trois au mots d'octobrç. Facsimile of Deed of Sale of Creusot (A.D. 1253). largest, and most perfectly organisée! metallurgical estab- lishments, in the world. The first known document, still in existence, and reproduced in Fig. 1, in which the name of Creusot is mentioned, is a deed of sale, dated 1253, by which Henry de Monestoy ceded the “ Villa de Crosot ” to Hugues IV., Duke of Burgundy. At that rernote time, Creusot was nothing but a villa or dairy farm, occupied by a few persons : this farm was located on valuable coal deposits, the existence of whieli been opened under a concession granted to M. de la Chaise. Fig. 2 is a general view of Creusot, copied from an old print bearing the date of 1782. Four years after, in 1786, this concessionaire disposée! of all his rights to the Mont- cenis Company. It is evident that considérable activity characterised the administration of this company, which, after having acquired the Creusot property, erected four blast-furnaces, and employée! the English engineer, William Wilkinson, the inventor of the cupola furnace for re- melting cast iron witb coke, to put his system into B