56
kindred products, $1,171 million, and by textiles with a
2
value of $971 million.
Second, although the railroad industry still took
the bulk of iron and steel output in 1880, other markets
were gaining in importance. In all, 1,305000 long tons
of rails'^ were produced (31 percent of the tonnage of
all pig iron) along with 1,405 large steam railroad
engines, 46,200 railroad freight cars and 685 passenger
4
cars. But a sizeable amount of iron and steel also
was being devoted to bridge and building construction
where greater engineering sophistication and larger and
longer structures required increased amounts of strong
materials; 87 thousand long tons of structural iron and
steel shapes were produced in 1879*
A record span of 1,057 feet had been achieved
by a suspension bridge system over the Ohio River at
2
Twelfth Census of the United States, Part I,
p. cxlv, Table LVTII. The Twelfth Census grouped
industries according to materials used and product.
Iron and steel and their products were one of fifteen
such groups. See pp. xcliii, cxliv, cxlix.
^Steel rails, produced since 1865 by the Bessemer
process, had gained increasing acceptance by the rail
roads, especially where heavy loads and high speeds
prevailed, but were not at once accepted wholly. Debate
continued over the merits of iron and steel rails
relative to cost, but as increasing steel output caused
steel prices to fall, the relative merits of steel
became paramount and iron soon was virtually forced out
of the rail business except for sidings where light
traffic persisted.
^Historical Statistics, p. 416, Series P 203-15