 The reason that several companies attempted to succeed in what proved to be a failing enterprise was the fact that the furnace was within easy distance of the Williamsport and Elmira Railroad which connected the industrial centers of Williamsport, Pennsylvania and Elmira, New York.The McIntyre Coal company was founded by Jervis Langdon in 1870.He set up a coal mining operation in the mountains in the northeastern section of McIntyre Township.