The Camden journal. [volume] (Camden, S.C.) 1836-1851, 1850-10-08
For the Journal.
PLANK ROADS.

Tpr tilc
PLANK ROADS. Z.
Not long since, in an article deemed extrav
agant by certain wiseacrcsi in Camden, we ven-
tured to assert that plank roads on such lines
as those then under discussion, would "carry
the trade and travel across the Railroads, COM
pcting with them, and from the very towns ut
their tcrmni" We are growing old, but we
confidently hope to see the assertion vindica-
ted by actual results.
For those who take sufficient interest int the
question we commend the following extracts
from that most able and valuable paper, De-
Bows Commercial Review:
"1he following, t1ken from Il recent report
Of 0. G. Gates, Secretary Of the Kentucky
Board of Improvements, ceaAajns valuable and
interesting information TO those interested nh
road improvements:
]. The SYSTEM of paankroads which ,origii,a
ted in Russia, has SINCE been adopted in Cana
da, and in many of our northern States entirely
superseded the MeAdam and Telford rock or
gravel roads. The great success and value OF
the plankroad consists in the cheapness, in ease
Of draft, in, speed, and in comfort to passen-
gers.
2. The approved mode ofcons'nction there.
of, is as follows: For single track the planks
should lr eight feet long, and from three to
four inches thick; they should be laid across
the road at igbt.angles to its liae. These
planks are to rest on two longitudinal sills or
sleepers, each forr inches square, beaded IN the
earth to their full thickness. The earth should
be fully kept up To the panks at every poln.,
! in order to prevent confined air resting in any
/! vacant space beneath the planks--no pin or
srka is needed to couine the Hank to the
s"epcrs. their weight being sufficient to keep
them firm. There should be Placed on the up
per surflcc, coating of sand an inch thick
! There shoad be provided for a single tracF,
tun-out rlaecs and to effect this, IN ertE.rril
road mnst be banked up ten ar twelve feet wide
ON one side, and two or three on the otile';
each emhankmeut should be made finsh with
the ends of the plank, and then slipping outward
SO rs to carry off the water, as perfect drainage
is the great secret in the construction OF any
kind of road And if the bed on which the
rIanks are to be laid is new one, it would be
better to he travelled one seoson before they are
laid down. One track, with the Supplemental
~ earth road thus formed, will be sufficient for
all ordinary travel And, il the tonnage trans.
ported or the road he chiefly in one direction,
the track should be laid on that side Of the road
which will enable the loaded teams to keep it,
and thereby force tie unloaded to do all the
turning out.
d. The duration of plankroads is from eight
to twelve years this matter, however, depends
entirely upon decay from rot. and not by the
surface wear of the plank. The sand which is
spread upon the track when finished, protects
the wood from the. shoe soles Of the horses,
(which cause most Of the wear, and soon PEN
ptratcs the grain of the plank, until, with the
woody fibres and the deposits on. the road. q
tough elastic covering iss formed, whereby the
plank is saved from the ftftker wear. Expert
ence teaches that one-halfthe wear and tear
of seven years occurs in the first year. There
fore, it is a matter of great Importance on these
roads to have small foliage, in order to invite
such an amount oftrave as will promote their
wearing out instead of rotting.
5. The cost OF the plankroad greatly depends
on it's locality. But it " i'll be found the follow
ing estimate will approximate to an average val.
uation, to wit:
For one mile of road with a single track,
(made with plank eight feet wide and three
inches thick, will require 1885, ,720 feet board
measure of plank, and of sills 4 by i. l4,Os0,
making in all of lumber lac, 500 feet, and cost.
ing say five dollars per thousand, would equal
the sum Of seven hundred and four dollars
The laying and grading will cost from n'nety-
six dollars to three hundred and twenty dollars.
per mile The earth work, sluices, bridges and.
contingencies. admit of no average estimate
Therefore, without them, and one hundred dol
lars per mile for engineering superintendence,
and one hundred dollars for gate houses, we
have the total cost per mile from one thousand
to one thousand two hundred and twenty.iour
dollars"
The following we take from an original arti,
Gle in the Review:
ADVANTAGES OF PLANKRoADs OVER RAILROADS.
|. Plankroads are more easily aud chear'y