The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1871-12-07
THE WHEELING CREEK ROUTE.

creating the impression tnat III Wdt
route we have found it. Let us examine
the two routes:
THE WHEELING CREEK ROUTE.
Starting west from Bridgeport, we
have, as per the report OF Mr.. Blinkens-
derfer, eishteeu bridges and at least four
tunnels before you leave Wheeling
creek, and the most judicious location
in order to reduce distance and dimin-
ish curvature will require five tunnels,
az follows: One OF 1000 feet at
Grimes, one of 1000 feet at Adams ,
one of 1909 feet at Patterson's, and two
Of $50 to $50 feet each at Hardesty's.
The bridges, he says, will vary in length
from 80 to l40 ieet. Take the mean
of these extremes-say eighteen
bridges Of ITO feet each-and you
have on Wheeling creek 1890 feet
of bridges and $500 feet OF tun-
nels. We now, with the aid of four
tunnels and eighteen bridges, are eigh-
teen miles from the Suspension bridge,
and are ready to climb, cut and tunnel
our way westward. Within the next
six and one.halt miles we have an ap-
proach or cut 2lO0 feet, then a tunnel
of 1000 feet, then a cut Of 900 feet-in
all, Of cut and tunnel, 1900 feet. Next
we have a cut Zoo feet and 4S feet ex-
treme depth, iour bridges from l20 to
l40 feet long each on Saltwater. with
other bridges on CrabappIe and Brushy
Fork, less frequently and lighter than
Wheeling creek. Suppose that less
frequently" means 9, or one-half as
many as Wheeling creek, and Lighter"
means only 60 feet span for each; we
then have 81 bridges OF 1850 feet span
540O feet of tunnel. and 1870 feet OF cut
and approaches, to cay nothing, as MI
Blcksenderfer has, 0: the 10 cuts or
approaches to the tunnels on Wheel
ing creek. Thus, with two and one
fourth miles of cuts, bridges and tun-
nels, we find ourselves at Dennison, to
be switched on with a Cleveland and
Marietta railroad, owned and managed
by Cleveland men.
The only things ION paper" OF the
branch Of the road from Cleveland to
Marietta, are the above named obsta-
cles. But these are not the only obsta.
cles. Not even a charter has been
obtained, unless, indeed, we call that a
charter which WIS fled with the Secre-
tary Of State, February !, 1871, signed
bv tour of our townsmen. J. N. Vance,
Henry K. List, John McLure and T.
Sweeney, for a road nominally to Tole-
do, with its eastern terminus at Bridge
port. But the paper does not appear u
have been acknowledged before any
officer by some OF the parties signing it,
and the county OF Jefferson appears
upon it's tace with lines drawn through
it. But this is not all. The towns oi
Cadiz, Harrisvil'e and New Athens are
each jealous Of the other in the matter
OF route, and nothing definite ION pa
per-" or otherwise, has been done TO &C.
cure subscriptions, right Of way, DC.
Until you get beyond the bridges and
tunnels of Wheeling creek, there is not
only a cslamitous apathy among the
people on the line who ought to sub
scribe, but for the first ten or fifteen
miles up this creek many Of the people
do not want road, and almost every
one expects saDd will demand full
damages, and by the Constitution o'
Ohio. mo right OF way shall be appro
priated to the use of any corpo
ration until iull compensation
therefor be first made in money