The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1874-09-07
Gke9nteIlig
Our Massachusetts Letter.


THE HISTORY OF IHE HoosAc TUNNEL
CnARLEMoNT, MASS, Sept. 8.
Editors OF the IntellGcneer:
Within the course al very few months
tho usually staid old Commonwealth of
Massachusetts will cut loose from ven
ture In which she embarked during a
lreakish moment Of dozen years ago
To her honor, however, it can be said
that she has chung TO her undertaking
with as much tenacity as a barnacle clings
to his floating home, and In coming Of
conqueror has happily added strength to
the Yankee reputation for
PLUCK AND ENERGY.
Fourteen years ago this State, by way
Of the Legislature, took the now famous
Hoosac Tunnel, along with the partially
completed railroad projected through il,
of the hands OF q siCkly corporation to
which she had previously loaned her
credit OF two million dollars, it was not
even suspicioned, by the wisest of the law.
makers, that an elephantine monster was
being voted into her charge. II thatpar.
tiCularly legislative body had been en-
dowed with the gilt of prophecy and had
understood all the mysteries OF tunneling,
1t is hardly probable there would be
hole through the Hoosao Mountains to-
day. Even now, after the great work Of
making the tunnel has been accom-
plished, 1t is hard to see how the project
escaped being failure. Some OF our
States would have stepped into bank
ruptCy il they had undertaken such q
work; and l am pretty sure If West Vir.
glnia were called upon TO pay as much
Tor q passage through one Of her noun.
tains as this has cost, the price Of her re-
cent Constitutional Convention would
fall into an insignifcance that could be
justly scOrned. .......
EARLY HISTORY OF THE TUNNEL
In clear little handbook of travel,
From the Hub TO the Hudson" have
found some facts relating 10 the carly
history Of tho tunnel, which may prove
interesting 10 portion Of your readers.
As far back as 1926, tho idea Of tunneling
the. loosac Mountain was preached, de-
bated and decided on by Massachusetts
legislature. A Board Of Commissioners
was appointed by that body TO ascertain
the praCtcabilityof building canal from
Boston TO some point on the Hudson.
Two routes were viewed by the Board;
one by way of Springfield, Worcester and
the Westfeld river, tho other, which Is
the present railroad route, by way Of
Fitchburg, and the Miller and Deerfeld
rivers. Preference was given to the latter
because 1t was shorter and better supply
oil water could be had, although It was
evident that the cost OF construction
would be far greater than on the other
route on account oil the mountain barrier
that would have 10 be penetrated. The
same year that this bit OF prospecting was
done, the first threads were spun for the
present ....,.
"GREAT NETWORK OF RAILRoADs,"n.
which college juniors dwell on so elo-
quently 10 their orntions, and the idea oil
making the canal was consequently for
saken. TO-.
Tho Troy and Greenfield Railroad was
chartered in 1913, with capital Of
$3,500000. This road was TO have been
located In Missouri and built in seven
years, from the terminus of the Vermont
and Massachusetts railways, through
Deertleld and Hoosac vallles 10. the New
York line, where It was to have met q
road from Troy. The very small capital
with which the company proposed 10 &C.
complish an enormous undertaking, and
the short space Of time allowed Tor the
completion Of the work, so to show how
comparatively little was known in those
days about building railroads. With
the almost perfect machines for
drilling, now in use II would re-
qure over seven years to make another
Hoosac Tunnel. But the company was
not even able TO get one-halt Of it's stock
taken, and, in order 10 keep the enter
prise from
DYING IN rTs INFANCY,
asked and obtained loan OF the States
credit for 100000.
In 1866, sfter a contract had been made
with E. W. Serrell & Co. for the making
Of the tunnel, the company suddenly dis.
covered that II would DO unable to fulfil
the conditions under which the loan had
been granted, and of course o dead loci
was put on tho project for a time. Their
tho work was contracted 10 Messrs. Il
Haupt s. Co., who agreed to finish TIT
road and tunnel for $3SSS,000; but attel
this firm had drilled and blasted away q
the mountain Tor five years, q difficulty
arose about the payment Of installments
and the contractors abandoned the work
AtthIs iuncture the State stepped In. tool
the road, property and tunnel OF Thu
hands OF the t0ttefing company, and ap.
pointed Board Of Commissioners 70 rusl
the tunnel forward to completion. ThesI
Commissioners charged on that hlnty OLE
mountain as though 1t had been
NOTHING but BAND BANK,
and were very suddenly rebounded to thu
point from which they had started. WheI
they failed to do the work up In salts.
factory way, the State made q contrac
with the STANLEY Brothers, of Canada
whuwere to have finished the tunnel b,
the ars. OF March last, for the sum G
1880 600; but on account OF many eX
traneouS causes that combined to hinde
and perplex, the last Legislature extend
ed the time Of the contract and made q
appropriation Of million or two as kin
Of reward oil merit to the Stanley Broth
ers, Tor having done more good, soil
work than all their predecessors pu
together. Unless the tunnel should b
swallowed by an earthquake, or NEE
with some other misfortune, It will b
completed and ready for trains in six q
eight months. In this connection II wi
perhaps be well 10 state that the Troy 1