The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1875-08-26
Improvement of The Wisconsin River.

We have received copy Of 4 letter from
Engineer j. NJ. Baker, OF Appleton, to
Col. Houston, giving his views as to the
most practicable Way Of improving the rs
consin river. Col. Houston has general
charge of the work and he and Mr.. Barker
were members Of the party which recently
made an excursion over the river on the
Ellen Hardy The only plans heretofore
recommended for this imr ment have
been canal the whole len h the river
and system of wing-dams III latter OF
which as being the cheapest : first being
tried. Mr.. Baker who IS nm elf civil
engineer of high standing. suggests third
plan, viz: the imp-0Ter mt of the river
by uniform system cflevels from the slack
water of the Mississippi to point above
that would completely check the moving OF
sand.
The suggestion has had favorable re
ception by Col. Houston, who courteously
replied to Mr.. Barker
al would suggest that with your consent
/ forward this paper to tie chief OF engl
neers Of the army, who ~ the act Of con
gress approved June 18th, 1870, is made
responsible for the plan Of Improvement
adopted for the Fox and Wisconsin nv
ers.
"Although the idea Of improving the
Wisconsin river by the method you sug-
rest has not been overlooked By the officers
aud others who have been connected with
the work, it has never yet been presented
in the form which you have adopted and
from your standpoint, and it is possible
that consideration of your paper may in
some manner modify the view heretofore
entertained on the subject
That portion of Mr.. Barker's letter ex
j. oinin" the system he SO ably recomends,
,ys tau the liberty Of publishing. lie
says: ora tho Calf
Of Mexico, distance Of one '1'Feu a miIeS
there is said to be a fall q. one
half inches 20 the mile when a. tull moo
current strong; while the Wisconsin be
tween Portage and Prairie du Chen, dis
lance of one hundred and eighteen miles
has an aggregate fall Of little over seven
teen inches to the mile, and is navigable
for a certain class Of boats at an average
stage of water; but could not be so IN Its
state, if it was not for the sand ac
foundations which really form water
stairway the whole distance, or nearly so
and is well adopted to canoe navigation,
and for a people that have plenty OF
time, have a high sense Of the picturesque
as a sentiment, without any practical bear
ings, and have bat little or no commerce;
but for people that are practical, and
with whom "time is money" with tons OF
:, ein, -four and pork to transport, it does
- =, Gem to be just the thing TO see small
'os a with limited cargo, climbing
hose stat, =. and & ing two miles or more,
o Get ahead CT one.
W. All under stand, that IN the applica-
y,n of o,,v now er through mechanical de-
,;ces tha closer an d more direct it is to
ha results of that power favorab'y utilized
herafore unner a similar proposition, as
,nnIied 70 inland navigation, that necess-
tates mechanical appliances to surmount
Elevations. | am led 10 look upon the river
,vstem of improyeAuent rs far more practi
,al than the canal system, which, IL adopt
"a will have to be entirely 2odeperdent OF
The river, unless uniform levels are created
in order to have fee0efS 'nat
couldsu pply the canal without carry ing Saho
into it. ia this case, you would say that
canal would be needed-for the river lev
els would be more direct and otherwise
preferable. And to construct wing dams
as feeders, or to occasionally build complete
dams across the river for this purpose,
would fail 10 perform the office required
for the levels would ell up, by the moyeing
sand from above, and no human power
could check the natural course OF 1t i'm
PEELED by the cufrents--aud with 1t, the
mireraLand detrtial meter held in mechanl-
cal suspension by un citation OF the
waters, would cause ,he mouths of the
feeders to be constantnly Ling up. And
IS Il practical demonstration of this fact
the canal at Portage viii yet prove it, if
the condition Of the river is not changed
from what 1t ne
understand he probability ola canal
system, entirely iudsp u2ant OF the river,
will depend on the natural obstacles to be
overcome in elevations, depressions, riv-
err crossing, &c. ana the facilities for
obtaining the necessary water-supply for
feeders; which of course ! know but little
about, never having been over the route;
but | have noticed that for so large river,
the lower Wisconsin is remarkably desti-
tute OF tsibutaries--aud such as they are
cannot be considered OF much aec0rnt, the
Baraboo and klckapoo rivers being the
most prominent; and that would be likely
to be ut all reliable as feeders, and the
frs:, the only available one, from its pos
Ition, everything else being equal.
| know the idea of the entire system, of
river levels is sweeping. but at the same
time. when the conditions, which are so
we'll marked and clearly defined, are con
sidered in all OF their bearings, there seems
70 be no possible way of getting around
them; aud if so, they must be squareiy
met. Uniform still water must be the rule
or not at all; and the whole thing, as an
or no Improvement in a
sense, resolves itself into the sim
pie proposition of weather: The river in it
resent natural state not being suseeptibles
of partial improvement, Is worth more
locally, and TO the country at large, as it,
il, than it would be by radical change into
a uniform system of levels, frcm the slack
water of the Mississippi, to point above
that would completely check the moving of
sand. Then, it the river system OF i'm
proven,ent should seem to be the most
feasible, even if the canal system should
have favorable appearance as 20 water
supply, the question would naturally a,ise
rs 10 which would be the most expensive.
The right OF way, excavations, filings
aQueduets, eulyerts, bridges, feeders, slope
protection walls, ETC., or the building OF
dams and the necessary heart werks for a,
complete river system of much larger
capacity than could be got from canal.
The same number of locks would DC re-
Qnired 10 either case.
The.river system with lifts of locks rot
exceed eight feet would give the Wisconsin,
a more uniform and better navigation than
that of the upper Mississippi-as it would
not be sui iect 20 strong currents. The
course of the river is more direct aad the
depth and spread Of water would - suth
cient to float any kind of river craft adap-
ted or used on any of its connections.
The water powers created 5 ous1 more than
for any damage that woGh Q;
might be occasioued by flowing of lands,
L J ~ RI Gs