Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1875-01-30

building and operating railroad from
! Olympia, the capital of the Territory, to
connect with the Northern Pacific Rail
road at Tenino, distance of 16 61-l00
miles. The capital stock was fixed at
5000, 900, in 1000 shares at 500 each.
Subscriptions of lands, materials and
labor, as we'll as cash, were invited.
Mr. T. B. Morris, late Chief Engineer
of the Northern Pacific Railroad, Paci-
ic Division, made the preliminary sur
vey and estimates, putting the cost of
three-foot gauge road
Roadbcd Observation-Disclosures. go. .Si7975
Superstructure. Observation-Disclosures. 5000
Rolling Stock. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. 252OO
Total. ................. ........... $780, O5
And estimating the probable business,
OF receipts, of the road, when built, at
1913, 1922 per annum, an amount which
he declares would more than pay the
expense of operating u narrow-gauge
road.
A small force of twenty Cinnamon
and twenty white men was engaged,
tools and supplies were procured, and
the people of Olympia, Tumwater and
the country were called upon to turn
out en- nlasse, with pick and shovel, and
unite in the opening of work on the
Olympia-Tenino Railroad at WaTen's
Point, on Tuesday morning, April 18th,
1874. It were needless to recount to
you, the actors in the scene, how man
fully the call was met-how, in the ear
ly morning hours, at the ringing of
bells, and roar OF guns, the whole male
population of Olympia, governors,
judges, preachers, lawyers, doctors,
farmers, printers, mechanics, and rep
resentatives from every vocation in life,
formed,a long column of sturdy laborers
in workman's garb, and armed with
axes picks and shovels; how headed by
the Olympia Light Guard Band the col
umn marched to the shore of the bay
opposite Warren's Point, embarked and
crossed in the feet of boats waiting
there to receive them, and debarking
upon the ground set manfully at work.
The resounding blows of axes, and the
crash of falling trees soon attested the
steady progress of the elearers, while
close behind them the graders fell to
work, and the road-bed gradually
heightened out under the steadfast
strokes of pick and shovel. How the
men of Tumwater cleared the track
through the dense timber from their
town until met by those of Olympia,
and both parties labored zealously in
friendly emulation, until the last beams
of the setting sun rested upon mile
Of heavy timber cleared and quarter
of mile of road-bed graded and how
the ladies appeared upon the ground,
cheering on the work by their bright
presence, and what bountiful repast
was spread by them at noon upon the
rustic tables beneath the grand old for
est trees; and, unprecedented as was
this effort in the history of railroading,
still more astonishing was the enthusi-
asm and earnestness with which the
people turned out, again and again on
" field day" during the summer until
the greater part of the grading of the
first five miles of road-bed was done by
their spontaneous voluntary labors, en-
aiding thereby the regular force, in
creased in strength, tc be thrown upon
the farther end of the line. Subscrip
tons aggregating over $4,000 were
freely made, including bonds, lots, sup
plies of all kinds, and the labor of vol
unteers who joined the regular force
and worked out their one or two months
each, side by side with the hired Ia
borers, until ten miles of road-bed was
constructed. Great credit is due the
Chief and Constructing Engineer, Pey-
ton III. Brooks, Esq, for the skill and
Judgment evinced in the location of
the road, and management of the
work, and to Benjamin Todd, Esq, the
Foreman for his energy and tact in
working the homogeneous force at his
disposal, and the remarkable saving of
cost of road bed, thirty per cent. on the
estimates, is mainly due to their care,
and efficiency.
Congress passed the Act, approved
May 9th, 1874, to authorize the Coun-
ty Commissioners of Thurston county
to issue bonds in aid of railroad be-
tween Olympia and Tenino. Pursuant
thereto, the terms of contract were
agreed upon between the County Com
missioners and the Union, whereby
$75, 900 currency in bonds of Thurston
county, bearing eight per cent interest,
and running IS years are to be given to
the Union Immediately upon the COM
pletion of the road. The bonds are a
clear subsidy, or bonus, issuable imme-
diately on the completion of the road,
and are unconditional. The Uuion
however is required to complete the
road by August LIST, 1876, and is under
bonds to the county secured by mort
gage on the road to maintain and oper-
ate the road for 25 years when built.
Then terms were submitted to the citi-
zens of the county at special election
in pursuance of the Act and were APP
proved by them Aug. 9Th, 1874, by a
vote of 529, against 214, The contract