The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1876-01-17

River Improvement, gives an encouraging
account OF the work done during the year
past and of the progress that has been made,
and contains valuable suggestions as to how
the enterprise should in future DE prosecuted
by the city: -.-.
ENG,NEER's OFFIcE,2
JAMES RIVER IMPROVEMENT,
RICHMOND. Va, January l, 1876. }
Colonel Albert Ord,r0y, Chairman James
Eiuer Improvement Committee:
Colonel have the honor to submit the
following report of operations in connection
with the improvement OF james river during
the past year:
This work was carried on until May 1st
under The agreement made between Colonel
" p CraishiIl, Of the corps Of engineers in
charge Of the work on the palt OF the United
Stntes and YOUR engineer, the late Major w.
G Turpin, by which the city agreed to furnish
and keen in repair the machinery necessary
for nile driving and dredging, the United
States paving other working expenses.
Owing to the terms OF the law passed By
the last Congress making further appropri-
alton for the Improvement, which required
that the Work under that appropriation
should ordinarily be done by contract,
Colonel Craighill notified me that this
agreement (referred to above) must
ce:sr on the 3Oth of ApriI, and
| that after that date the city would be eX-
pected to keep clear the channels already cX-
csyatea. La accordance with this notice the
city undertook tie removal of bars left by
the fre.het of February and March on the
1st day of Nav. This work was completed
by the 15:h of June with one dredge. Alter
that time this dredge was employed by the
city in extending tie channel through the
| shoal reach between the lower end OF ROCK
etts reef and the Chesapeake and Ohio Rail
| road coa-w until August, when 1t was
employed by the United States force in cut
| ting a channel from the ship-lock through
Gillie's Creek shoal to the upper end OF
Rockets reef.
THE PAST YEAR
has been free from any heavy freShets, and
| the labor Of removing bars due to this cause
has been light. One freshet occurred In the
latter part OF February, with an extreme
rise 1T Rockets of eleven ieet; since that
time no rise Of over two feet in the river has
been observed. The February fresbef,
which suspended operations on the improve
mcnt for three weeks, left bars in the channel
near the lower end OF Drewry's islaod, oppo-
site Goodies rock, and on Richmond bar,
which reduced the available depth at mean
high water to thirteen feet. These bars were
removed by the 10th Of June, as before
stated.
The report states the amount Of work
done bv the United States and the city, and
includes the new channel between the ship
lock and Rockets reef, and between the
reef and the Chesapeake and Ohio wharyes,
rem oval of deposits, a new chaDnel at Goodies
rock, new channel at Rlnd0lph'S fiat, side
excavations to fill behind Drewry'S island,
Dutch Gap enlargement, and extension OF
dlkes. The United States did double the
work done by the city.
The report says:
These dkes and jetties are intended to de-
crease the amounts left by freshets and to
otherwise improve the channel, but TO what
extent they must be extended to maintain
eighteen feet depth Of water, as is now pro-
posed, is a matter still under consideration.
The expenditures on the part Of the city
during the year were as follows Sll ,5l2.l5.
In addition, there are bills due and not yet
audited rs follows: For repairs, $lO3.2l !;
for coal, S29l.95.
Tue REPAIRS
and other similar expenses during the year
amount to 81, ,90443 but in comparing
| these expenses with those OF former years it
L
mas not been worked to its full extent, as in
| former wears, nor SO continuously. A fair
estimate of comparison would be that forty
Der cent. has been under repair by the city
! during the year. 1t must also be remember.
| ed, in considering the aggregate, that for the
| first time for three years the city has been
running the machines as we'll as keeping them
| in repair.
The city has two steam tugs, three dreageS,
| two holsters, seven platform and three
| dumping scows, and q powder plle.drlver
The dredge hired to the Chesapeake and
Ohio railroad aud others earned Sl,5oS.Io.
FROM TIE sHiP.LoCK TO THE SEA
there is an available depth of fourteen feet
at mean high water. This is ut an average
of all the high tides which are not influenced
by floods. The height varies, being more in
spring tides and less In neap tides, and is
further Influenced by high winds. IT east
erly winds prevail the tides are higher il
westerly, and especially northwest, winds
prevail it is the reverse. Spring and neap
tides differ about one foot, while those
caused by high wiRdS may vary as much as
three and half feet.
Below Richmond bar, in which Include
Randolph's fiat, there are sixteen, and pro.
baby six cen and q half feet depth OF water
at mean high tide to the sea for vessels using
the Dutch Gap cut-cff. There are about one
aud quarter miles in all between WarWlcb
bar anu City Point where there are Tess than
etqhteen feet depth, and below City Point
three fourths OF a mile more. Between
these shoals the depth varies from eighteen
10 eighty feet, and is generally over twenty
feet in depth eUen at to,c rater. Wherever
| the river is Shoai it is wider than the average
width in the vicinity. II the widths at these
shoals we're regulated by dikes, and chan
mel dreGged to Il proper depth, it car scarcely
be doubted that such depth would be main
tanned iudehnitely.
| oNE OF THE SHOALS,
/ Hartisou's bar, is said TO afford a greater
depth of water than formerly. There were
formerly two chsnnels. one of which Is silt
ting up, and as 8 result more water is pass
| ing through the other. Nature is here dolne
lust wkst it is proposed TO do artIneiafiy al
other shoals. There seems to have been nc
perceptible loss of depth over any OF the
shoals 10 many years; certainly not IN the
upper part of the river Il mean those Whlcf
have nGt been worked on) since the coasl
survey of 1852. Wherever the river has
been contracted hrtiicially greater depsi
HAS been maintained than existed previously
encouraging the expectation that Efere Is
| proper width at every point for maintaining
a certain depth, and that this depth may be
at least that which Is now contemplated.
From the sbip-loGk to Rockets reef there
is now channel ninety feet wide and eigh'
teen feet deep Zone half the full width);
across the reef the ctapnel is generally one
| hundred feet wide, but at one point is only