Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1880-02-14
LLEGANY COUNTY, MARYLAND, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 1880
MINES COMMISSION REPORT.


MINES COMMISSION REPORT.
CONTINUED from last week
Tile maryland and Delaware Shil
Canal. Sho1Oin9 the character and
cost Of the three great competive
routes across the Peninsula, and
the advantages Of the great
Ooptank Route.
The surveys of the Ferry Creel
and Queenstown routes were mad,
under the direction of Col. W. P
Craighill, that Of the Sassafras route
by William Cullen Brown, civil engi
neer, for Horace B. Tel,bitts, of New
York. under the charters for the States
of Maryland and Delaware. The late
eminent engineer, B. H. Latrobe, as
consulting engineer in 1874, made an
estimate of the cost of a ship canal
on this route of % feet deep, l0C
feet wide at the bottom, with beam IA!
feet wide and 80 feet above the bot.
tom of the Canal, with incidental
work (not inclu ing tide locks
$l2,473,643. CO.. Craighill's estimate
on this same route in 1879, is S.
085, 643.
This route leaves the old Brewer
ton Ship Channel below Bait Is miles.
Thence up Chesapeake Bay ....24
=" Sassafras River. III
81 &c DInnly Dir1
Creek and down said Creek to
the Delaware River, a6Ose salt
UdCe' 10
Thence down the Delaware t.
tne Sapes. ..................5S
Total distance ........... 1921
The great objection to this route is,
that the line Of the Canal will be d.
rectly in the current of the Susque-
hanna River for a distance of thirty
miles, filling the bottom of the Canal
with debris in every flood from that
river, and also during the ice embar-
go through the winter and late in the
spring, floating ice would prove dam
gerous to navigation; in addition to
these very strong objections is the
difficult navigation OF the Delaware
River and Bay.
The time consumed in reaching the
Capes from Baltimore by this route,
when clear Of ice, estimating the
speed at 5 miles per hour through the
Canal, and at 10 miles per hour in the
Bay and River would be Is hours.
The Queenstownroute covers the
same ground as the Sassaftas
route LOT. 10 miles.
Thence into and up Chester Riv-
er to Queenstown. .....,..21f
Thence across the high country
to the Broad Kill Creek. -. "a
Thence down said Creek to the
Delaware Bay. $50. ....... 4
Thence to the Capes lib
Total distance by this route .107i
Col. Craighill's estimate of the cost
Of this route is $37,000,O00.
The time consumed in reaching the
Capes by this route, estimating the
rate of speed per hour to be the same
as on the Sassafras route would be 16
hours.
The principal objections to this
route are as follows: l. The crossing
of the current Of the Susquehanna
River. 2 The ice in the Queenstown
Creek and Harbor during the winter.
3. The blocking of the mouth OF the
Chester River from Swan Point to
Love Point by ice, from floods in the
Susquehanns River during the north
and nor Invest gales, prevailing dur
ing the winter carrying away last
year the Light House on Love Point }
4. The extreme length of the Canal,
viz: 81 miles. 5. The very deep cut
ting of the entire length from Queens
town to the Broad Kill from rs 10
100 feet. 6. The constant danger Of
land slides during the progress oil
the work, and for years after It's com.
pletion. 7. The necessity and ex-
pense of maintaining two Ship Canals
if either this or the Sassafras route is
adopted.
The Ferry Creek route also en-
braces the same ground as the
other two, until it reaches the
Craighill Channel distance of12 miles
Thence by said Channel down
the Chesapeake Bay to the
| Grnaf Ghnntanlf R,unr op1 IN
said River to Ferry Creek. i. .69
| Thence through low, flat and
swampy country to Walnut
Landing on the Nanticoke
| HlVer ..,........ ........ LII "
Thence up that broau and naviga-
be river to the junct on Of the
gravelly and Deep Creeks, 10
Thence up the bread valley of
| Deep Creek. ................. At
| Thence across the short summit
to the head of Broad Kill. ...13 I"
Thence down the very wide and
deep valley of said Creek to
near Lewes on the Break Wat
or on the Delaware. ..........10
Tt cnce to the Capes. .........13 y"
Total distance by this route ..149
Col. Craighill's estimate of the cos
of this route is $l6,500.000.
The time consumed in reaching tn,
Capes by this route, estimating thu
rate of speed per hour to be the sam
as on the other two routes would b.
l6 hours, This time can be reduced
to IA hours by making open cuts, be
tween the Choptank and Nanticok