Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1881-02-06
EMORY GAP RAILROAD,
Report OF the Chief Engineer,
Isa,i. w. A. Gunn,
Submitted 10 and Adopted by the
Recent Stockholders EEsetipg.


teresiiog aud instructive report made
by Maj. ". A. Gum, chief engineer
OF tie Rockville and Cincinnati
Southern Railroad. t. tie call.d
meeting of stockholders, las Thur
day, mention Of watch was made
by US:
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. Feb. An, 1881
10 the Presideat and Directors Of Tie
kaorrHe Gad Cincinnati Southern
RoiLegay Company:
/ submit herewith the maps, proi'cs and
estimates OF tbs cost Of your proposed
railroad from Knoxville to Emory Gap
Tht surveys were made on the supp0si-
ton that grade Of 50 to so feet would be
most advisable and separate estiln 4tes haze
been made for maximum grade uf o. $40
feet and for maximum OF 90 feet per
mite Ia each case q reduction in grade
has been MA o to c0mpeA ate for curva-
ture.
The estimates have been made for first
class work, iron bridges and stiles ana
the tunnels arCheI with brick when tn y
require it. l have assumed that One-halt
OF your tunneiing will BE- through solid
rock and the ether half in mixed mate! lal,
which will need archjrg With money at
moderate rates Of interest, it is most
economical to adopt permanent work from
! the start.
| / have estimated FIR steel rt!s OF SO
! pounds per yard and u track well b blasted,
with sufii iiency of sidings, depots, water
| staiio, turn tables, section and tool
| houses, engine houses, repair shops and
| t iegrhph line, with which TO begin the OPP
Grafton OF your road.
/ Tn lire SIrVevp6 l3avnz the (Ipcin0at
| Southern railway at Emory Gap. 255 miles
| from G. ncinnati aud 50 miles north OF Coat
tanUoga ust north ofthe bridge over Emory
| River, and folio A. up the valley al the foot
| of Waldrons Ridge, passing Ihe Oakdale
! Iron Furnace. unsl 1t caches point IN
this valley about two miles southwest OF
! Winters Gap. The line then runs down
! the branch to B tiers mill. on India
| Creek, passes By plts' Mill and crossing
| Poplar Greek, ascends the slopes Of the
| Black OAK Ridge for two miles, and then
crossing this riug0 by tunnel to the old
camp ground. passes up the valley OF Eas
| Fork south CT KobertSyille, and at ia head
| Of East Fork descends the Scar borough
| branch through the Chestnut Ridge, and
passes eastward through the Sc T5Orougt
Valley to tn G point OF Little Pine Ridge
where it crosses the Cinch River n sholt
distance above CObb's FUri and Ferry
The line then runs across low deprs sci L
in Copper Ridge (, lose to the CObb's Ferry
| road where this ridge i, cUGsi leIabty
| broken with large sink~hOles Tee line
passes through some of these sinks and hts
three nneis in the ridges betw, Ell them
EN- 1unting in all 10 g % feet OF tunneiiing
Inc line then passes through low gak
in a spur Of U, poer Ridge to Beav,l
| Creek, which 1t crosses, and passing jas
| in rear IF the Lebanon Church. strike!
diagoEslIy across the level Beaver Vile J
to omiGtI's GAP. ard thence uo.M eadOW
| Crock, in Kinds Valley, to is head
Here the line takes the slopes Of tbs
second B ack Oak Ridge, and whom opp0
site MIR. James HarpeT's, turas sharply /
the outh ast and passes through gap II
this ridge On nearly level grade aud Will
very lIght work.
The line then runs through Sharp!
r dge, which here joins Black Oak Ridge
AID desends the slo ,es of SEArp's Ridge t,
Il point about Elile and a-haIf west 0
Middlebro) ok. From this point two line
were run into Knoxville. The south lint
crosses the Grassy Valley, and descends thu
valley OF Third Creek, crossing that stream
Just below the MidalebroOk paper mill
and passing north Cf the paper mi ], con
Linue8 eastward, crossing Harmond's Greet
where that stream cuts the next ridges
and striking the East Tennessee, NTgtniE
and Georgia Railroad near Fort Saunders
follows along that road toto Knoxville
maaing the distance AZ miles from EmoTJ
Gap to Knoxville.
the north line into Knoxville crosse
Third Creek nearly a mile above Middle
| brook, and fellows the Grassy Valley L
the Knoxville and Ohio Railroad two
miles northwest Of the city AID then runt
in alongside that DAD to Knoxville, max
ing the length Of the road by this Iou,e 4:
miles.
The shortest line will make the distance
| from Knoxville, by Emory Gap 10 cincin'
nat, 298 miles. And from Knoxville, BY
+ nory Gap, to Chattanooga, ~ miles.
| The work on this line is generally light
| and the alignment good. Tho general iii
rection OF the line is little north of ese
from Emory Gap TO point opposite VIA
| ter's Gap AMI then little sOut CT eus
from there to Knoxville Your line leave
the Cine nnati Southern railway just where
that road comes out of the Cum berlanC
mountains, and the whole country travers
e1 by your road consisting of u system t.
parallel ridges and valleys, your lint
crosses all toe ridges but two, where th J
R-e cut by sire ms. BlacR Oak Ridge, \ .
|, near Rohertsville, requires Il tunnel q
200 feet. on the gra"e OF 81 10 feet pei
mile; and Copper Ridge is ,Tos ed with
thre, tunnels, $50 f-es. $50 ct and 40 fee
in length, making together ], 800 feet Of tun-
ne ing. III Oiuet 10 uldlLitdlL tbt duo I
5 g. 10 feet it is best to cross Clinch rise1
alb ,ut rs feet above low water. Two span;
of 20 feet each, and one of sc feet, witt
tcestle approaches, will be well adapted Z
The situation, and provide we'll for the nav
isation of the river, as this Only requires
one per n the river.
The soundings made show solid rock fol
the foundation within ten feet Of the sur
face of the water.
This grade also makes some heavy EN-
bankments and cuts for about four mile
east of Clinch River.
The descent from Sharp's Ridge and tn
crossing of Grassy Valley, On the souti
line. into Knoxville, also gives SOM
heavy work for about two miles. Ga ths
grace Of &c fest the work en- nearly a.
these heavy sections is considerably re-
duced The tunnel in Black Oak No.
being 2,1G0 feet, with much lighter ap'
proaChes Aud all the heavy embank.
m ITS would be considerably reduced, a
well as the lighter work along the line
generally. The bri1ge over ClInch River
would BE- I feet high on this grade.
The estimates show the cost Of the line
to be as follows:
South line into Knoxville,
81 $40 feet grade ................... Sl.475 So
North line into Rockville,
81 SO feet grade. /, 4C6, 76
Sossh line into Knoxville,
so feet Observation-Disclosures. !, $40 05
North line into Knoxville,
60 feet grade. .................... 1853 60!
This does not include the cost of I'll,