Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1882-11-02
The Washington Monument.

Inc Deholder viewing at distance the
Washington Monument has but a faint idea
of the feelings that one experiences as he
approaches and stands at the base of this
stupendous pile Of marble and granite
Wonder, awe and amazement take posses
sion of him as he looks up and sees its vast
proportions, its height, its width and all it's
surroundings. If such be the effect pro-
duced upon him at an height of $40 feet,
that it has already attained, what will be
his sensation three years hence, should he
occupy the same standpoint, gazing up a
long line of masonry piercing as it were the
clouds and reaching toward infinity at
an height of 555 feet, which it will be
when completed. Standing at the foot of
this vast structure-being erected to pcr
petuate the memory and honor the man who
for his patriotic deeds was called the Father
Of his country living before the dawn of
this century, and whose memory still lives,
is cherished and honorcd beyond that Of
any other man that ever lived on the
Western continent, and will be so long as
time shall Notwithstanding OH this spot to-
day the feeling as expressed at the outset
took possession OF me and SO impressed nc
that was led to seek for more particular
information III regard to it, which resulted
in my obtaining the following facts and
figures through the courtesy Of Mr. P. H.
Mclaughlin and his assistants.
The building of this monument was COM
menced July 4, 1913 attaining in process of
| time (making slow progress howeyer) q
heighth of $50 feet and resting at that until
Aug. S, 1880 when work was resumed upon
it, so that its progress since then has been
as follows: Dec. H. 1880, 176 feet, Dec. 8,
1881, $50 feet, July 7, 1882, 2SS eet,and,now
on Oct 7, 1882 heighth of 80 feet isreach-
ed. In 1875 and appropriation by Congress
was made Tor work on this monument of
$200,00 and nothing more until for the
years 1850, 1881, and 1882, Sl50,O00 for each
year. and thing the like appropriation is
made for each year to complete it.
The height ofthe monument proper is five
hundred feet with an obelisk or shaft sur
mounting it of tifty-ivc feet in heigt. The
cost will not be less than $1,25O,00O. An
iron staircase is already completed, that is as
far as it can be and progresses with the
work. This staircase Isl winding one in sec
tions otten feet each having seventeen steps
and continually winding around and around
the tower and is exceedingly easy of as
cent That your readers may have
an idea Of the size of the blocks of
marble and granite that go to make this huge
pile OF masonry, will give you the dimen-
sion OF the corner stones or blocks placed
at its present height: Length and width
feet lOX2 feet and 2 feet thick. This is the
thickness of every stone or block in the
monument, so that ten courses laid around
increase the heighth twenty feet IL weeks
time is consumed i'll laying three courses.
There arc tOrty-siy stones in Il course 4
SHIFT OF the hosting machinery has to be
made every twenty feet. This involves a
labor of from ten to fourteen days and nine
to ten tons Of iron are used to stay the work
from the inside of every twenty feet built.
\ ton of coal is consumed daily to work the
| hosting machinery. An elevator from the
base connecting with the hosting machine
ry IS erected in and above the tower with
platform and is used while the shifting
process is going on to convey the workmen
TO and from their work, together with such
light material as may be needed; this being
done the platform is stored away near the
bottom for future USE The top of the hoist
ing machidery is thirty feet above the tow
er: that is, the height Of the wheel oyer
which the wire rope runs And thus on the
increase in height of every twenty feet a
shift has to be made, as before described
len feet space is required to work or
swing the cranes, one of which is AZ each
corner meeting midway. Twelve men are
employed all the time at the top. One
hundred and sixty men all told make up the
force on this gigantic work, which it is now
estimated will take three years to complete.
The monument is tifty-fve feet square at
its base, and now at q height of three hund-
red and ten feet. reached October 7, 1882. it
Is torty-two feet four and one half inches.
At the top Of the tower is net work run
ming out eight feet all around it to protect
the workmen from accident, and on the
outside of the monument is caffold run
ming around it also with an upright guard
The raising of the scaffold was going on as I
stood near the tower and it has to be done at
the same time the shaft is made above referred to-
ana III act Is apart OF that job; this scaolding is
only used for the workmcn to stand on TO point
up the work The Work from the 15O feet IS not
as thick as below that point it is taken in or set
back considerably (cXactly how much have for.
gotten) to lessen the weight or pressure on the
pile beneath. All the blocks as laid break Joints
and are so placed rs to wedge or bind each other
The taper of this shaft is one quarter of an inch
to the foot
1t is a part of the design Of this monument anG
was from its conception. to have contribution:
made from the States and countries in the worlc
thatsaw fit toassst in perpetuating the memory O
Washington IN thlsw way, to contribute stone will
proper inscriptions to be placed in it and ther,
are already scores Of them the spot stored care
fully away, many of which arc highly wrough
(the last received and that quite recently from
Dom Pedro awaiting the completion of the shat
to be put in place inside at the base in an appro
pirate manner hereafter to be decided upon B.
Washington, d. c., Oct. IA 1882
P.S.-Among the first stones received was on
from the Pope of Rome During "Know Nothing
times one dark night gang Of men gagged th
watchman, took this stone and broke it into tel
thousand pieces. B.