Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1883-06-20
MUSCLE SHOALS.
It's Location, With Thorough Re-
view of the Work Done to
Remove It.
information IA TO It's Past. Pres
emit and Future Conditions.
Chattanooga Democrat.

q eminent works, at Muscle Snoal
having excited some additional inter
est in that improvement, we have pre-
e cured the following information /
/ regard to its past. present and probs
g bic future conditions. 1t will be re
: membered that the Muscle Shoal
r obstruction lies between Florence an
Decatur, Ala, the lower end bein
? two hundred miles below Chattanooga
J and two hundred and fifty five mile
from Paducah, the mouth of the river
> The removal of this obstruction
| which now forms an impassabl
barrier to navigation, and the onl.
! serious one below Knoxville, vii
open the entire river to steamboat
from the Ohio and the rest Of tn,
, Mississippi system, thus placing Chat
tanooga only ass miles from Paducah
+ or less than half the distance of Pitts
burg from the same point. Ever
Knoxville, which is l89 miles further
up the Tennessee, would have 27s
miles the advantage of Pittsburg in
water race to any point below OF
west Of the mouth Of the Tennessee
river.
The advantage of removing the
Muscle Shoals obstruction was sPpre.
ciated early in the century, and after
making careful surveys of the entire
locality Congress, in 1923, donated 400
acres of land to the State Of Alabama,
for the purpose of building a canal
around the Shoals. This canal was
built along the main obstruction, but
was never properly completed and was
eventually abandoned by the State
authorities.
In 1867, aud subsequently,, surveys
we're made by authority Of Congress,
and the work of rebuilding and en-
larging the canal was begun in 1875,
and has been continued under success.
sive appropriations until the present
time, when, owing to the failure Of
river and harbor bill last spring, the
funds are so nearly exhausted that but
little more can be done beyond the
closing up OF odd jobs, and the pres
ervation Of the work until another
appropriation is available.
The Shoals are in three natural
divisions, viz; Elk river, Big Muscle
and Little Muscle Shoals, which are
separated by pools of deep water, the
entire length OF the obstruction being
thirty>six miles, OF which eight miles
reqbire 10 improvement, and of the
balance sixteen miles are overcome by
a canal alongside of the river, and
twelve miles have been improved by
wing and retaining dams OF stone, and
by blasting channel from the solid
rock in the river bed.
This last operation, which is prac.
tically completed, was done by means
OF temporary dams, which diverted
the river from the chanuel to be
worked upon, and by Golfer dams,
which enclosed successive portions of
the river bed, so that they could be
pumped out, and the rock blasted out,
with the same facility as if it had
been on dry land. In this manner
about two and half miles, or over
100000 cubic yards, of solid rock
we're blasted out, forming a smooth,
uniform channel over 100 feet wide
and three feet deep at extreme low
water. Three miles of heavy stone
dams, aggregating $1,000 cubic yards
of stone, have been built, and with
GONE additions to these, which can be
made at almost any stage of the river, |
bnt which viii not be absolutely
needed excepting 10 low water, the
twelve miles OF open channel i'm
provement is practically completed.
leaving nothing but the sixteen miles
of canal for further consideration.
This canal consists OF the fourteen
and a half miles of old canal to be re>
built, and one and half miles Of new
canal on the Elk river division. The
latter requires two locks, for one of
which the foundation pit has been
excayated, and mole than three. |
fourths of all the stone needed for |
both lOeka has been quarried and |
eHt. Thirty aeTes Of heavy timber
have been cleared from the land upon
which tho canal is located, and about
one seventh OF the excavation has
been completed.
On the old canal work is still further
advanced.
The seventeen old locks, which
were only 30 feet wide and 1lSl
new long, have been replaced by nine
new locks, 60 feet vide and 300
feet between gates. all the masonry
Of these nine locks and twenty-six
piers, for an aqueduct over ShoaI
creek, have been completed. 1t is all
built Of heavy blocks of limestone,
laid in hydraulic cement, and founded
upon solid rock, which was blasted
out 10 the proper level to receive the
masonry. Some idea of the quantity
of this masonay can be formed from
the fact that, il the lock wells were
placed end to end, they would form a
wall ten feet thick at the base, five
feet at the top, twenty feet high and
over mile and one-third in length,
while the aqueduct piers, in the same
way, would form a wall three feet
thick, eleven feet high and 200 feet
long
The canal trunk has been enlarged
and rebuilt for about five sixths fits
length, and az the old canal was not
cut down to the proper level, about
two miles Of bed rock had to be blast.
ed out, from one to FIVE feet deep,
and a number Of high bluffs were
blasted down, to give the necessary
Width and direction to the canal. The
new canal is intended to pass boats
20 feet long, so feet vide, and draw
ing 3 feet Of water; or, If coal barRes
are built 80 feet long by 20 feet vide,
the lockswill pass nine Of these baTgea
ct once.
An idea Of the magnitude Of this
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