Delaware state journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1870-1883, 1883-08-16
THE sRANDYwIsE :sHoALIyG.
The Depth of Water Greatly be-
creased In the Past Five Years.

The shoaliDg of Bfandywipe creek ia a
| subj 'ct Of anxiety to wharf owners along
that stream. II necessitates the expense
OF dredging at private wbarves and Is
gradually increasing the difficulties of
navigation to points previously Of easy
access. The course of the shoaipg being
made the subject of inquiry by a
JOURNAL representative, drew forth the
opinion that the working of the dredging
machines at the jetties at the mouth of
the Christiana is largely the cause of the
deposit upon the bed of the Brandywine.
Dirt taken up at the jatties ia hauled
into the Christiana and there dumped.
There another dredger is stationed, which
transfers the dirt to the banks of the
Christisps. The dumping into and re-
moving from the Christiana of the dirt
agitates it, and the flood tides carry into
both of the local streams large quantities
of mud, or thick muddy water, and an
astonishing amount of dirt is deposited
upon the bed of each stream. A. j.
Cross says he has seen upon board
walk at the Eleventh street bridge, which
reached out into the Brandywine far
enough to ensure safe footing in low tide,
an accumulation of nearly one-eighth of
an inch after single flood tide. He
estimates that there has besn decrease
of from three to four feet in the depth of
the water in the Brandywine in the last
four or five years. 1t is necessary at
high tide, which is supposed to reach q
depth of six feet, to follow the channel
very carefully and at low tide almost the
entire bed of the stream can be seen and
a skiff can hardly be taken out the creek.
Since the dredgers began work at the
mouth of the Christiana, Captain Biz
zard, tender of the Eleventh street
bridge, has noticed that at low tide the
bottom of the creek can be seen from the
bridge to number of rocks in the chan.
mel, 300 feet or more above the bridge.
In addition to the mud brought by
the tide, another reason for the shoaling
ia that there has been but one heavy
freshet ior a number of years, that OF
1876. These freshets are natures own
dredgers, and have heretofore carried
away large quantities of dirt and Kept
the creek navigable.
Years ago,t the recollection of Captain
Blizzard, there was depth of 80 feet OF
water in the Brandy wine at its mouth at
low tide; now, vessels must wait for a
half rise of the tide before they can enter
the creek.
The island above the Eleventh street
street bridge formed by the new and the
old course of the stream, is
fast disappearing and the old
channel of the Brandywiue is now only
nayigable by batteaux during rise in
the tide. Other islands, one below the
bridge, one opposite the Jackson & Sharp
Company's works, one at the Shellpot
slui9e and the other at the mouth of the
creek, are fast becoming part of the
main banks. The channel at the latter
island WAS dredged some time ago but is
again filling up.
Places, where few years ago the
bottom could scarcely be- touched with
long poles, are now bare at low water.
The tide reaches about the same hight as
formerly but there is less depth in the
course, caused by the filling up, and the
absence of treshets to clear away the
deposit.
When the survey, made last spring by
Government officers with view to dredg
ing the creek, was referred to, the opinion
was advanced that if the stream is not
dredged during the next four or five
years it will have filled up to such an
extent as to be useless for navigation.