Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-01-13
RIVER AND HARBOR IMPROVE
MENTS.


Continuing the WOrIx-Additional APP
preparations to be Asked For.
The following report on the progressed
and contemplated Improvements in the
Savannah river and harbor has been re-
ceived by Mayor Wheaton:
Z. 5. ENGINEER OFFICE,
ARMY BUILDING,
NEW YORK, Jan. 8, 1885,
| Hon. John f. Wheaton, Mayor Of Sdran-
nah, ca:
| SIR beg leave to acknowledge the re-
/ ceipt of your letter of the 9th ultimO, adj
/ dressed to Gen. Q. A. Gilmore, wherein
/ YOU express the desire to be furnished
with a report of the work done during the
/ last year ON the Savannah river; also,
/ asking to be informed if estimates have
/ been or will be submitted to Congress for
/ the amount that is necessary to carry on
/ the work for the years 1888 and 1884.
/ Owing to his severe and continued sick
ness, Gen. Gilmore has been prevented
/ from replying to your letter. Having
/ temporarily relieved him of his duties, l
/ take pleasure in complying with your re-
| quest.
/ During the year ending December 81. 1882,
/ operations for improving Savannah river
/ and harbor have been carried on in ac-
| cordance with the enlarged project sub
/ mitted by Gen. Gilmore, with his report
! of an examination of the river, to the
| Chief of Engineers, under date of Janua-
| ~ Is, 1882. This report was printed in
| full in the last annual report of the Mayor
! of the city of Savannah, and it is therefore
! deemed unnecessary to enter again upon
/ the details of the project.
/ The work of improvement was vigorous
| ly prosecuted from the beginning OF the
/ year to July. 1882, when it was tempOrari-
J Al l.. l.s.s.. ~lasaUV tod
! BY depOsiting additional riprap stone
upon the dam at the cross tides, it was
/ raised to a height of three feet above
/ low water. Two wing dams were
/ built to reduce the width of the water
way at Garden Bank shoals; their
| shore ends rest on Fig Island. The upper
! dam is located about four hundred yards
! below Clarke a Willink's dry dock, and
/ about opposite to the mouth OF Lamar
! canal. The other dam is $50 yards lower
down. Their aggregate length is 600 feet.
! They were built up Of several courses OF
/ heavy log mattresses, ballasted with rip
/ rap stone. Their top is about the level Of
| high water.
The training wall, commenced in De-
/ cember, 1881, extending eastward from
1 the bower end of Fig Island and along the
new channel at "the wrecks" was COM
( pleted to the height of three feet above
/ low water. It's length Is about five thou
I sand feet. 1t was built after the same
method followed in the case of the Garden
/ Bank wing dams.
! The work of closing the lateral chan
nels connecting the north and south chan
nels of the Savannah river was also ac-
cOmplished during the first seven months
of the last year.
Three channels were closed. One of the
dams, 300 feet long, closes ''Philbrick's
/ CUT at the lower end of Elba Island; an
/ other dam. 2,417 feet long, runs across the
/ Big Gap'' between Island l and and
| Bird island and third dam, 49, feet
/ long, closes the channel between Bird and
Long Islands. These dams were finished
/ up to the level of high water.
/ The several works here briefly enume-
rated and described were executed by
/ means of hired labor. Under an arrange
/ ment made with Mr.. MyrOn Bangs, of
/ Fayetteville, \. ", he supplied the requi-
! site quantities of log mattresses, brush i'll
compact bundles, riprap stone and piles.
From January to July, 1882, about
1 $1,000 cubic Yards of material were re-
moved from the Savannah river by
dredging. OF which amount $4,000 cubic
wards were eXcavated under a contract
( made with Messrs. DickersOn Il Paulsen,
of Savannah, Ga. and the balance by the
United States dredge steamer Henry
Burden. The bulk of the work was
done on Garden Bank ShOal and
| in the channel at ''the wrecks"
portion of the projecting part of Fig island
was also cut off to establish the width of
$50 feet for the water way at that place.
From the channel at Tybee knoll and
lower down about $4,000 cubic yards were
removed.
Bv act of Congress, passed August ,,
1882, an appropriation of 100000 was
made for continuing the improvement of
Savannah river and harbOr. This sum
will be expended chiefly in prosecuting
the work of constructing wing dams and
training walls from the city towards
! Tybee roads, in pursuance to the present
project and also in dredging at the shall
low places of the channel way in the
vicinity of the dam. \ contract for build
ing these dams and training walls has
been entered into with Mr.. Eli L. Bangs,
of Fayetteville, Y. Y; another contract
for removing bv dredging about POO
900 cubic yards of material has been
concluded with Messrs. DickersOn Il
( Paulsen. of Savannah, Ca; and under a
special arrangement with Mr.. +. a.
Smith, of Savannah, a quantity of stone
was supplied, which was deposited upon
the dam at cross tides and upon the Fig
Island training wall. The two contracts
referred to are now well under way, and
it is thought that only small portion, if
any. of the Appropriation, Will remain I'M
expended on June 80, 1888. when the pres
ent fiscal year closes. Preparations were
completed for building third wing dam
some distance below those constructed
during the first part OF the year Just
passed, and for extending the Fig Island
training wall and supplying 1t with
number of short spur jetties to increase
its efficiency. Dredging operations have
also been resumed.
In addition to the operations described,
a considerable amount of surveying was
executed, preparatory to suitable lOca-
ton of the several works contemplated,
and as a basis for noting and comparing
future changes in the navigable channel,
to be effected by these works.
All the dams thus far constructed seem
to stand we'll. Some settlement has been
noticed at several points of the dams, but
this was expected from the condition of
the material composing the bed of the
river. and nothing of a serious nature has
occurred or is anticipated. The two wing
dams built from Fig Island, and the train
ing wall extending eastward from the
lower end of that island, have begun to
produce favorable effects, which undOubt-
eddy will be materially increased when
the auxiliary works, now under way,
have been constructed.
These remarks also apply to the dams
closing the side channels below Elba
Island.
In General GillmOre's annual report to
the Chief of Engineers for the fiscal year
ending June so, 1882, it is said that $780,,
600 can be prOfitably expended i'll the fiscal
year ending June 30, 1894.
This sum equals the whole amount esti-
mated TO be required for carrying out the
existing project. The appropriation of
5000. coo. by means of which operations are
at present carried on, was made after said
annual report had been sent in, leaving
balance of $3.50, 900 still to be provided for.
4 copy of the resolution of the Senate
of the United States, dated December 81,
1882. was sent to me by the Chief of En-
gineers, for report upon such portions of
il as relate to works of improvement in
the State of Georgia now in my charge,
which request was complied with. In
my report on the harbOr of Savannah, |
have stated that a thorough and per-
manent improvement of Savannah river
and harbOr. with adequate depths in the
nayigable channel, cannot be effected and
maintained unless all the works contem-
plated in the present project are built,
and that it is therefore desirable and of
great Importance to have liberal APP
DropriatiOnS for continuing the
work energetically. 1t was also added
that without an additional appropriation
all work will be suspended soon after
july 1, 1888. / have further stated in the
report that $530,000 can be profitably eX.
pended during the fiscal year ending June
80 1884, that and at least $500, 600 is neces-
sary to conduct the work as it should be
during that period.
Very resp'y. your Obed't serv't,
Jos. c. Posi-,