Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1885-08-20
THIRD STREET BRIDGE.
Mr.. Hickman Decides where. Whei
and UNnxv R NaxU RRrfdue Shall "a

MIR. Hickman Decides where, When
and How a New Bridge Shall ne
Built.
Every Evening of yesterday.
The committee OF the levy court on re-
pairs to the Third street bridge, Messrs.
Henry d. Hickman (chairman), Thomas
Toy and Edmund B. Hannah, at meeting
yesterday afternoon engaged Joseph
Hyde to build new approach to the
bridge at Third street, at the north end.
The price at which Mr.. Hyde engaged to
do the work is given as S7,985. For this
sum an iron span, pier and stone
abutment, the entire work 80 feet in
length is to be constructed. In width it
is to be about the same as the approach
to the iron bridge at Market street. II is
expected that work on the new approach
will be started the Sth or 10th Of Sep
TENDER, and that it will take about six
weeks. During the progress of construc-
ton it will be necessary TO have the
bridge turned of and the committee has
decided to run free ferry while the
work is progressing.
The approach is section Of an entire
new bridge, the plans for which now in
the hands of Mr.. Hickman We're supplied,
it is stated, by Theodore Cooper, con-
sulting engineer, No. 35 Broadway, New
York. The contemplated new bridge, as
laid down on the plans. bears strong
similarity to the new bridge across Market
street and is to be constructed i'll iron.
Mr. Hickman states that it will costa
500, 1000. 1t will have draw of $40 feet
giving an opening Of 100 feet on each
side of the centre pier. In discussing
the construction of the bridge il is stated
that the iron will be furnished by the
Edge Moor Iron Company aud the stone
are to be taken from the Bellevue quar-
ries. The northern approach, which is
shortly to be started, IL about half the
length of the one at the south end, which
it is proposed to build next year.
1t will be understood Mt once by any
one familiar with the bridge question that
the matter of erecting new span across
the Christiana and the site best adapted
with reference to the public needs have
long been under consideration by the levy
court. Numerous sessions of the court
last spring were devoted Ia the bridge
matter and after considering the question
in all its phases the court voted to repair
the old bridge and TO postpone I'LL action
looking toward new one for II period of
two years ut least. No site was decided
but there was very full expression of
opinion through letter and petition, some
favoring Fourth street and others ex-
pressing preference for the present site
ut Third street, or trit1e below that at a
point between Third and Fourth streets.
Before the court finally decided to defer
the BRIDGES construction, an engineer
made an examination of the old structure
and gave as his opinion that it could be
at cost of from $4,000 to
$3, 900, probably about the former figure,
SO that it would be entirely safe for two
years. At the request of Levy Courtman
Hickman, the member from Wilmington
hundred, and upon whom the mainte-
nance of bridges and highways in the city
deyolv9s, the committee was appointed to
make the necessary repairs. The levy
court doubtless intended that the repairs
should be such as suggested by the ex-
engineer, and to be of tenn
porary character.
The committee, however, by its action
took different view of the
affair and by its construction of perma-
nent and expensive approach, practically
to set at rest the question of To-
cation and other matters upon which the
levy court desired to get full express
sion of public sentiment before definitely
Mr.. Hickman's great anxiety to get
new bridge or part of it underway was
several times, it will be re-
membered in levy court last spring. At
one meeting he moved to refer the entire
matter of whether or not new bridge
should be built and the location to q COM
mittee and, after the majority had &C
auiesced in the motion, he requested the
chair to name men as the committee desig-
mated by himself and who had expressed
themselves in favor of building bridge
at once. This move brought forth the
coup between the chair and the Whining
ton member in which the former took oc-
casion to tell Mr.. Hickman that he could
not run this court, but that he had been
trying to all winter.
After the whole question had been SO
fixed that it could not be reached again
during the session under parliamentary
usages, the Wilmington member dragged
it forth, but did not succeed in getting
the bridge. Then committee at his re-
quest was selected to repair the old struc-
ture, and, through this and under the
guise of repairs, the new bridge will be
built.
In conversation with an EVERY EVENING
representative this morning Mr.. Hickman
admitted that no bids had been publicly
asked by advertisement or otherwise for
constructing the approach. He stated
there were four bidders for the work but
he could not remember the names of the
other bidders, but was positive that Mr..
Hyde was the only Wilmington contractor
who had made proposition or bid for
the work. Whether or not Mr.. Hyde's
bid was lower than the others whose
names could not be ascertained is not
known. Mr.. Hickman states that he has
an appropriation of $4,000 available for
maintenance of bridges and highways
from which he can pay for the new
approach. The work, he says, should
come under the head of repairs and
could have been done by the day, but he
did not care to have the trouble of at
tending to it personally so the work was
given to Joseph Hyde who, as "A member
of the firm OF Hyde & Johnson, built the
new county buildings ut Hare's Corner.