New-York tribune., 1886-11-08
A NEW HIGHWAY FOR RTRADE
THE HARLEM TO Be OPENED FOR SHIPS

BEGUN-scoPs or THE PROJECT.
The Secretary Of War on October approved th
last report Of the engineers FOR the proposed i'm
prove'nent Of the Harlem River. and there is n
reason why the work should not now be- begun q
once. For more thao twenty years this project ha
been under consi ieration Congress aud the Stat
Legislature have passed laws regarding IL
| engineers have examined. surveyed and writer
| volumIuons reports. aud private citizens who hav
the good Of the city and the -veIoppent OF IT.
commerce at heart have spent time aud energy IL
bringing abou. the result. which is now practically
accomplished. Ii is not easy to overestimate the
Importance of che proposed improvements The
Harlem River is no longer the northern boundary
Of the CITY il now passes through a DoDuOus ssd
rapidly growing district, which demands q share in
tho advantages that have so long been eojoyed by
the sonthern portions of the town. II the Harlem
River were made navigablo. its banks would sooh
be crowded with ELEVATORS. brck-yards, coal
yards. lumber-yards, and in fact with all the
terminal facilities of extensive commerce. The
trade from the banks of the Hudson the Great
Lakes and the West, which now passes down the
North River to tae Battery and then up tue East
River into Long Isisnd Sound and so to the Now
England States, would he savei a distance Of
twenty miles If the Harlem open to naviga-
tion The long strings of unsightly canal boats
which now Gro wd Tie narbnr. rendering nsviga-
tion difficult ana filing tie slips along West-st.
and South-st would tnen iad their most con-
venient moorings between SpIyten Duyvil and
High Bridge The Impetus that would be given
to the development of Harlem and the Annexed
District would be immense, while the relief to the
southern districts, overburien sd with shipping,
wonId be equally vantageous.
General Egbert L. Viele has probably been more
nafr al bar IN hrin fhs
Government to appreciate the value of the Harlem
River as a highway of commerce. General Viee
has always regarded this work as in certain
way beque sthei 10 him bv his father. John l..
Viee. who was a State Senator and Judge of the
Court of Errors for many years, aud whose infu-
ence aided materially in the passage of the Ere
Canal bills through the Legislature After the
canal was opened on October 26. 1925. medal
was struck of and memorial book was published,
with maps and plans of tho work and pictures of
the grand illustrations by which the event was
celebrated in the city of New-York A copy of the
book, which is now extremely rare. and one of the
medals presented by the city to John l..
Viele, one Of the fathers of the canal. General
Viele still has these souvenirs, and they have
probably served to keep alive tho desire to see bis
fathers work completed for General Vicle has
always regar led the Harlem River as the natural
made his IDEAS public in an editorial published in
The Herald D the early part Of 1868 THIS was
of a series of articles The development aud im-
provement of the metropolis In thIs article, after
referring to the over-crOwded condition of the
water front and the Harbor ami to the long detour
around the city which must be made by the COM
merce bound from the canal to New England,
General Vele says
A canal, 200 feet wide and 20 feet deep, connect
ing the NOI th and East iyers should be construct
cd or formed from tue Harlem River. and grand
basin OF 100 acres or more in extent should be
made Of the low land aOw Overiio we'd hy the tide.
Stone piers aud bolkheads should afford proper
wharf facilities. and cOinnOdious fre-Droof
elevators should be constructed.
MANY SCHEMES THAT CANE TO NAUGHT.
IL was almost ten years. hoNever before
Congress acted these excellent suggestions of
Genera; Viele; for although tue Harlem River is
entirely within the State of New-York, yet its
waters rise and fall with the tide its Improvement
falls within the province of the Federal Govern
ment. BY Act of June 23, 1874. Congress author
lied survey of the Harlem River. with view to
rendering 1t navisabe. The work entrusted
to General John Newton. the engineer of the work
at He'll Gate ana the present Commissioner OF
Public Works His report is dated February Is.
1875 1t begins with historical sketch of the
Harlem River, which shows that the Importance of
this stream to the commerce of the city has long
been appreciated. Ia 1927 an Act 30 incorporate
the Harlem River Canal Company was passed by
the Legislature and the company was authorized
to build a canal from Spnyten Duyvil Creek to the
Harlem River and to improve the Harlem River so
as to afford easy navigation from the Hudson to
the East River. Two years were allowed for the
completion of the work. In 1929 the time expired
and was extended two years. In 1886 the same
Act was revised and continued. and the time was
no limited to five years. Nothing, however. was
ever done under this charter
I'm 1888 the city also turned its attention to the
Improvement or the Harlem. At the instance of the
Common Council, George g. Shaetfer made survey
of the Harlem. with view to rendering it
navgable He recommended that Spuyten Duyvl
('reek should be straigt tened by canal cut
through tie northern end of Manhattan Island.
This lis in a general way tine plan which has Just
been approved by the Secretary of War The pro-
ject now slumbered for twenty years In 1856 the
advisory council of the State Commission on fIar-
Dor improvements laid down pier and bulkhead
line for lthe Harlem River. but it decided to leave
the question of improvement of the river to en-
gineers The next year. 1857. a concurrent resou-
tOn Of the State Legislature passed. requesting
Senators and Representatives in Con resst to procure
the passage of q bill for the removal of all OBJ
structions to navigation the Harlem and an ap-
preparation for that object The New-York delega-
tion does not seem to ihave possessed It's present
public spirit and energy for nothing came of this
appeal. and in 1850 the Legislature directed the
Supervisors of New-YOrk County to have a survey
made with view to ascertaining if the Harlem
River could be made avigable Under che direc-
tions of the Supervisors, j. Mcleod Murphy made
survey and reported. In the Harlem River a con-
tinuous depth of ten feet at mean low water was
he thought, sufficient and he proposed 20 cut 10
about the same position as that recommended by |
Mr. Shaefer to avoid the bends in Spuyten Duyvil |
Creek.
In 1868 another canal company was incorporated |
)y the Legislature. 1t to be known as the |
Hudson and Harlem River Canal Company. The |
,anal to be not less than sixty feet vide and |
even feet deep. This project was. therefore. a