Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1889-10-21
FOLSOTS Big Dam.
A MORE IMPOSING STRUCTURE THAN
Is GENERALLY BELIEVED.
of TIT will be Finished
This Year,

a gentleman who recently returned from
Folsom and vicinity, where he had been on
business trip, gave glowing account to a
RECORD UNION reporter last evening of the
pre- gress of work on the big dam across the
American river near the penitentiary.
st is a much larger and importan
structure than had ever imagined" said
he, land will no doubt be the greatest de-
vice of the kind in California, or on the
Pacific coast when it is finished. A per-
son has no idea what it is until he sees it.
It was my first trip down that way, and al
though I had read much about it in the
papers, l never imagined that it was
such q gigantic affair as it is.
Why, hundreds of men, principally
conyicts, literally swarm over it, apparently
in the greatest confusion. But this is not
the case. Each man has his work set out,
and from what could see they were doing
it as well as if they were drawing S. day
for 1t. 1t is very near completion now"
The issue of the 10Th inst. of the Folsom
Telegraph gives detailed account of the
progress of work on the dam, as we'll as
splendid description of the structure as it
at present appears. 1t says: THE dam is
now about thirty feet above the level of the
water in the American river, and built up
all the way across. Besides there are three
towers on the top of the dam about ten
feet high and from ten to twenty feet
square The portion of the dam on this
side of the river is built up on level with
the bank and by the end of the week will
be couple of feet higher than it. A large
gangway has been built from the top of the
dam to the bank on this side, where the
concrete is mixed. 1t is supported on
scantling, and is from twenty-hv to ten
feet above the river, and is about ten feet
wide. About forty wheelbarrows are used
on it to carry the concrete from the bank
to the top of the dam. A new sandbank,
about quarter of mile up the river, is
now drawn On for sand, which is carried
in carts to the concrete pile. A bank near
where the canal wall joins the dam is be-
ing cleared away to reach bedrock for the
foundation, and work on the straight wall
from the canal to join the wall already up
will be commenced next week"
A new tramway is being made, and will
be finished and ready for use by the 2Slh.
When it is completed all the derricks on
the dam will be removed, and the stone
used will be placed in position by the two
tramways. The work will be pushed
ahead much more rapidly by this means
than it is now, as more stone can be placed
by the tramways than by the derricks. An
immense amount of rock is now out, and is
being broken by the convicts for use. Some
of the rock splits up nicely, and when the
tramways are ready it can be handled rap
idly and easily. Four new fiat cars have
been constructed for the work, and every
thing indicates that the big dam will be
finished before the first of the year.
The openings in the dam carried off the
water easily during the recent rise in the
river One of them ran full, one of them a
little over half full and the other about one
third. They will be able to carry off all the
surplus necessary, if the river should be
raised considerably by the heavy rains.
The water rushed through the openings
with great force during the raise In the
one that was full it came in solid stream
that retained its shape for distance of if
teen or sixteen feet from the place from
which it emerged, then gradually fell to
the level of the river.
The dam looks immense as one approach
es it from the prison. and its looks are no.
wise deceiving. 1t will be a grand struc-
ture when completed. All the convicts
that can be spared are put on it to work
and more could be gwen plenty to do.