Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-02-01
TRAMPING THROUGH MUD.


Looking at Farm Lands-Too Much Hill
and Too Little River Front-Eight Places
Yet to Visit.
The Department of Awards spent most OF
yesterday plodding around through mud and
slush in its search for new City Poor
Farm. The members of the board returned
to the city tired out.
The party started at s:15 A. NJ. on the
Allegheny Valley Road, and the first stop
was made at Coleman station, in Plum
township, where the tract offered BY Mrs.
James Mckay is located. There are 135
acres, adjoining the city line, for which
S1OO,0 900 is asked. The whole property lies
on top of high hill, which overlooks a
steep precipice, at the foot of which the
river lies. Its inaccessibility was so ap-
parent that but few moments were spent
in viewing it. and the party continued on to
Sandy Creek station, where the 240-acre
farm of Captain James Boyd is located.
The price is S4OO per acre.
Much of the Boyd farm is very good land
for ordinary farming purposes, but it is
broken up by deep ravines and steep hills,
so that after an hours tramp it was left be-
hind with an unfavorable verdict Inac-
cesslbility is one of Its worst defects.
But little time was wasted upon the Tom
linson farm, at johnson station, in Plum
township. 1t contains 213 acres, and is
offered at $3.50 an acre, but it has the same
Objectionable features as the Mckay prop
erty, being perched upon the top of one Of
the tallest hills along the river and has no
bottom land at all.
ha payf cfopn,nn
place, where are located side by side the
farms of James W. Drape and f. J. Glass.
The Drape farm had no bottom land at all,
but an arrangement had been made with q.
Mr.. Logan, who owns q strip of land be-
tween the Drape property and the river,
which would give the former a river 'front.'
age if sold. The Drape tract, including
that of Logan, contains 302 acres, and is
offered at $175 per acre. The bottom land is,
however, rather limited in extent and liable
to lnundation by spring freshets, while the
balance of the property is mainly hillsides,
part of which is covered with timber. The
Glass farm contains 300 acres, and is
offered at $3.50 per acre. While it has but a
limited amount of bottom land, and that
liable to floods, the main part of the prop
ertv is very fair farm land and in good con-
dition.
At Hutton the farm offered by W. H Alex
ander, was revisited. 1t contains Al acres
and is offered to the city at $500 an acre. 1t
is part of a l, 400-acre tract belonging to an
old family named Lee. of which Caleb Lee
was a member. There is gas we'll on the
place, where one day last week small flow
Of gas was struck at depth OF 3, 100 feet.
The supply of gas would be amply sufficient
to supply the Poor Farm building. The
greatest drawback to the Alexander farm is
its lack of accessible river frontage
OF the 90 farms thus far visited there ap-
pear to be not more than four that are
looked upon with favor by anv member OF
the Department of Awards, and the diff
ference of opinion in relation to the desira-
bility of farms will probably cause hitch
when the time comes to decide which farm
shall be bought. There are eight farms yet
to be visited. but enough is known of some
of them to say that not more than one or
two will meet with any consideration in the
competition.