Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-09-19
IMPROVEMENT OF THE poToMACFLArs
The Work Which Has Been OF So Much Inn
portance to Washington.

The work Which Has Been OF So Much Inn
portance to Washington.
From the Scientific American
The improvement of the river front of the
city OF Washington, D. c.. popularity known as
the Potomac flats improvement was intended
to accomplish two Objects First. to improve
navigation, for which annually the government
mas for years been expanding large sum of
money; and second, to fill up a large area Of
marsh land, which was overgrown with dense
growth Of grass. The marshes were what are
known AS the flats There were many acres Of
these marshes bordering on the river bank.
which were exposed at low and covered at high
tide Ono OF the largest sewers of the city dis
charged its contents on these flats. and. being
exposed daily to tho rays of the sun when the
tide was low. rendered a large section Of the
city almost uninhabitable. The Executive
llansion itself was only about $500 feet from
the flats, which became such public nuisance
that what had been one of the most desirable
sections OF the city became the most undesira-
BILE for residence.
In 1881 the Senate appointed a committee to
investigate the case. The direct result of this
investigation was an appropriation by Congress
OF S4OO OOO to begin the work of Improvement
Since then successive appropriations have been
made at intervals Of two years, and the amount
S1,624 798., The estimated cost of the entire
work was 20, ZIG. 1865, and Notwithstanding the
unbusinesslike methods Of Congress in appro-
priating insufficient sums to prosecute the work
vigorously. and the damage 1t has consequently
sustained from freshets the work has been
brought to that advanced state that 1t could yet
be completed within the estimates Consider
ing the magnitude of the work. and the fact
that the estimates were regarded as low, this is
justly regarded as a satisfactory exhibit.
The total area Of land reclaimed is in round
numbers 621 acres The material with which
the fill was made was taken from the river chan
nes. and thus accomplished the double pur-
pose of improving the navigation and reclama-
ton Of the flats.
The question Of the disposal Of dredgings
taken from rivers to improve navigation is be-
coming serious one. The old dumping
grounds are rapidly becoming filled up, and
even when others are found at a long distance
from the place to be improved there is great
danger OF the material being swept back into
some other channel and thus create a new OBJ
struction where none before existed. In many
places satisfactory dumping grounds cannot be
found at all; in others the vested rights Of adj
jacen owners of land forbid it.
The work OF taking the material from the
bed OF the river was done in different ways
AT first the channels were dredged in the ordi-
nary way, with clam shell and dipper dredges
the material being loaded into scOws and then
conveyed to basin located at a convenient
point from which 1t was again taken up and
loaded on railroad cars, which conveyed it to
the place OF deposit on the flats. The tracks in
this case were carried on trestle work. made by
driving piles in the fats on the area to be filed
and Gaping them with heavy timbers. The
tracks were raised to sufficient height to cause
the material, when dropped from the cars to
fall with such force that it spread out lateraily