Morning journal and courier., 1892-07-04
RAILROAD RUMBLEs.

1ACent no A~~AA6 |
property which Is Hanging Fire as
to Purchase-The Great Changes
Since the Days of the Creek at Mead 6
ovy Street.-The Talked OF New Route ,
Through Fair Haven.
A report was in circulation Saturday
yening that the Consolidated road had
nade another purchase of property near
he depot. The road now owns most of
he whole triangular block bounded by
Columbus avenue, Meadow and Water
treets. The property, which was said to
,ave been purchased, includes the Pavilion
,otel, and in fact all of the block not for
nerly owned by the Derby road. The lat
;er part the Consolidated road already |
owns or controls, and with the purchase of |
The rest of the block the road would have
possession of almost all the property south |
Of Water street from Olive street to West |
Water, excepting that owned by the HUI |
bingers, the New Haven Beef company, the |
old Goodsell block and various other pieces
in that immediate vicinity on both sides
of the street on Long wharf.
Vice President and General Manager
futile of the road said last evening that
there was DO truth at all in the report that
the road had purchased the Pavilion hotel
on Meadow street and adjacent property.
It had not made any purchase.
AS to the other pieces of property men
toned above, that of the dressed beef COM
pany, the bank property formerly known
as the Goodsell property, the Hubinger's
property, the old Humboldt house and
few other pieces in that immediate locality,
which it is important the road
should have-these pieces will be
passed upon by the board of rail
road commissioners and afterward
the courts will have to appoint appraisers
pay for the property. When these are
bought the Consolidated road will have a
big sweep Of land, all of which. as it is
easy to see, Is very important property for
the road to possess, especially with the
four tracking and other notable improve
ments which are to come in the near fu-
ture.
The purchases of land and buildings in
this neighborhood in the last ten years
foot up to hundreds of thousands of dol
lars, irrespective of the big amount of ter
the control of the Consolidated road by
railroads. All of this land &C
quired in very recent years could
once in the memory of our young
ddleaged people have been bought
for a song, comp aratively speaking, and
plenty of our New Haveners only middle
aged men went grabbing when boys about
where the Union depot now stands, and
where the gilt edge expresses, ghost trains.
and other costly trains rush by, by the aid
/ of $50, 900 locomotives. The creek which
flowed in near where the Union depot
stands, and which was crossed by the then
| single track of the New York and New
| bling parties, and when there had been
heavy rain the creek became quite
respectable torrent. The railroad track of
| the New York road for a-half mile or SO
| skirted along the edge of high piled en-
| bankment at the foot of which was the
| tide-washed sand beach. There has been
| a big change since then at the depot and
| vicinity, even as regards the lordly con-
| ductors who once ruled the New York road,
| as it were, and took fares from the passen-
| gers with the air of autocrats, and who
| were mostly men of highly fashionable ap-
| parel and lordly mien, with now and then
a pleasing exception, who was approachable
and would deign to answer proper ques-
ton in an official capacity. And they had
not such moving palaces in their charge as
| are run nowadays. The cars of those days
| would not begin to compare in elegance
with those of to-day, nor in numbers, yet
/ some of the finest trains of those days
| were considered marvels of beauty and
finish. Then what is now the city market
| answered all passenger depot purposes,
| and while the present site of the Union
| depot and its vicinity was not exactly "a
| bowling Wilderness" it was a barren,
sandy spot, free from buildings except
those which stood on Long wharf, and
most of which are there to day, but it was,
as said before, great place for grabbing
at the Meadow street creek.
| The Consolidated road authorities have
for some time had under consideration the
plans for the location of a new route for
the Shore Line railroad back of Fair Ha-
ven Heights. Surveys for this have been
made, but up to date nothing decisive on
the subject has been taken. A route which
has received favorable consideration is
about as follows: The double tracks to GO
out over the Air Line road little beyond
the junction, then cross narrow part of
the Quinnipiac river by permanent
bridge. The line then to run across the
meadows and strike the lower end of the
Hemingway ponds and down by the west
side of the E. 9. Hill property to the ole
| uOuso Occupleu ny T.. ". IsoWo. Au1s uouso
and the old house on the Matthew Rowe
place, would have to be demolished, as tn,
layout runs right through them. a
section of Barney Rowe's lot will also b.
taken in the layout. Continuing OF
through the east end of the Ives property
the layout proceeds until it strikes the
main line in the neighborhood of the Fai
Haven quarries.
| The route will require a considerable
amount of cuts in order to afford any de
cent sort of a grade. 1t is estimated tina
in places cut of fifty feet will be requir
ed. While this route will lengthen tn
line, the distance saved in the shorter cut
of the new line between Branford and New
London will make up for it. 1t is the
opinion of the engineers who lave beer
| over the route, that under the circum
stances it is the most practical of all tn
routes considered. 1t will do away will
all the dangerous crossings in the Twelfth
and Fourteenth wards. All these CROSS
ings would have to be provided with flag
men eventually, entailing large perman
ent charge. The acquiring of the New
York, Providence and Boston railroad will
eventually lead to almost doubling tn
number of trains over the Shore Line, thu
greatly increasing the danger at grad
crossings.
THE EVER GLORIOUS FOURTH