Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1893-05-06
THEUP-TOVNRAILVAY
A COUNCIL COMMITTEE SPENDS AN HOUR AND
AHALF IN NORTH WHEELING,
Looking Over the Market and Coal Street, and the
North Main Street RouteS-MeaSuremen!S
Taken and Grades Examined.


eral other members Of Council and also
by President Jacob, General Manager
jolly and Superintendent Lotus, OF
the Wheeling Railway Company, and
several property owners. assembled at
Market and Tenth streets, and thence
proceeded to make an examination of
Market, Seventh, Fourth, Coal and
Main streets, having In mind their fit
ness for street railway purposes. The
trip was necessarily a long one. and
more than an hour and half was
spent in the actual examins tion Of the
streets after the gentlemen got together
and had made start up town.
Proceeding by the way Of Market
street, the first stop was made at the
corner Seventh, where the grade or
that street was examined and the posi-
bilities OF running track up Market
and down Seventh to Main discussed.
The grade of Seventh street, from a
point about sixty feet from the
east line of Main stq&t, to'Market is
TO-. 10 degrees, as agaHst $50 degrees
on Main street hill north Of Twelfth,
and Mr.. Jolly and President Jacob
made the same stand Mr.. jolly had
taken before the session OF the Com
mittee several days ago-that 1t was too
steep for a street railway, when right
angled turn must be made at the bot
tom to get into Main street, cars being
run north on Market street and south
on Main. Some members Of the Com
mittee couldn't see why the run
should not be reversed and cars
run north on Main, up the
hill to Market street and thence down
town by that way, but it was pointed
out that there were several objections
to the whole thing. First, because II a
double track would be nuisance on
any part of Main street, 1t would be
just as much nuisance north or Sew
ent street, as it would be below that
street, il run all the way up Main; sec
ond, that to run cars north on Main and
south on Market would necessarily
break the through runs from one end
of the city to the other, which were de-
sirabe; and third, that to reverse the
running of the cars throughout, and
make south-tound cars run on Market
and Chaplne, Eoff, etc, and north
bound on Main, Chapline, etc., would
not be desirable either to the public or
the Company.
The next pause was at the foot OF the
pike, where the stone wall makes the
main street rather narrow, and 1t was
thought ten feet or so would have TO be
cut off the south end Of the wall II
car line was laid down on Market street
ut that point.
The Committee then proceeded on up
Market street to Pike street, or alley 2,
in the rear Of the North street M. E.
church. Here the suggestion Of buying
enough private property to give right
of way from the extension OF Market
street through in a northwestern direc-
ton to Coal street was discussed, and
members Of the Council Committee
seemed TO think six or seven per cent.
grade could be obtained through TO
Coal street by the expenditure OF little
money. About three frame buildings
would have to be purchased on the north
side Of Pike street, between Coal and
Market.
This brought the party down TO Coal
street, and it was followed until the
corner OF Fourth street was reached.
1t was the first time two or three OF
the gentlemen had ever been on Coal
street, and they viewed the scenery
with a good deaf OF interest, while the
residents were out all along the streets,
and shouts of 1--WE want the street
cars" were occasionally heard. Coal
street is of various widths, resembles
humanity in that it has its ups and
downs, and is about as straight as q
street in the business district OF Bos-
ton, but most OF the Committee SCENE
to think with little widening here, a
little grading there, and some determine
ton on the part of the railroad Company
it would be available as route, at least
as far as Fourth street.
At the previous session OF the Com
mittee, at the City Hall, the opinion
had been expressed that the Company
could run line as far as Fourth street.
and thence get down onto Main street,
but when the Committee looked at the
ground yesterday, there were grave
doubts about il. Fourth street isn't
much wider than Coal street, and 1t
would be rather difficult TO turn car
from one street into the other, as mat
tiers now stand. II house on the east
side of Coal even with the south line OF
Fourth, were purchased and torn away,
and the track run over to the east OF
Coal street, proper curve could be OBJ
tanned, but scarcely otherwise.
From this point the Committee pro-
ceeded north along Coal street TO the
ravine. From Third street north TO
about Second, the grade OF Coal street
rises good deal, and then falls off sud-
denly, from about First street TO the
ravlne. This hump could be graded
down TO advantage, and several mem
bers of the Committee thought short
trestle, carrying the track over the
ravine with a reverse curve, would
bring the track down 10 the level of
Main street, near the north end OF the
stone retaining wall, or about one hun
dred feet or so north of the present
turn-table, very nicely. President
Jacob and Mr.. jolly were inclined to
smile little over this proposition, but
were met with the statement that
track could be gotten through an aw-
fully tight place when the Company
wanted to do it.
The gentlemen spent some time at the
Ravine, looking at the lay OF the land
and discussing the general situation.
and then went south by way OF Main
street. measuring the street at inter-
walls, sizing up the appearance Of double.