Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1894-04-09
THE STATE HOUSE.
=. i.urnsI Has Chat With a Gentleman
Who Helped Build II.

.urIoved in the construction of the CAPT
- Continuing, he said: The pillars
ra,s procured at Melville ledge in
u,,lowell, and as you well know, were
-o,v large and difficult to handle. These
.;u,,ssere hauled by oxen from the quarry
:, ualloxell 10 the site of the State House.
"Uow did you load them:" asked the re-
porter.
swell, we had no derricks in those days,
%, any idea of such convenience. The
bugs blocks of granite were loaded upon the
.;obt wheeled carts with the help of rollers
made of wood and the aid of the OK teams.
81, took long time to get one of the
b,ocks upon the cart. These vehicles were
ve,v large and solidly made. 1t took 40
o,sn to haul the load from the quarry to
the ate of the building"
GLOW many men were at work getting
out the grantee
"All the way from 20 to 40 men worked
A, the quarry, besides teamsters and other
hands who assisted in loading and unload
inc Those hauling granite for the cellar
walls would make, as general rule, two
trims per day. Some three trips,
but they worked very hard. Beginning
early and l.boring after the other teams
had finished"
"How long did the men work each day
and how much pay did they get?'
work began at sunrise and ended at
sunset The best workmen got 50 per dsy
while many worked for 80 cents and some
90. 81. They were obliged to pay all ex-
penses ont of,this. | worked with my yoke
of oxen for $3.50 per. day. A man with a
team would labor all summer and probably
have 500 clear, by being very economical,
at the end of the season. Board cost IL
shilngs each week and hay $40 per ton"
"How long did it take to build the State
House,
81 do not know exactly. To clear away
and dig the cellar took over one year. This
was very difficult task rs n solid ledge had
to be blasted and the digging was very hard.
All this gravel was loaded into carts aud
hauled away, as none of twas of any use in
building the walk. The nice white granite
you see on the outside was procured at the
Ballard granite quarry about four miles
from th, city, and was said to be the best
that could be found anywhere in the State.
One of the leading managers, Mr.. Shad-
docks, was instantly killed at this quarry
by one of the blasts exploding prematurely
and causing him to be thrown about 40 feet
into the air. Accidents, some of which
were quite serious were not unusual"
"Riisng the blocks of granite for the
walls must have been difficult.
yes, it was. This was accomplished by
the oxen. All the granite used in building
the State House was hauled by two oxen to
the place where it was to be laid. This
may seem strange, but nevertheless, it was
done that way. A drag was made of plsnks
AMI arranged so as to hold a fair sized load,
of course a heavy load could not be pulled
up very far. medium sized yoke of oxen
were htched to this drag and driven up a
ladder made of several plsnks fastened to-
gether aud stripes of wood nailed across in
order to prevent the animals from slipping
They would travel up certain distance in
one direction and then turn in another di-
rection and so on till the destination was
reached"
who had charge of work" asked the
the JOURNAL man.
1.-The first overseer was General King of
Bath. \ gentlemen named Emery was also
one of the managers. | think gentleman
named Clark had charge when the work
was being completed
AT one time Mr.. Townsend was street
commissioner of Augusta. He has lived
here many years, in fact he has spent the
greater part of his life in this city
and has watched the progress and
development of the State capital. The
corner stone was laid with imposing cere-
monies. Under the stone were deposited
the constitution Of the State, various publ
cations of the day, the coins of the country,
and plate with the following inscription :;
State of Maine, on the fifty-third ami
'efsary of the Independence of the United
States, this corner stone of building
TO be erected for the accommodation
OF the Legislature and executive de-
partment of the government is laid by
the Grand Lodge, il presence of Enoch
Lincoln, governor; Andrew Jackson, Presi-
dent of the United States John C. Calhoun,
vice president; John Marshall, chief JUS
tee"
Governor Lincoln then delivered sn al-
ofeSs standing on the corner stone, to n
large audience assembled upon the hill.
General King, whom Mr.. Townsend speaks
OF as the first manager, was commissioner
OF public buildings in 1928. He
prepared the site, drew up a
plan for the State House and
submitted it to the Governor and Council, in
ies9. This plan provided for a building of