Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1894-03-15
MR. BRlNTON RAISES A QUESTION.
He Claims That the City Has Been
Paying Damages for Its Property.


to draw your attention to the condition
Of the approaches to Market street bridge
at the Brandywine.
The state of the sidewalks and their
extreme narrowness (hardly sufficient
for two people 10 pass abreast) is what
have to complain about For the past
six years there has not been conven-
lent footpath for the thousands of people
who have to pass to and fro there daily.
find in searching the records that the
city has no deed for the land on which
the street connecting Market with King,
known long ago as Bridge street, stands.
In the beginning this was cart road
and was opened for the convenience Of
the people by Thomas Shipley, in order
that his mill hands might readily reach
the mill.
The road from French to King street
along the southwest side of the race
called Mill street was also opened by
Thomas Shipley, along by the end Of
his house, on his own land, for his own
convenience. Everybody now uses the
roads but the roadbed belongs to the
heirs of Thomas Shipley.
| wish to ask why do not our present
Street and Sewer Commissioners obtain
deeds for these streets, establish build
ing lines, make sewers to accommodate
the people who have built houses there
these many years Let the commission
ers do this by either narrowing the curb
line distance or road width, and thus
widen the distance between the curb
and building line so that two persons,
at least, can pass in comfort along the
sidewalk.
When the Kings Road was first
established, in 1895, it crossed the
Brandywine south, six degrees west.
The roadbed was 60 feet wide. The
bridge stood on four piers and two
abutments. The centre line was the
middle of the go feet road. In ITO
Marshall e. Vandever built their mill
on the north side of the creek at the
southeast side of the 60 feet road. Some
Of the wall structure is still to be seen.
On the lower side, at the southeast
point, Samuel Candy built his mill in
| ITO. So now we have a bridge and
wide roadway approaches on both sides
| Of the creek. Neither Market nor King
street was opened to tine Brandy wine.
But the Kings Road, go feet wide, from
the south side of the long race, con-
| tinued due south to the Christlana
ferry, now near Third street bridge.
The first bridge over the Brandywine,
being built down close 10 the banks of
the stream, was frequently damaged
or swept away by floods. A company
was formed to build solid stone arch
bridge, or in fact, series of bridges, for
that time there were two races on each
side of the Brandywine. So five stone
arches were needed, one for the creek
and two ON each side of the stream.
1t was calculated that this bridge
| should continue straight along the
Market street line to the Brandywine
and strike the Philadelphia pike on the
other side at q slight diverging angle,
and not, as now, be built at King street.
The road where Market street con-
tinues southeast, to meet King street at
the present Brandywine bridge, is, as
stated, tine old Bridge street, which
belongs to the Shipley estate, and for
which the city has no deed whatever.
But in 1909 flood took away the
bridge at King street, and then the
county or road commissioner began to
look around for plans for q more per.
manent bridge. They adopted plans
found at Trenton of chain bridge.
Meanwhile William Poole had become
owner of the Samuel Candy mill, at the
south side of the Brandywine.
Under some bargain he was allowed
to extend his mill by building some 10
feet towards the road. This was ON the
county road, and the building was used
as one Of the towers or supports of the
lower chain of the new suspension
bridge. The other two supports stood
further up this side of the creek. On
the north side of the Brandywine three
towers had to be built, as the halloween
would not extend his mill as Poole had
done.
Here, then, we see where the en-
croachments commenced on the high
way. These owners of mills still claim
the right to this public land, which
land is part of the highway and was
never decided nor belonged to them. As
the matter stands, OH this side of the
creek, where the new filter touches the
curb, it encroaches, as did the mill
about 10 feet on the public rogd.
On the opposite, or north side, the
public rights extend to the old Marshall
e. Vandever mill wall, which is 10
feet from the road.
When our present new iron bridge
was built in 1887 the county was COM
PEELED to pay damage on both sides of
the Brandywine for building part of the
abutments. The sum of about $3.50 was
paid by the county to the Water Depart
ment for permission to build abutments
on the county's own property claimed
by the Water Department on account of
their holding from William Poole.
And on the north side the county paid
damages of about $16o for a still more
unjust demand to the heirs of William
Lea, that had had no mill torn down,
and above all had certainly no claims on
the county's go feet roadway, which
measurement covered the place where
the piers for the chain on the north side
rested, which was the 10 feet from the
Marshall & Vandever mill to the bridge.
1t looks as II those Brandywine
millers did, from generation to genera
ton, about as they pleased with the
county commissioners from 1907 to 1887
and would have the bridges and roads
where they pleased, and have the bridges
or ferries shut up as they pleased.
But there is one instance | missed.
In 1880 when the bridge was taken
away one of the great mill owners had
a mill on the north side of the Brandy
wine while his residence was on the
south side, down the race near Walnut
street. The county commissioners
wanted then to build the bridge over
the Brandywine up along the line of
Market street and several feet above the
water SO that il would not be carried
away by the food. They wanted a
grade suited on both sides of the creek.
But the fear of offending tho great
mill owner who would have to walk
| FoW unp1c fnrfhor az, tho nraaly