Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-10-23
Contracts Awarded for First Work
on the Structure.
WHERE STREET RAILWAYS MEET
Georgetown Terminus of Several
Present and Proposed Roads.
T 81 E FO U I'd A ITO N

The Washington and Georgetown Rail-
road Company today awarded contracts for
the work OF preparing the site for the new
union passenger station In Georgetown, at
the north end OF the Aqueduct bridge.
There are 20 be thres parts to this work.
the excavation OF that part OF the high hill
that is Included in the purchase OF the COM
pany. the building of a retaining wall to
protect the adjoining property. and. finally.
the erection of the building that is to 40
commodate the cars not only of the WASH
ington and Georgetown Company, but OF all
other lines that may hereafter have ter
mini at THIS point. For the present only
two Of these Jobs are to be begun-the ex-
cavation and the construction of the wall.
The bids for these works. which were
opened at the power house yesterday. were
follows:
Manning & Parsons. for the wall. sI2. 575;
for the excavation complete. Sgs,6S5: for tho
vail and excavation, S49 2tsD Andrew Glea-
son, excavation complete, $la,S1s. W. G.
Morrison, wall, N7.4i2; wall and excava-
ton, $JS Sli7.so. F. y. Carver wall and ex-
cavation, $72I 80. NJ. +. Tally, excavation,
$4,000. j. 4. Lyons, excavation. $4,000.
NJ Shea, excavation. $42,si9. w. Z. Spier
& Co, wall and excavation. SI5.056
The company awarded the contract for
the building OF the wall to Manning a. Par
sons, at their bid OF Sl2575. and for the ex-
cavation to Andrew Gleason, for Sl9.s7a
work OF S32,45O.
The work is to be begun at once. and
will last throughout the winter. The wall
is to be finished by the lst of March next.
1t starts at the level of NJ street, with a
thickness of two feet. and runs back 40
feet straight north, rising with the contour
OF the hill. After going north for this dis
tance the wall turns 10 the west for thirty
feet at right angles, and thence proceeds to
the end OF the property Of the company, on
Prospect street, 122 feet further on. At this
north end IL is 50 feet 3 inches high. At
half the distance IL Increases to four feet
in thickness, and so will make one OF the
largest solid walls IN this city. Ii will form
the east wall OF the passenger house. and
the toists and beams OF this structure will
furnish the necessary resistance TO the
thrust OF the immense mass Of soil and
rock on the east OF it.
Difference Of Opinion.
There is a wide divergence of opinion
among the bidders as to the character of the
materials TO be excavsted, which amount
to about 65.0O0 cubic yards. Some of them
believe that it is mainly rock, and will
have TO be blasted, while others declare
that the hill is mostly soil. and others are
firm In the opinion that the materials viii
be found to be a mixture Of soil and rock.
There have been borings and other tests
made by the bidders, and the company laid
the question before them for their own So
luton. The wall will be begun first, and
will be built In a trench eight feet wide
that VIII be run north from NJ street The
contractor for the wall makes this excava-
ton himself. The banks will be shored up
as fast as the work proceeds, and when the
wall has been finished along one section the
soil will be thrown back into the space be-
tween the wall and the property OF Mrs.
Morris. which adjoins. The excavation can
be begun wherever the contractor desires.
but mrst be finished by the lst Of April,
Meantime, the plans for the building viii
be resdy, and no doubt the contract award
ed, so that the new station should be ready
for occupancy by the latter part of next
spring. The site that was secured by the
company has a frontage of $50 feet on NJ
street and $50 on Pre- cspect street, being Pa
feet deep, with the thirty-foot jog on the
east side, as described.
Terminus Plans.
Tentative plans for the terminus OF ths
cable load are being prepared under the di-
rection of Chief Engineer Carl OF the COM
pany. So far nothing definite has been de-
termined. but 1t may be that the line viii
be run into the house with a large loop,
which will avoid any switching.
The law that prescribed the construction
of this station required the company to
cease switching Its cars In the streets, and
SO this plan or something similar is neces-
sary. Ii may be that the line will be run in
switching done in the house, as at the or
dinary terminus such as that at the Ball
timore and Ohio station.
This house is to be for the use of all lines
Aquedrct bridge. This ooEtemplates that
the Great Falls read will come into the
house either from the west by the Canal
roadway or from the north by Prospect
street. Then, too there may he In time
several roads coming over the bridge ON the
So me lire which will probably run at soma
considerable height from the bridge struc.
ture 10 the level point on the steep incline
of S6th street, and so into the house.
1t n ay be that solid rock will be found
to underlie he entire hill that now con-
stitutes the site OF the house, and in that
case blasting viii be necessary But the
scene of the work is so far from any build
ing that no fear is felt that this will cause
any damage.
Mr. Parsons OF the successful firm bidding
for the wall said this morning that he
should start his men working just as soon
as he got hold of the official award. He
estimates that the work on the wall and
the excavation will give employment TO
from 200 to go men throughout the winter.
The work will be mostly rnskiIled, and the
labor will be cheap.