The herald., 1895-02-24
REPORT OF A
BOARD OF GOVERNMENT
ENGINEERS
Unquestionably in Favor of San Pedro
After Thorough Investigation
of Both Harbors
New York, Oct. q. 1899.


The River and Harbor Act, approved by
Congress on July 13, 1892 provided for
and directed the Secretary of War to ap.
point board of five engineers of the
United States Army to make careful
and critical examination of the harbors
of San Pedro and Santa Monica, and to
report which is the most eligible for a
deepwater harbor for Southern Calfor-
mia.
On October 81, 1899, the report of thu
Board of Engineers was sent to the Secre :
tary of War. The report stated that dur
ing the week ending September 10, 1892,
the board visited and examined the coast
from the mouth of the San Gabriel river
in San Pedro Bay to the Canada Temescal
in Santa Monica Bay, making special ex-
amina tions of the harbor at Wilmington,
the wharf at Redondo Beach, the original
wharf at Santa Monica and the new wharf
of the Southern Pacific Railway Company
now in process of construction north of
Santa Monica Canyon.
The report details the work of exami.
ton which the board performed and in
its first reference to the particular loca-
tons says:
1.-THE anchorage on the westerly side of
San Pedro Bay, under Point Firmin, lies
at the entrance of Wilmington Harbor,
and should IA breakwater be constructed
at this locality it would cover the port of
Wilmington, which would form the inner
harbor. This is the oldest commercial
landing on this part of the coast, having
been an embarcadero in the days of Mexi-
can possession, and a point of shipment
for hides and tallow, lightered from shore
to the trading vessels at anchor, and in
t,et 4
vicinity has been here transacted. "
THE harbor above Santa Monica Can
yon, within the anchorage limits assumed
has land frontage 5000 feet in length
available for the construction of wharves
The harbor at Santa Monica village has a
similar land frontage 5000 feet in length
In the harbor first mentioned, however,
the land approach to the wharves Is narrow
and not capable of extension except at
great expense, and there is no available
place for the construction of interior
basins. The conformation of the ground
is such that free access to the landing
facilities of the harbor would not be easily
attalnable by all parties engaged iii the
business OF land transportation
''At Santa Monica village, on the other
hand, the approaches from the land are
more open, and at La Balona an interior
basin could be readily formed. At San
Pedro there is land frontage of 1900 feet
in the outer harbor without including
the inner line of the breakwater. Since
the breakwater is connected with the
shore, a railway can be constructed along
il, and wharves can be readily projected
from its inner face This advantage
would be sacrificed if western entrance
were established. This gives for the outer
harbor an additional frontage of 5000 feet
and total frontage OF 12,300 feet. The
frontage of the inner harbor is about four
miles long, The total frontage for the
whole harbor is therefore 80, 42O feet or
about six and one-third miles. The ap-
proaches are good, as they include both
sides OF the harbor, and Wilmington Har-
bor forms magnificent interior basin.
The deep water anchorage area is amplv
sufficient III all the harbors and can in ail
be readily extended in the future In the
San Pedro harbor tho landing facilities
can be greatly extended within the inner
harbor without any addition to the outer
breakwater. This is not the case in the
Santa Monica harbors.
In all harbors the holding ground is
good Some doubts have been expressed
with regard to the character of tho hold
ing ground at San Pedro, but after dill
gent inquiry the board is satisfied that il
is as good in this location as in the
others.
The board is of opinion that the loca
ton at San Pedro is decidedly the best
considered as a place of shelter and for
receiving and discharging freight.
The railway distances from each loca-
ton to the city of Los Angeles are as fol-
lows: San Pedro, by the Southern Pacific.
miles to the inner harbor and
twenty-five miles to the outer harbor; by
Los Angeles Terminal, twenty ty-seven miles.
Santa Monica by Southern Pacific, eight
cen miles i, by California Southern, TWEEN
ty-one miles. The cost of TRANSPORTING |
freight over railroad depends not only |
upon the distance but also upon the grades