The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1896-01-05
Congress Has Been Peti-
toned by Property
Holders.
SEVERAL INSTRUCTIONS.
Peter Seculovich Claims That It
Is Still a Navigable
Stream.
HOW THE RAILROAD GOT HOLD
A Stream Two Hundred Feet Wide
Was Entirely Cut Off From the
Commercial World.
HOW THE RAILROAD GOT HOLD.

every DOSSlDl0 OUSbIUCIIO III IIle way VI
those who are contented with a more
modest existence.
great many people have been smitten
by the N ethods of this combination, hail
ing from Kentucky, and a very consid-
cradle number of them suffer in silence,
but others do not propose to be cut off
entirely, nor will they submit to such
treatment without revolving.
There is one organization, known as the
Islais Creek Property owners' Association,
of which considerable has appeared in this
paper of late, that is moving on the rail
road batteries with the intention of storm
ing the works and getting something like
justice.
Peter T. Seculovich is president of the
association, and acting in that capacity,
discusses the shutting off of Islais Creek
from the sea- in all its ms and outs.
eve claim" said the president, "that
we have certain rights as propertyholders
that should be protected By the United
States, inasmuch as the courts of Califor-
MIA have decided against us. We have
placed the history of the Islais Greek mat
ter before our Senators and Representa-
tives in Washington and expect something
will be done soon that will re-establish our
right and title to be In direct commuuica-
ton with the sea, q right that was removed
when the Southern Pacific Company built
stationary bridge across Islais Creek via
Kentucky street.
I'VE are all owners of land fronting on
and adjacent to Islais Creek an arm of the
sea into which tide GIBBS and flows, having
eight feet OF water al ordinary high tide.
When in early days we purchased our land
we were enjoying free commerce and navi-
CATION. These conditions were kept up
until 1866 when the State Legislature ex-
ceeded its trust and let the Po-
trero and Bay View Railroad Company,
feeler of the octopus, obstruct the creek
| by placing across Kentucky street a sta
| tionary wooden bridge and afterward by
an earthen embankment from one side of
| the mainland at Potrero Nueyo over and
! across a tidal bav on the line of Kentucky
street eighty feet wide. This embank-
ment, which ran clear across the creek to
| the mainland, had an aperture in 1t for
! the water to pass IN and out as the eDb
and flow requires. This embankment has
| stopped all commerce and navigation and
| rendered it Yalueless to rs propertv-OWn-
ers, thus causing us great loss. Before
| this obstruction was placed there Sacra-
mento River steamers used to come up
| and dock far above the bridge, and we
were permitted to 60 business direct from
our own property. To-day, however, these
steamers are barred from entering the
| creek ABOVE the heHIuChy street DrluRe.
i'There is another bridge above the Ken
tucky-street obstruction, and yet one more
at Fifteenth avenue, which was con-
structed against our protest. This latter
| one consists of a solid EN- bankment with q
| flowgate in it, but 1t is now out of place.
| This creek before these three distractions
were placed there was navigable stream
and an arm of the sea, 200 feet wide at its
mouth and seventy feet at its upper end.
| 1t is three miles long and ships of capa-
city of about forty tons were able to pass
easily up and down said creek.
| The Kentucky street bridge was first
| started in the night and piles were driven
to mark its course. Why the local author
| tiles did not get out an injunction do not
| know They simply permitted the work
20 60 on. 1t was the duty of the United
| States District Attorney to take some
! steps, but he paid no attention to the mat
| ter. Isiais Creek was declared navigable
arm of the sea by an act of Congress as
early as 1850, ana part of section of the
conditionally reads: And be IL further en-
acted, that all the navigable waters within
| the said State shall be common highways
| and forever free, as we'll to the inhabitan is
of said State, as TO the citizens Of the
United States without tax, impost or duty
therefor In the Statutes of California,
1868, page 500, it reads in section 2, after
| section l declares the stream open: 1T
| shall not be lawful for any person or per-
sons to build any dam or bridge across
said creek or channel, or any wharf that
will interfere with navigation of the
| same
THAT was and is to-day the law re-
! garding distractions, yet in section 3
| of the same act it eXempts the company to
| build a draw in a bridge, but the company,
without authority built stationary bridge
and afterward an embankment and then a
wagon road.
lone very clever way of getting around
! the law was to incorporate in the act these
| words: Said railroad company shall be
required to construct draw in said bridge
whenever parties interested shall pay the
| expenses OF constructing said draw and
| provide for maintaining the same This
| was an unjust act that could not be full
| filled by any other parties but the COM
| pany. Thirty-five years after the stream
| had been declared naviga BILE and seventeen
years after the State of California bad
declared it navigable the California Leg
lslature exceeded its trust and dropped it
from the Political Code as g navigable
| stream We carried the matter into the
courts and on the 30th of January, 1882, in
the Superior Court, Department 3, de-
cree was rendered in our favor as against
the Bay View Railroad Company, that the
| bridge was nuisance and the defendants
were ordered to remove without delay the
bridge or that part of it which INSTRUCTED
Islais Creek, and to Immediately abate the
nuisance, but the case was appealed to the
| State Supreme Court and reversed on the
ground that the company had the right to
! keep the nuisance as bridge until Con-
| gress otherwise enacts.
"That is the way the Supreme Court dis
posed of the question, and we are now try
| ing to get Congress to correct the error. l
once wrote to Robert Lincoln, who was
Secretary of War, but he put the matter
in the hands of Colonel MendelI and we
| got nothing from that source. On one oc-
! cason the Harbor ommissioners passed
resolution ordering the railroad to re-
move the bridge or place draw in, with
the result that the man who wrote the
order was suddenly dismissed short
| time afterward.
"In 1890 the Harbor Commissioners
offered to construct drawbridge if the
| City would pay for It's maintenance after it
was completed. This offer was rejected
and nothing ever came of it.
1--WE have petitioned Congress to declare
| Islais Creek open for commerce and navi-
cation from its mouth in the bay of San
Francisco to its upper end as recorded on
gift map 4, December 81, 1861; in map