Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1897-03-19
we're NOT IN DANGER.
Committee -on Log Question
Reports to the Council
Last Evening.
COUNCIL ENDORSES THE REPORT
A Description of the Works
Put in by the Pine Tree
Co. This Season.

The city council met IN special ses-
sion at the call OF Mayor Richardson
last evening to receive from the COM
mittee appointed ON the river ques-
ton the report Of its findings in its
investigation ut the works put In
the river above this city by the Pine
Tree Lumber company. The follow
ing is the report in full:
To THE HONORABLE COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF LITTLE FALLS:
We, the undersigned, Your commit
tee recently appointed by you to
cooperate with other similar COM
mittees, in securing such legislation
as may be necessary to prevent GER
tain boom companies from turning
logs into the Mississippi river in such
guam titles, ana at times when they
would be liable to do any damage
to dams, bridges or improvements;
in or along the banks of seid river.
beg leave to make the following
report:
We have personally made a careful
examination Ut the works as now
constructed by the Pine Tree Lumber
company for holding and asserting
logs in the Mississippi river above
Little Falls, and find NJ II short dis
lance above Belle Prairie rapids,
being about seven miles by river
above Little Falls. in mid channel,
three 60 lurge jam piers, placed
about three hundred feet apart, up
and down stream, while Il short dis
lance below, commencing from the
eastern bank, a double row Of jam
piers extending in q diagonal direc-
ton down and across the river to
the western shore, the heavy hoOms
being fastened to the lower row Of
piers, and holding the logs until a
Jam would be formed from bank to
bank of the river, the distance to
which they would extend up stream
depending on the number Of logs
coming down while the hOoms were
closed. And III the current would
force the logs down. they would jan,
and pile upo" the upper row OF Jam
piers, and thus the hOOms would be
relieved Of much OF the direct strain
OF the mass of logs; and the three
IL rye piers in the channel above
would prevent the jam of logs from
moving down en-masse. These jam
piers, rs their name implies, are 50
built that the greater the pressure Of
logs upon them the more firmly are
they held in place; being built by
first driving from Nix to eight large
piles into the bed Of the river, their
tops coming up to the surface of the
water and building around them the
pie: of heavy logs, forty feet IN length
and twenty-four feet wide ON the
bottom, firmly bolted together. set
lengthwise with the current, and SO
constructed that while theup stream
end is under the surface uf the water
the down stream cad would be from
ten to twelve feet above the surface,
and all filed with rock. the upper
timber presenting such an incline to
the down coming logs that they will
slide up and jam upon them. FORM
ing a solid jam to the bottom of the
river. II the pressure is sufficiently
great.
The next set OF works commences
below the rapids, at the lower end
of an island, near the west shore,
where another row Of heavy jam
piers, with BOONE attached. extends
down the river to the
eastern shore, and from there the
logs are turned out and guided by
booms. held in position by piling, to
the sorting works. about three miles
above the saw mills, and from the
sorting gap they are turned into the
holding boOms, situated behind and
below. the islands, within the flow
age Of the Little Falls dam, where
the river is nearly q mile wide, and
the logs are protected and held by
the islands, booms and jam piers,
leaving the straight western channel,
where the current ia strongest, open
Tor the free passage OF logs to down
river sspoints. The great sweeping
curve .of ths eastern bank making
nearly a right angle just above the
mills, and forming a bay which
natural protection; the cur
rent causing the greatest pressure OF
the logs to be against the shore, in
stead Of against the piers and booms.
Many additional jam piers are
placed among these
although now the main jam
will he held above the rapids, yet
these lower works are much stronger
than last spring, when they held
with safety the largest amount OF
logs, during the highest water ever
known 8J this place since our mills