The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1898-10-05
Survey Of the Vermont Central Rail-
road in 1916,
A Montpelier Boys Experience.

Montpelier Boys Experience.
Editor of Watchman;-I recently had the
pleasure OF ride on the Central Vermont
railroad in the valley Of the Winooski, and
recall that ffty-three years ago, in 1916 |
was on the survey of this road between Bur.
lington and Bolton and also between Mont
pelier and the Gulf in Willamstown; a Mr..
Chesboro was engineer, Mr.. Baker was
his assistant and ran the lines, and Mr.. Mo-
ses Lane OF Berlin took the levels Our
rarty was made up mostly OF young men
from Montpelier and vicinity, and a very
pleasant time we had in the summer and
fall, In the fields and woods. We ran many
lines through the river valley. and. what
was remarkable. where we ran the most
lines and had the greatest difficulty In maxi
ing the surveys, which was from Essex
Junction into Burlington, no one of these
was finally decided upon for the road, with
the exception, perhaps, of that through the
ravine into Burlington, ending on "Peck's
wharf" Mr.. Peck, known, 1 think, as
Doctor Peck, was director in the Vermont
Central company, and through his influence
that was the line built upon instead Of the
one we ran into the city by the lake shore.
The DOCTORS rival in business, Messrs.
Follett & Bradley, were interested at that
time in the building of the Rutland rail-
road, with view, II remember right, Of
its ending on their wharf, which adjoined
that OF the doctors. Their wharf to me was
well known five years before, and make a
little depression to say that at that time
1S4O-then lad, went to Burlington, pre-
sumably to attend the great Wing conven-
ton held in the court house square. but this
wharf OF Messrs. Follett & Bradley, and the
short excursions from 1t on the lake, had
too great attractions for me, where spent
all my time and money, and all heard
down there OF the exercises going on up in
| the square was the stentorian voice OF Gen.
eral James Wilson. To return to the sur
| vey; we made our headquarters when in
RurliuntOp a tho ttpaor RI IL
the vicinity of the college, now bereft OF it's
portico and used as nunnery, but 'Stan-
| toms HOTEL in Essex, now Essex Junction,
was our headquarters most of the time.
There we had as company for few weeks a
party, under Engineer Campbell a jovial
Scotchman. surveying a road for the Yer
mont and Canada railroad.
We were greatly assisted in running lines
and making surveys in Colchester and Es-
sex by the Hon. David Read, then residing
eral Ira Allen place, think, and not far
from the High Bridge" afterwards long a
| resident of Burlington. We much enjoyed
his company. We also had at times as
spectators the company of many of the we'll
| TODD farmers living on the fine intervale
| farms in Richmond and Williston, among
them Mr.. Jones, near the Bolton line; Mr..
| Bishop, not far from the "checkered house"
and the Turnpike bridge below the village
OF Richmond; and Mr.. Clark, who had the
Judge truman Chittenden farm in Willis
| ton; they all treated us kindly, but mourn
ed the locating Of the road through their
| fine meadows.
Our survey of line from Montpelier to
| the Gulf in Williamstown was ordered and
undertaken, not 80 much with o view to
| the road being located there, as to show
If not to prove-that it was not so desirable
route as that through Mortified, where
| Governor Paine resided. The weather was
bitterly cold and the snow deep, but we
were out every day from early morning un-
til night, having cold lunch, which we
carried with US, at noon; and L recall that
| 1t was tantalizing enough, to say the least
when we came back to the hotel at night to
| have to wait until our boots were warmed
into a condition to be removed before we
could warm our feet.
| After passing Williamstown village, and
not far from the Gulf, we came to a pond of
a few acres in extent, which our chief
| thought should be Sounded" not as to the
depth OF water, but as to that of the mud
| and muck beneath, as affording some evil
dence indicating, or tending to show, what
might be the state and condition of the ad-
| Joining territory as to its solidity and fitness
| for a railroad and for railroad trains to pass
| over; and he conceived the idea and plan Of
cutting hole through the les in the center
OF the pond and running, or rather ram
ming, pointed iron rod down as far as it
| would go, with additional Joints screwed
on as became necessary, until the bottom,
many feet below, was reached. While we
were engaged in this undertaking and not
| ing results, party Of gentlemen from
Montpelier, stockholders in the road, drove
in sight, and when within hailing distance,
one of them, more indignant and demonstre.
tive than the others, stood up in the sleigh,
and greeted us energetically and loudly
with the exclamation, what are you down
on that pond for?" 1t was a hard and some
what difficult question to answer, especially
as we were shaking with the cold if not
with laughter and l believe did not give a
very direct or satisfactory response, if any.
This road from Montpelier after these
many years, is now built as far as Williams
town village, and may in as many years
more, II not in much less time, be contin-
ued on down through the Gulf, connecting
with the main line at Randolph or Royal
ton. and eventually forming part of the
main line, the distance and the grade being
much less than by the present road through
Roxbury. r.
October, 1898