Delaware gazette and state journal., 1899-12-07
THE HARBOR OF WILMINGTON.
interesting Information in the Annua
Report of United States Engineer ". /
suifb


engineer in charge Of this district,
which has just been issued, contains
some interesting information concern
ing waterways Of the Peninsula.
The harbor of Wilmington. naturally,
comes in for n large share of attention.
In connection with the present work,
Engineer Smith has reviewed the past
Previous to 1886, when the first appro-
priation FOR tho improvement of the
Christiana River WAS made. the report
says, the depth Of water at tho entrance
was about SIS feet. The minimum
depth In tho channel of the PORTION of
the river below Third street bridge was
eight feet. This depth was increased
by dredging in that year to 10 feet.
Under q project commenced in 1871
and completed in 1881, 12 foot chan
mel from 100 to 200 feet wide was made
from the mouth to above the city of
Wilmington. In 1881 a project was
adopted for 15-foot low-water chan
mel from the mouth of the river to the
pulp works, with q width of 100 feet
from the mouth to the rolling mill
wharf, 100 feet to the Delaware Western
railroad bridge and IS feet 10 the pAlp
works. This project included, further,
channel II feet deep and 80 feet wide
from the latter works to the Delaware
railroad bridge and construction of a
| jetty on the north side of the mouth
of the river. Operations under the
project we're begun in the following
year. The original estimate was
s175, DBL, which was increased in 1888
to S191,3Si by changing the width of
the proposed channel to 150 feet
throughout In 1884 the project was
amended by raising the height of the
ietty four feet. The channel was made
150 feet wide and l5 feet deep at mean
low water by dredging and rock re-
moval from the 15-foot depth outside
the tar at the mouth to "a point 2,5l5
feet above Market street bridge, 80
feet wide thence for distance OF 800
feat, and thence 40 feet wide to the
pulp works. This was the work done
in 1893. Under a contract commenced
in March, 1896, and completed the fol.
lowing September, the chanuel was
dredged, where it had shoaied, to a
width of LOO feet and depth of 13
feet at mean low water from the l3-
foot contour in the Delaware River to
point about 1000 feet above the
mouth of the Brandywlne; and with
$l5, 600 Of the appropriation made in
1896 dredging was continued thence,
and the channel dredged, in 1897, to a
point about $50 feet below Market
street bridge, the width made being
$50 feet and the minimum depth lt
feet at mean low water. At Third
street bridge the channel was made zoe
feet wide, to embrace both draws, and
bar which had formed ut tho mouth
of the Christiana River was removed,
restoring the channel there to vidtt
of 150 feet and depth of 10 feet.
With the 5000 appropl lated in 1885,
for improving the channel betweer
Churchman's bridge and Smalley'
bridge, in the upper part of the river
a continuous channel % feet wide ant
three feet deer AT mean low water wa
dredped for distance of 3.35 miie
from Churchman's bridge toward In
bridge at Christiana village, and /
similar channel for distance of 4,03
feet above that bridge toward Smalley'
bridge.
The river and harbor act of June Sd
1896, authorized The making of con
.. tracts to complete the modified project
! which was understood to be the projec
for 2l.foot channel, at cost not 10 ex
coed 1925, SAG. As it was doubtful
: whether the project could be carrie
out under the conditions of the a'
l authorizing contract, board Q
, engineer officers was convened by tn
chief of engineers TO consider and re
+, rort upon the plan Of Improvement
! The board expressed the opinion tha
! the existing project could not be sue
! cessfully carried out and recommends
: a modified project, including the COL
: struction Of ietty on the south sid
I. of the entrance to the river, the rect
7 fication of the channel of the Chris
4 tiana River at the mouth OF tn
a Brandywine, and necessary dredging
T give channel of 81 feet at mean 10
y water from The mouth to the uppt
y line of the pulp works. The estimate
y cost was S377.342 1t was stated TIL
y the proposed channel is OF great'
= dimensions than the river can natural
4 MAINTAIN and that annual dredging wi
Y bo necessary. The United States agel
in local charge of this work estimate
that certain rock work not included
the above estimate would Increase Il
% cost of work S99,0S3, making the tot
i estimate S476, ,625. AS this estima
. exceeded the limiting cost OF Il
u authorization given in the act OF Jui
% Sd, 1896. no contract for work on y
,. project could under the law, pc mad
,e But the available funds, Slo, ooo, we
a aprlied, in conformity with a'recor
to mendation of the board, to the dredgil
sr in 1897. The amount expended for u
ID imuroyement of the Christiana Riy
10 and Wilmington harbor to June 30t
lt 1893. is S402, 1914. 04, of which S26:
= 345. S4 was expended on the project
at 1881 and it's notifications.
{; The sundry civil act approved Ju
~ lat. 1888. appropriated a205, SAG
IN continuing the improvement, and
the expenditure Of this amount
nroiect was submitted on July 1T
1895: but owing to an opinion of t
a. acting comptroller of the treasury tn
d. as the appropriation was conceded
ac be insufficient for the compilation
u. the entire project it could not be us
70 which oEinion was subsequently
y; yersed-there was some delay in maxi
~ contracts for the work. Tne legal
y lection to the use of the appropriate
~ having been removed, proposals
~, Z, dredging and for rock removal fol
III channel depth of Is feet at mean i
water and a width of 150 feet to
puIp works, and the dredging requr
Al above those works by the project, w
va =" advertised for and opened on ootot
y" y, 10th, 1893. Contracts were made W.
l,a l,a the lowest bidders for the dredgl
NJ and for the rock removal, the work
&c. m be completed by July lst' lsss'
nv nv Che prices obtained we're lower th
~ mad been estimated, and as the ava
al al able funds were sufficient for the p
,er ar pose, under authority of the secreli
'oi Of Of War supplemental contracts we
later made for dredging and rock
noyal for an additional width OF