Marietta daily leader. (Marietta, Ohio) 1895-1906, 1900-05-22
The Marietta Daily Leader
TUESDAY. MAY 30. 1900.
B.. & O..
Engineers viii Complete Survey to
Marietta by June 1st. Facts
Concerning the Proposed
Line.


President Hathaway of the Board OF
Trade, accompanied by representative
of the Leader, visited the B. & o. en-
cheering party at their camp on the
Cassidy farm, six and one-haf miles
up the Ohio river, Sunday afternoon
The party, sixteen in number, is in
charge of Engineer w. L. Sisson. They
were enjoying their rest Sunday after
noon, and Mr.. Sisson chatted very
pleasantly OF the work and showed
considerable interest in Marietta and
her prospects.
The object OF the B. & o. In making
:his survey was to learn IL it were pos
sible to get double track, low grade
line through from Grafton to the Ohio
river. Shorter distance is not so much
an object as low grades, and now that
the greater part OF the work is done
Mr.. Sisson thinks he has a route which
will be satisfactory.
The party left Lumberport, on the
West Fork river, In Harrison county
March 1, and the line as surveyed Is
about as follows:
Crossing the divide between West
Fork river and the headwaters of Mid
die Island Creek 1t follows the latter
down through Doddridge and Tyler
,eo1nties, passing through several
towns, including Shirley and Middle
bourne, the county,sea of Tyler. Near
the line betweens Tyler and Peasants
counties 1t leaves Middle Island Creek
and by a route 10smiless long crosses
the divide to the Ohio river about two
miles above Ravenroek. Thence fol-
lowing the. Ohio river to point
above SRayenrock 1t crosses the river
"a miles above this city and follows
the "old surveys line, down to Mari
eta. The new route as surveyed from
Lumberport to Marietta is II miles
long. Fourteen tunnels, the longest
being q half mile in length. will be re-
quired to carry the line from Lumber
port to the Ohio river. A splendid To-
cation has been secured for the bridge
above Ravenrock. Bridge and ap-
proaches will be only 5000 feet in
length.
Mr.. Sisson stated that the corps
would pitch their tents on Duck Creek
this week, and by the first of June the
survey would be completed to the
Union Depot In this city. He asked
many questions concerning the pres
ent standing of Marietta as shipping
point as we'll as her future prospects,
and expressed his intention of en-
bodying as much information of this
kind as possible in his report, which
will be sent to Chief Engineer Graham
about the first of next month.
The preliminary survey has been
carefully made and Mr.. Sisson says 1t
will enable the management to figure
within per cent Of the actual cost of
building the new road. If the route is
adopted, another party will follow and
make the location.
When asked as to whether they
could get the old right of way along
the north side OF the Ohio river, he re-
piled that it made no difference, as
they could obtain equally as good a
grade outside the old right OF way.
Connection is made with the main
line at Grafton by way of Fairmount
from Lumberport. This route lies
along the West Fork and Monogahela
rivers and gives all the advantages de-
sired in low grades. This line is al
ready built.
While nothing Is gained in shorten
ing the distance between Grafton and
Belpre, the advantages gained by do
ing away with the old single track
heavy grade route by way of the
Parkersburg branch are so great that
the new route will probably be taken
up. Mr.. Sisson says that on the new
route. the same motive power would
be able to handle 2A times the amount
of freight. In this way the cost OF op-
Grafton could be greatly reduced, an
item which will come in for no small
amount OF consideration when the
matter Is taken up by the manage
nanf