Arizona weekly journal-miner. [volume] (Prescott, Ariz.) 1885-1903, 1900-05-02
GrrI.EY STREET. GRADE.
Difficult Task of Cutting Down I'll
Hill ut the West End of the Street.

D DiliiCuli TASK oI cutting Down the
I IIin at the West End of the Street.
Probably no particular part of the
work done in grading the streets of
the city has done more to beautify
the town or been of more real benefit
in the way OF improving the facilities
of travel on our streets than that of
cutting down the steep hill at the west
end of Gurley street ana filling in the
/ low sag at the creek. and when the
new iron bridge is completed and the
work of cutting the hill and ling up
the low places has been finished one
will scarcely be able to recognize the
old street and yet very few people who
Ave seen ne gang of men working
there day by day and heard the oft
repeated roar of the blasts of giant
powder Will stop to calculate the
tremenduous task it has been to ac-
compliSh what has already been done
FOR several weeks Mir. Webster has
had Il force of men. ouen as high as
fifty mt n time. under the Skillful man
agement of +. W. French. drilling
Dlasting. Gi"gin" and .aulmg away
the almost solid rock OF the brow of
the hill and hu:idin. up the approaches
io the new bridge. and the street west
of the bridge ana NJ the foot of the
hill. From he church building for
300 feet west the work has been done
in almost Il solid rock formation. the
cut running from few inches to as
much rs seven feet. the entire width
of the street. One curious thing oh
served in the formation of this rock
and has added very greatly to the diff
licUltY of the work. is that there are
,Lree distinctly different kinds of rock.
the blue and decomposed granite and
pOrphyry. the latter being the easiest
to work with owing to its Seamy con
di;ion. while the blue granite is so
hard it is about all one man can do to
keep drills Sharpened for TWO drillers.
Still another unusual condition of the
rock formation is that while the gen
eral course of the veins Of rock runs
northeast and southwest. they are
crossed by numerous smaller veins of
rocks The principal thing. however
that has made the work of taking out
the rock slow ana tedious is the prOX-
unity of the houses along the street,
which made it necessary to make very
small shots. When one notes how
near many of the hOuss are and the
great travel along that street and
then remembers that not an accident
has taken place. with the single eX-
ception of small rock that was
thrown on top of y. \. Johns house.
breaking Il small hole in the roof
of the kitchen. it seems almost mir
acle. and surely serves well to show
,-e great care that has been taken and
the good judgment used by Mr. French
in directing this work
Up to the present time there has
been something over 1.1OO cubic yards
of solid rock removed. and the work
is not at an end vet.
At the foot of the hill the fill has
amounted in many places to six or
seven feet. Some of the property
owners have vigorously protested to
filling the street up to the original
grade established. ana it is probable
that the grade in front of Joseph
DOugherty's store and stables may be
lowered some.
While the street itself has been great
1y beautified and those who have to
travel over it have been benefited.
Mr.. Joseph Dougherty. who owns a
large percentage of the property along
there. says he has been damaged to n
considerable extent. and will refuse
to pay the special tax assessed against
him for the work. and thus make n
test case of the ordinance.
Ii is said Mayor John ". Dougherty
who also owns several lots OH the
north side OF the street and just west
he o. X. corral, will have the hill
cut down to the street grade and the
property laid off into lots. If he does.
they certainly will be valuable resi-
dcnce property. Several Of the prop
erty owners along the street where
the filling has been done have begun
the work of filling in their lots to the
street level and raising their houses.
and while the expense may he eonsid-
cradle their property will be enhanced
in value.