New-York tribune., 1902-05-11
MOHAWK RIVER AT UTICA
TO STRAIGHTEN ITS COURSE
THROUGH THAT CITY.
a GREAT PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT UNDER
wAY-sEWER QUESTION INVOLVED
MEN IN CHARGE OF WORK.

MEN IN CHARGE OF WORK.
Utica. n. Y. May 10 CspeciaD.-The elimination
of the loop Of the Mohawk River. where It makes
a deep bend TO the southwark and again TO the
northeast at Utica. means much for the wellbeing
OF this city. With the river Strengthened the floods
will be diked off the fats north of the city; the
intercepttng sewers for many years much needed.
can be constructed, and the nuisance near Baggs
Square abated; the Park-ave grade crossing tor
ment done away with, together with the cost OF
railway overhead crossing at Genesee-st. A large
and modern passenger station will be erected in
Main-st-, between First and Second SITS, having
wide covered walks between each pair of tracks,
together with baggage subway and elevator and
passenger pedestrian subway. by means of which
passengers may pass TO and from every train with
out stepping upon the tracks. There will be large
freight house with its north end in North Gen
esee-st. but tracks will cross that street.
The Strengthening Of the river will cost about
$4,000, the reconstruction Of the at least
$4,000. new bridges $4,000, and the passenger IA
cilites Will be rearranged at a cost estimated by
Vice-President Van Etten. Chief Engineer Wiligus
and Superintendent Harrington at $4,000 up
ward. With all this river and railroad work
finished, there is the best of reason to believe that
the New-York Central and Hudson River Railroad
will divide the New-York and Buffalo line into
divisions, with Utica the centre. and in this
event it is predicted that within the next fifteen
years Utica will be the largest and most important
city between New-York and Buffalo. The Mohawk
River has an interesting story. It finds its origin
sn the hills OF Southern Lewis County, and thence
flows IN a southerly direction to Rome All streams
except the Mohawk west Of the Adirondacks flow
TO the northward and join the Great Lakes The
Mohawk, the contrary makes sharp bend to
the eastward, and, sweeping along the foot of the
granite hills lying to the northWard, finds its way
the Hudson. When in the course of geologic ages
the young Mohawk made its turn to the eastward
instead Of flowing northward the Great Lakes
it made bold move. The point where the river
turns eastward Rome is within one mile OF
Wood Creek. the waters Of which flow westward
Following the Mohawk tidewater may be reached
Albany. while by following Wood Creek in the
opposite direction one will soon reach Lake On
tarto.
The Mohawk Valley has often been said to form
the only natural gateway between the east and
the west OF the Appalachian range. and from the
first II has been much used. The Indians took
advantage Of the narrow neck Of land at Rome.
since it enabled them to travel by canoe almost
the entire distance from the sea TO the Great
Lakes. Two forts came TO be constructed in the
Colonial days-Fort Stanwix, the Mohawk. and
Fort Bull Wood Creek. The development has
been considerable. and to-day there may be OBJ
served running parallel few miles west of Utica
different means Of communication between
widely separated places than perhaps be seen
anywhere else in open country within the same
width of space.
From Rome TO Little Falls the Mohawk flows
through a narrow, fat valley. At Little Falls
there is a barrier which produces a series of
cades with total height of forty feet. Were this
barrier entirely removed. the current from Rome
on TO the eastward would be more rapid, but the
existence Of the barrier has been responsible for
kinks and loops characteristic Of a sluggish stream
Throughout the distance of about forty miles
there is an average fall of about eighteen inches
TO the mile. This has produced layer Of silt
which has been growing deeper from year TO year
until at last the entire Mohawk Valley from Rome
70 Little Falls has beer filled with river sed-
rnent
The stream channel is hanked by food plains
half a mile or more in width. This fat valley is
flooded to a depth OF several feet in freshets
The intensity of the floods Little Falls and be-
yond is ameliorated in some degree by this ex-
tensive natural storage reservoir At Rome nearly
the entire flow above the State dam is often di
verted into the Erie Canal is also the flow OF
Oriskany Creek, the principal tributary between
Rome and Utica. The run of from the tributary
area of hve hundred square miles above the Utica
gauging station is much less in the canal season
than IL would be for equal area OF the water
shed without diversion.
In various parts of the Mohawk Valley there
are evidences that the water has cut through the
narrow neck of land separating the two sides
Of q loop. forming straight channel by nat
uraI processes and leaving the old loop as pond
or a lagoon Possibly the bend which the river
makes toward Utica might, In the course OF time.
be Strengthened in the way. II the people
were willing few hundred years a
thousand years for the event TO take place.
For a generation the people of Utica have been
considering the plan Of Strengthening the river
themselves. A commission appointed by
Mayor Goodwin in 1891. consisting of James F.
Mann chairman: Charles H. Childs. John B. Nc
Milan Thomas r. Thomas of Utica, and Alfred
c Shaw and William Rein OF Deerheld Mr..
Shaw is the secretary of the commission. To
accomplish the project IL necessary for the
Common Council Of Utica TO pass appropriate
resolutions. and for the Mayor approve OF them.
For many years there decided opposition TO
the scheme behalf OF the taxpayers because
OF the probability Of the great expense Of chang
Ing the channel Of the river which also involved
the extension Of the sewers from the point where