The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1902-02-15
Valley Railroad Notes.

valley Railroad Notes.
We find the following interesting
railroad notes in the Daily Town Talk
OF February 10th:
A representative of Town Talk yes
terday visited the yard of the Valley
railroad here, and found u force of
men at work putting down new track
The yards are piled with thousands
OF steel rails, many: fish plates, kegs
OF spikes. ties, and everything needed
for railroad building. There are al
ready three or four tracks built in
the yards and many more will belaid
as soon as possible.
The raised track on pilings, leading
to the bridge, on both sides of the
river, is finished, SO if the bridge prop
err was completed trains could come
across without delay.
The old dwelling of Mr.. Jonas Ros-
enthal is being turned into a passen-
ger and freight depot, and carpenters
are busy remodelling the building.
Aplatforin about 100 yards in length
is being laid on the south side of the
building for the convenient handling
of freight, and for the accommodation
of passengers getting on and of ears.
Tracklaying has already been com
menced in the direction of Mansura.
Avoyelles parish, and up to Saturday
night about one mile Of the track
had been spiked down. This work
will be pushed as rapidly as possible
and in Il month or two Alexandria
will have trains coming and going to
Avoyelles parish.
We learn that the idea OF pushing
this road on to New Orleans has new
err for one moment been discarded
from the mind Of the management.
The force of contractors who were
working making the road bed in the
lower portion of Avoyelles parish,
were stopped on account OF the bad
condition of the swamps at this sea-
son of the year, and went up to Grant
parish to build the Winfield tap, the
ground up there being high and dry.
President Edenborn, of the Valley,
owns u great deal Of timber land
along the Winfield tap and is anx-
ious to get the Winfield tap ready
for business SO that the ties and tim
Der needed for the road from Avoy-
Giles parish to New Orleans cnn be
cut from his own land. As soon as
the Winfield tap is completed it is
hoped that the swamps below Avoy-
Giles parish will be sufficiently dry to
allow grading to be done and then
the entire grading force win push on
towards New Orleans.
The company who have the con-
tract to erect the steel on the bridge
at Alexandria are getting things in
shape AS rapidly as possible. A lurge
and wide-false work of piling, heavily
braeed, is being put between the piers
to hold up the tons of steel until they
can be bolted together and rest on
the piers. The steel will be brought
up to the false works on the. same
cars they were when they left the fac
tory. Immense derricks are being
built to lift the heavy pieces Of struc-
tnre steel, and movable derricks will
carry same where the steel is wanted.
The company who erected the piers
have got nearly all their machinery
on cars ready to be shipped elsewhere.
A few more days and it will all be
gone. The piers in the river are all
completed but one and that will be
capped this week, the wenther per-
hitting.
There is every indication, from the
amount of track that will be laid in
the yards here, that Alexandria will
be a division of this road. 1t is
thought that the machine shops will
be on the PineviIle side of the river.
and that Mr.. Vim. Edenborn will erect
an immense car factory over there to
utilize thousands upon thousands Of
acres Of long leaf pine timber which
he owns in Rapides, Grant, Natchi-
toches and Vim parishes.
The general opinion is that the
Shreveport & Red River Valley rail-
road is going to be Of more real bene-
fit to Alexandria than all the others
combined. II the road gets into New
Orleans and becomes the deep water
outlet for the great Missouri, Kansas
and Texas road, it viii s1e enough
do q Tremendous business opd huiId
Up both AIcxondfir Nd C1 y