The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1903-07-25
Johnston's History
Of Cecil County.
CHAPTER XXI CONTINUED

the performance of the work. the COM
pany employed Benjamin Wright to act
as engineer, under whose Superntend-
ehce the work was completed on the 18th
of October, 1870. This important work
Is thirteen and hve-eighthS of Il mile long
ana was made ut the cost of 81 30 600.
Ats construction was Il work of great
ulIhcuity, owing to the pcculiariticS of
the land through which the cartern part
OF 1t Is made. Large sections of the EN-
bankmentS along the sides of it are said
10 nave sunk as much as il hundred feet
below tn" adjoining surface. which calls-
Ell the bottom of the canal to rise rs
nluch as forty feet above its natural posi-
non. This led to much trouble and delay
Ill the completion of the work: nor was
tins the only trouble for the earth taken
out of the deep cut. which ut the summit
Is SeVenty-SiN and IL half feet deep. was
deposited too near the channel of the
canal, ana it is estimated that during
Inc construction of the work three humid
red and scvcnty-tivr thousand cubic
yards of it slid back into the canal and
had to be again removed. For many
Years after the completion of the work.
these immense mOuntain-ikc piles of
earth had an ugly habit of sliding into
the canal and at one time the company
hnd many acres of them matched with
straw. like an Irish cabin. to keep them
dry and render them tenacious enough to
maintain the position in which they were
originally placed. Much stone was re-
quired for walling parts of the canal. Il
great deal of which was obtained in the
vicinity of Marley Mill and Cherry HILL
and which WAS hauled to the western
part of the canal in four-horSr wagons
lhiS stone was purchased by weight and
weighed upon immenS" scales constructed
for the purpose. The scales were large
enough to hold wagon loaded with
stone, and were constructed with wood
en beam similar to Stcclyarl: the load
ed wagon was driven upon the platform
and weighed and after being unoadcd
weighed again. the difference in weight
showing the weight of the load of stone
The Summit or Buck bridge. across the
canal at the deep cut. was nearly ninety
feet above the bottom of the canal and
two hundred and forty-Scvcn feet long
1t was considered stupcndouS structure
fifty years ago. when the Pacific Rail
road had not been thought of and our
vast system of public improvements were
i'll their infancy. People that were school
children forty years ago will rrcollect the
picture of this bridge that was in Il
popular geography which was much used
at that time.
The enlargement of the SuSuuchanna
Canal seems to have given Il great i'm
IctuS to the growth of the town (now
Port DcpoSitI just below its southern ter
minus. or probably it would be NOR" cor
rect to say. that the success of that en-
tcrrrise led to the building of the town.
As early as 1I29. Thomas CrcSap. who
took such an active part in the border
war few years afterwards. had Il ferry
there. which is believed to nave been
called Smiths Ferry. probably because
1t was near the upprlmoSt point ON the
river which WAS reached by the advent
urouS Captain John Smith. who assembled
ii when engaged in exploring the ChrSa-
prakc Bay and its tributaries. 1t was
afterwards called Cr"$wrll'S Ferry, be-
cause it was owned by Colonel John
trcSwcll. the grandfather of the Hon.
j. y. J. Creswrll. who owned two large
tracts of land contiguous to it. much OF
which is yet in possession of the Ores.
well family. Tn" town. if there was any
town there. must hav" been quite small
i'll 1913, when the British visited Lapi-
dunn. for they made but little cXrltion to
enter it. though it was Il place of some
importance, and the citizens and the PEG.
Pile of the vicinity had erected fort fol
its defense, and probably would have
given them warm reception.
Philip Thomas then owned large uunn.
titles of land extending from near III,
ferry. which was about midway of tn,
town. Il considerable distance down the
river embracing the tracts called Mount
-\rarat. and Yorkshire. which was i'm.
mcdiatcly below the former and som,
Others. He died in 1911. and his prop.
erty not being SuSccptihl" of division
was purchased by his son Philip the next
year, he agreeing to pay the other heirs
their shares of the value placed upon il
by the Commissioners appointed by tn,
Court for that purpose. Mr.. Thoma,
caused the lower half of the town to b,
laid ont into streets and building lots By
Hugh Beard. an eminent surveyor of thai
time. who made Il plat of il. which may
be seen among the land records of tn,
county. This plat is dated October DIST
1Sl2 and purportS to be the plat of
town at Creswcl's Ferry. But at tn,
session Of the Legislature held the mex
winter, the name of the place wa,
changed to Port Deposit. This chang,
was made. as stated in the preamble t,
the act. To prevent the Inconvenience,
rising from the different names b,
which the place was then called. There
is reason to believe that the town had
previous TO this time been also calleo
Rock Run.
The next year Edward Wilson. of Phil
adclphia. purchased for six thousand dol
lars the site of the mill nj the lower o
tide locks, of the canal. which included
an insignificant amount of land and tn
right to water sufficient To run six pair
of mill stones of six feet diameter. to b
driven by watcr-whccs of NOT less thai
fifteen feet diameter The quantity o
water was to be ascertained by actua
experiment after the mill was erected
This mill subsequently came into til
possession of James BoSey. of Batimor
who. in 1881. became involved in Il Quai
rel with the proprictorS of the canal i
reference to the quantity of water b