Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-03-04
OPEN TO NAVIGATION
ALL VESSELS ABLE TO RESUME
TRAFFIC ON RIVER.
Longest Period of Inactivity in Thirty
Years, Norfolk Line Alone
Maintaining Schedule.

The Potomac river is now open for navi-
cation to all classes of vessels, sailing as
well as steam. from this city to its mouth
and business, which has been almost at a
standstill for over three months, Is being
resumed.
The freeze, which has been over but a
day, was the longest that the old river
men can enthusiastically the longest In
thirty years. Early in December, before
the 10Th, ice made on the sheltered coves,
and, floating out into the river, flied it with
broken ice, varying from an inch to two
inches in thickness. On the night of No
vember % 1t froze from shore to shore from
this city to Glymont making over an inch
of ice, and, though there were two thaws
during the winter, there was never a day
that the river was not full of ice, either
noatlng or Solid and for over three months
navigation was closed to sailing vessels.
The excessively heavy ice formed between
Christmas day and New Year and on the
return of the river line boats to port jan
uary they were laid up. In the week of
January % there came thaw and it looked
as II the freeze was over, but cold weather
again set in within day or two and made
the Ice solid again. Another thaw occurred
about February 10, but freeze followed
Immediately afterward and again put an
end to expectations of the opening of the
river.
LII Dotn tneSe thaWS the steamers of the
Randall and Weems lines which had been
laid up succeeded in making round trips
but the hard ice soon tied them UP again
At times during the winter particularly in
FEBRUARY, the river throughout it's entire
length was covered with ice and Chesa-
peake bay was frozen over.
throughout the freeze the steamers of The
NorIolK and Washington line made their
regular trips without fail. often breaking
ice where 1t was packed several feet in
thickness They were the only steamers on
lhe bay to run their regular schedule and
Manager Callahan is tG be congratulated
NO material damage was done the steamers
i'll the ice
The naval tugs Triton and Tecumseb also
made their daily trips from this CITY to In
dian Head, Md, and the steamer Estelle
RANDALL the greater part of the time in
order 10 carry the mail made trips to Civ
mont and intermediate wharves With these
exceptions navigation was at a standstilI
from early In January until last Saturday
morning, when the Randall line started a
steamer out making daylight trips to land
1ngs on the lower river and the Weems
steamers arrived here from Baltimore and
river landings The loss to the owners of
the steamboats, in consequence of their en-
forced 1dleness will amount to thousands of
dollars, not only from loss of business but
from the fact that even when Steamboat
is lying idle In winter it is necessary to
Durn coal and to keep steam in her in order
TO prevent her pipes from freezing. and
portion OF the crew at least must be kent
ABOARD her. Much damage was also done
ire wharveS along the river by the ice
Hardly wharf escaped some injury. and
NUMBER OF them have been almost totally
destroyed. Taking it all in ALL the freeze Of
10000 will go down in history as one OF the
longest that has ever been experienced on
the Potomac river.