Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1905-03-04
WIDE AW AK ECOUNTY
FLORIDA COMMUNITY FINDS IT PAYS
TO BUILD GOOD ROADS.
Bonds Issued to Curry on the Work
and Modern Methods Highway
building Adoptcd-BiE Increase In
Farm Values Expected.

interesting cXAmpl" OF modern meth
odS of road building. writes John Far
son in the Chicago Tribune 1t is sit
uatr,l on the west coast about midway
of til" state ard is best known through
Its county seat, Tampa. Until the last
year this county had only fourteen
miles of hard surfaced road outside OF
Its cities and villages, although 1t had
population of 10000 and contained
over l,:IOn square miles Outside of
these fourteen miles, nearly all OF
which We're Immediately adjacent to
the city of Tampa, practically the only
roads were mcandrring trails through
the woods. The soil is of the klRd uS,l-
ally met with in Florida. either deep
sand or hogEy mud, and at times these
roads are impuSSahle. The few miles
OF road that had been constructed
were made only by force of sheer no
ceSSity and ut large cost. Material was
brought In from outside the county,
and there was II general impression
that llillshorough county had no road
material within It's limits
All this was changed recently when
few of the most cntcrprsing of the
citizens discovered that here and there
through the county were occasional
deposits of rock. and an energetic
campaign for good roads was begun
An issue OF 100000 of county bonds
was voted and was finally carried, al
though there was much opposition ON
the part of many who believed the
scheme was impracticable opposition
which was carried to the supreme
court of Florida in two different cases
and reappeared in the local courts in
the form of injunctionS before the
bonds were finally issued
From the proceeds of these bonds
$34, 600 was devoted to the purchase
of first class road machinery, inrlud.
ing eight miles of twenty-five pound
steel rails, with sufficient five foot ties,
sixteen ton narrow gauge locomo-
tive and ten dump cars of four ton
capacity. The machinery included IL
ten ton steel roller. three road graders
n rock crllshcr of eighty tons capacity,
steam drill, large pump and hose for
washing and tearing down the overbur-
den of sand covering the rock pits,
twenty horsepower boiler and Il thirty
horsepower boiler and engine on
wheels. Several rock pits In different
parts of the county We're bought for
trtilng sum and the work was begun
Like other southern counties, Hills
borough county has chain gang. the
number of convicts varying Mt differ
men We're put to work in the rock pits
and on the road. The railroad was
used only where the rock pit is over
two miles from the road to be con
structcd. If the pit is at close range
mule teams are used to haul the crush
ed rock. At II greater distance the ties
are quickly laid and the rails spiked
down and n train Of ten cars starts
out with load Of forty tons of rock
to be deposited on the new road.
Several different kinds of material
are found, and most of them are used
with good success From the creeks
and rivers is n soft lime rock, which
has been found to pack or cement so
well rs to form hard smooth road
bed. In other parts of the county Is II
hard, tlfnty rock OF an older formation,
while in the eastern part several valu-
able tracts have been purchased. con
tanning an abundance Of phosphate
rock and pebble mixed with clay, which
are particularly valuable because they
can he so cheaply worked and are serv-
iceable when properly laid. In still
other parts is found a gray clay and
mari In strata from two to eight feet
In thickness. This material frequently
contains high percentage Of alumni
ium and makes a splendid finish for
roads.
While this new era OF roadmakinG
for IIIlsborough county has been in
progress only year. 1t has already
clearly demonstrated Its success both
in cheapncss and quality OF construc-
tOn. Twenty miles OF road have been
completed within the last year fifty
more have been surveyed and cleared
of roots and Stumps, seventeen of these
have been graded and eighteen miles
have been ditched
1t has been determined that the cost
OF clearing roadway forty feet wide
runs from $50 to $50 per mile and that
the complete cost OF mile of road
from the time the surveyor begins his
work until the last surface application
has been rolled is as low ms $1,000
where the rock pit is near by and
ranges from that to $1,000 in the case
OF roads eight or ten miles away from
the pit. The frequency Of these pits
has made 1t possible for the officials to
plan for the construction of over $50
IAileS of road from the proceeds OF
$4OO, 900 of bonds after paying for their
rond machinery, and the best OF all Is
the fact that they are actually good
roads" AS hard and smooth as any
well macadamiZed city street
Already the score of miles construct
ed within the last year has materially
affected the trade of Tampa, near
which most of the roads have been
built As no other county In the state
Is so well equipped with road maChin-
cry, and as no other county on the west
Const has more than n few miles OF
nard surface road, the advantage which
E already aCcruing to Hilsborough
county has been markedly apparent.
With magnificent harbor and roads
running In every direction, ii is eX-
peCted that within two years every
part of HllsbOrouGh county will be 50
closely connected with the port by the