Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1906-05-11

To an unprejudiced observer IL is not
an exaggeration to say that the most
important enterprise undertaken in Brat
tleboro in recent years is the Sunset Lake
water system. which is almost entirely
owned by George E. Crowell and which
is now in process of construction by Ed
ward c. Crosby and Carroll u. Parker,
constituting the firm of Crosby & Parker
A person who has not visited the works
and is unfamiliar with projects Of this
kind have no conception of the magnitude
of the undertaking or of the many obsta-
Giles which it has been necessary to over
come. Anyone who will go over the sys-
TEN from one end to the other will be
firm in the conviction that an enormous
amount of labor has been expended, not
only in a workmanlike way, but with a
view to permanency and the best interests
of Brattleboro. And when it is considered
that tons upon tons of iron and steel pipe
have been placed in position hundreds Of
feet up the almost inaccessible wilderness
of the mountain side, where many patri-
archs of the forest slain by the wind and
Storm lie Wondering because no one will
venture TO get them out, the courage
which is behind the project will begin to
be apparent.
The contractors entered upon the work
of constructing the Sunset Lake water
system on Nov. 80 of last year. 1t Is
probable that the contract will not have
been completed much earlier than year
from that date, although rapid progress
has been made. The cold and snow Of
winter did not deter the men from remain
ing at their posts and the frozen ground
was not a serious hindrance to their work
Only about 300 to 400 feet Of pipe remains
to be laid to reach the point on Stickney
ton nfrh
water will be taken which will find its
way 10 the residences and business places
of BratJleboro.
The most difficult part of the operations
thus far has been on the mountain on the
west side of Stickney brook valley. En-
gineer Davis of Northampton made three
surveys before ii was decided where 1t
was best 10 run the pipe line. From
Stickney brook, which receives a part Of
its supply from Sunset lake and the rest
from small streams and springs, the pipe
line runs around the east side of the
mountain to Pleasant valley, two miles
away, ending near the Hescock place,
which is but a short distance from the
oliver Carpenter place. 1t traverses some
of the widest territory hereabouts and
at one point it is 400 feet higher than the
brook which may be heard splashing over
the rocks below.
Following the pipe line one and one
fourth mile northerly from the Hescock
place, one comes to the first gully, at the
bottom of which flows the Johnson brook,
a tributary to Stickney brook. This gully
is spanned by a steel bridge rs feet long
and IS feet up in the air. The bridge
rests on concrete abutments founded on
rock. The pipe line rests on this bridge.
1t will be enclosed in a case filled with
sawdust and will be rooted over. AL the
southern end of the bridge a siX-inch pipe
branches off from the main pipe and runs
westerly 400 feet to take in a supply of
water from the Johnson brook
At the northern end of this Johnson
brook bridge is the deepest cut on the
whole line. Here the pipe is % feet under
ground. There are many other cuts along
the line, ranging all the way up to 20
feet in depth, which required a great
amount of digging and blasting. And
while the subject of blasting is being
mentioned it may be stated that the con-
tractors have been surprised in the
amount of blasting that has been neces-
sary. From an examination of the
ground IL was thought that only small
amount of stone would be encountered
but thus far from 1900 to 1900 cubic yards
of rock have been blasted out
Following the line a quarter of mile
from the high bridge one comes to a
point where Is men spent a week in lay
ing four lengths of pipe, 100 feet. The con-
sliding and the ditch had to be dug sew
eral times, 600 cubic yards of dirt and
rock being removed. The cut at this
point was 20 feet deep. Not far from
here is another tributary spanned by a
40-foot bridge with steel Orders, and here
another six-inch branch pipe runs out
$50 feet to take in water from the
tributary.
AS soon as the pipe is laid to the point
where it will enter Stickney brook a
part of the force of men will start back
down the line filling in the ditch where
1t is not already filled, and giving it a
general smoothing up. In many places
the pipe rests on the top of the
ground, no digging having been required
at those places to maintain the desired
grade. At those points charges OF
dynamite will be discharged in the bank
above, forcing the dirt over upon the
pipe.
Men are now at work clearing away
trees preparatory to building a dam
across Stickney brook where the turning
basin will be constructed. The dam will