Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1906-03-06
WILL OPEN BIDS
Proposals on Moline Lock and
Harbor Construction Exam
ined Here March II
BY MAJ. C. s. RICHIE!
Work Under $3.50, 900 Appropriation to
Be Commenced on Approval of
Contracts by Chief Engineer.

At the local office of the United
States engineers at noon March II,
Maj. c. S. Richie will open the bids on
the construction of the Moline lock, ana
the contracts will be awarded. The
specifications provide that the work
shall be commenced within so days af
ter the approval of the contracts,
which will be forwarded to the chief
engineer. The work, according TO the
specifications of the contract. must be
completed by April /, 1908 The appro-
priation made for this improvement
over a year ago, is S3SG,000, and this
provides for the construction of the
lock, the dredging of Moline harbor,
and the deepening of the channel. The
letting of the contract will in meas
ure mark the attainment of the ambi-
tons of the people of Moline, and the
result of hard work on the part of Mo
line organizations and citizens of this
locality.
The construction of the lock will
give Moline harbor on the MISSISSIPPI
pi river. accessible for river traffic, and
will also form one of the important
links in the G-foot channel for the up
per Mississippi. The dredging of the
channel and construction of the lock
will add about feet to the head of
water for the Rock Island arsenal wa
ter power, thus improving the plant
Surveyed in 1908.
The official survey, on which the de-
signs for the work were based, was
made in 1908, by \. J. Stibolt. United
States engineer, of the local Office. The
designs are the work of NJ. C.. Barnes.
assistant engineer. made under the di-
rection of Maj. c. S. Richie. The work
on the drawings has been in progress
at the local office for over year. The
lock will be constructed under the d.
rection of the local Office.
Location of the Lock.
The Moline lock will be located
about half a mile down stream, from
the Sears island, or as officially known,
Benham's island, on which stands the
ruins of the old Sears mill. The old
Sears dam. which keeps the water up
for the arsenal water power, will be re-
moved on completion of the lock.
There will be a lift of feet above the
rapids channel A wing dam is now
being constructed from the lower end
of Benham's island. to the point where
the lock will be located, and tne work !
of deepening the channel above Mo
line, inside of the long arsenal dam, is
also in progress. The arsenal dam eX-
tends two and a half miles above the
island, and when the lock is complet-
ed, and the proposed improvements
made which have not yet been provid-
ed for by appropriations, the river traf-
fic will be detoured through the lock. |
and up through the slack water pro
tected by the wing dam, thus avoiding |
about three and half miles of the |
worst rapids of the entire upper river. |
Before this can be accomplished, how |
ever. additional appropriations will be |
required to provide for extensive |
changes that will be necessary in the |
channel above Moline
Changes in Jurisdiction.
In connection with the construction |
IF the lock and harbOr, the jurisdiction !
IF the ordnance department of Rock |
Island arsenal has been divided, to |
give the engineers office jurisdiction
If strip along the dixie of Rock Is
and arsenal, from APPOINT just below
he location of the lock, to the end of