The sun., 1907-08-20

and by yesterday noon il had gone twelve
feet. IL had to be torn down or moved away
10 make room for the Flatbush avenue ex
tension. II is a brick building with a steel
skeleton and weighs about $500 tons. The
walls Of the building are about ninety feet
high. Moving brick or stone buildings has
been frequent occurrence but this job il
said 10 be the largest Of the kind ever under
taken in this country.
The theatre had a lobby on Fulton street.
hut the building itself backed up on De-
kalb avenue in the rear. The'extension of
F1atbush avenue will go right through the
site Of the building as it. stood. When IL
was condemned il was supposed generally
that it would be torn down like all the other
buildings in the path Of the new street.
fair price was paid for the structure. The
owner Of the building the Realty Associate
Company. thought that it could be saved.
new site was purchased TO the east Of
the building Several adjoining structures
we're also bought 30 as to give room for
turning the building and moving it back
ward.
When it gets into its new position the
rear will be on Hudson avenue and the front
on Flatbush avenue. and the cost of the
theatre will be the moving expenses plus
the purchase price Of the new site. the new
foundations and the renovations. The cost
Of moving will be $4,000. Fixing things up
will probably cost as much more. II would
cost fully s25O,0OO TO build a new structure
Of ite kind on the site. 40 that handy little
sum will he ga we'd il the building gets slowed
around safely.
Thus far the moving has been done without
a crack showing, and j. A. Iversen. the head
Of the contracting firm of Iversen. Gustat-
son d Co.. which is doing the moving work
said he expected to finish the job with the
building in the same condition. He thought
he would be through about the first week in
October.
The first work done preparatory TO NOV
ing was to destroy the lobby leading 10
Fulton street. Then holes were knocked
in the foundations and steel ] beams vary
ing from 40 TO 80 feet in length we're pushed
under il and built mp inside laterally and
transversely at intervals OF about four
feet. There were about 800 of these bea ms,
representing about 1900 tons OF steel.
Beneath these were laid railroad rails on
wooden ties. much as a railroads rails rest
only the rails we're not spiked down. These
rails are about thirty feet long and lie four
TO six in group.
The steel beams were braced with stout
timbers and shoes about two feet square
were Dullt unOeT InetH dlODB tut outer euRe
Of the building at intervals OF about four
feet Under each of these shoes and resting
upon the groups OF rails about a dozen
steel rollers two inches in diameter and two
feet long were placed.
When all this work was done the build
ing was lacked UP a fraction of an inch
all around, several hundreds OF Jacks being
used so that it cleared the foundation and
rested on the new structure of beams crossed
in both directions. beneath which were the
railroad rails on ties. Between the beams
and the rails were the shoes, under which
were the little rollers.
The preparations for the rolling having
been completed, il was decided to make the
first move on Saturday morning. A heavy
string OF timbers was stretched along De-
Kalb avenue and made secure by massive
chains that ran far under the building 1t
would not be safe to pull such a building
on the rollers because there is little to get
hold OF except the heams beneath, and
these were not bound together. IL was
necessary to push il. BY cxerting the
pressure on the back the building gould he
rolled forward and every beam left exactly
as IL was. Along the string OF timbers on
on Dekalb avenue twenty jackscrews in
drums, hollow pieces oT hardwood, were
adjusted. A man with crowbar was sta
toned at each screw The jackscrews were
all oiled up.
When the time came to start Mr.. lverson
blew a whistle and every man gave one
twist. All the screws moved in unison and
the building rolled easily just the length Of
the band on the screw as it moved one half
turn over; Crowbars were were taken out and
by another glide. So the building was
inched along. about thirty men being en-
ployed TO replace the rollers in front of
each shoe as II passed over the rails and
had left the rollers. one after another. be-
hind. II took about four hours to move
4 ma building fWelye feet
The building will have TO be moved about
twenty-five feet further toward Fulton
street in a straight line. when sufficient
room will have been obtained to turn il
in to fix the centre Of the building. A red
light will be hung from TINT point, Almost
the entire space beneath the building will
be filled with rails. more than 800 Of them
being used. The little steel rollers will be-
SO .piaoed that each group is exactly at
Then more stringers will be called into
play. The jackscrews will be backed up
against them. On one side these screws will
push in one direction and on the other in
exactly the opposite. and the result will be
for nearly a half circle on its pivot This
being accomplished. the stringers and
screws will be brought around to what il
TO he the front Of the building and il will
then be backed over to Hudson street.
ulhtHINt Oh something ike Utty IeeI.
Although moving the building is an
engineering feat, no engineers are EN-
ployed in the work. MIR. Iversen came here
from Chicago in 1900. He had had fifteen
years experience in moving buildings out
there. He moved a dozen brick buildings
in this city last year. He moves not po
much by engineering as by experience.
He knows when he has building in proper
shape to shove and how much iron and
steel Ia necessary. as we'll as blocking to
make the movement safe. He said yes
terday that he thought he could make on
the average about ten feet day in
moving the theatre and that there would
be no mishaps. About fifty men are em-
ployed on the job.
Mr.. lversen thought the theatre ought
To be ready for use some time next winter
II will have new FACADE and it's entrance
will he only few feet away from Fulton
street and facing the new 100 foot wide
thoroughfare which IN expected 10 he the
chief street in Brooklyn when IL is finished.
Crowds watched the moving operations
all day yesterday