The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-09-15

ever know 1t MS well. 1T was With
such a combination of men at lead Oh
ntfairs. and with all working together
with the utmost zeal for. such an % OBJ
ject that the actual work of the I'M
provement of the James River had It's
beginning and received such an I'M
pulse as has lasted down to the present
day.
while the aforementioned persons,
From their qualifications and official po-
sitions, stand pre- eminent in the ne
ginning of the work, there We're others
we'll deserving honorable mention. or
these the late Thomas w. MeChnce,
r. e. BIankenship and George w. Allen
were conspicuous in their efforts, and
of a subsequent date Lewis ~. Cren-
shaw Jr as chairman of the city
committee. and the late Col. Frank q;
Rui!in. by his eloquent pen. continued
the good work. Later on w. II. Cur
tbs, Esq, became chairman of the city
Committee on the improvements of the
James River, and Captain John "A.
Curtis was elected harbor master.
Both of these gentlemen were nn-
firing in their efforts to improve the
river and deveIop the commerce oil the
port. -
at this time an expert In explosives,
Mr.. C. L. KambaclS. BY the use of the
ployed, and his method Of work. great
were were inaugurated. and II was found
possible to remove the underlying rock
at a cost we'll within bounds.
Major Turpin did not live very long
after the consolidation of. the working
forces, and upon his death Mr.. III. ID.
Whitcomb received the appointment as
was also made ngineer for the city of
Richmond. As far as the work of the
river was concerned UP to the time
of NJ. Whitcomb's advent there had
Grin n
problems involved. Owing to the
scarcity of the funds available. such
money as was available had to be
largely expended upon construction.
Mr.. Whitcomb began in 1874 a collec
tion of data, which he analysed as
rapidly as II became available. and the
many publications in the annual re-
ports of the Chief of Engineers of the
United States army; in the annual re-
ports to the Council of the city Of
Richmond; and in articles in the an
nails of the American Society of civil
engineers, bear witness to the great
rated into his work.
In years later in 1876, / entered
Mr.. Wfitcombs office, and began un
der his guidance Investigations of the
physical phenomena
There were two very prominent
questions. or, rather opinions at that
lime. The first was that an improve
ment of the river was not possible.
deeper the~water would run out of the
siver Just like draining lake The
second was that no improvement iult.
be permanent because the channels
when made deeper~ would fill up after
zach freshet This last result had been
very sad experience with the chan
nels which had been dug in times past
by the city. The former had been the
experience with some nom tidal rivers
abroad. These objections at that time
we're far moro serious than many now
realize and spent many years in in
restigating the facts, and in deducng
the laws which govern the phenomena.
In 1881 Mr.. Whitcomb resigned his
position, and succeeded him as United
s States assistsnt ~, engineer In local
of engineers, United States Army, was
made General Craighills assistant at
baltimore and later on Colonel W. T..
of Richmond, was assigned the duty OF
looking after such work as the city
executed.
Congress Acts,
owing TO the influence which GER
tain capitalists connected with Rich
Inond and Allegheny Railroad had at
Washington at that time. and notably
30 the interest which the late IL. c..
Parsons, Esd. of the Natural Bridge,
took in thaiHVer. Congress in 1881 au-
made with the. view of Increasing the
project from an eishteen-foot depth 10
lHtiits-uNt-looI ItptN at IlSn tluc.
The details of conducting this survey
were assigned to me, and in this con-
necton made several hundred thou
sand soundinEs and great number
OF borings, numerous current observa :
tons, both az to velocity and direction,
and numerous lines of levels, and
anane measurements of the amount of
material, such as sand made, etc,
which was brought down during pc
RODS OF strong water.
The results of the report of this
survey We're so favorable that in 1854
Congress adopted the project of a
as has been done up the river since
then has been carried on with that
object In view.
Tn 1891 resigned my position of
assistantz engineer, and was succeeded
by MIR. Wiiiteonib, Who again took up
the work after ten years interim,
md remained in local charge for about
night years, when he again resigned
and wag succee0ed by Mr.. S. III. Yonge
the present Jealous and efficient en-
Eineer. During this period General
e,raiEhlll was promoted TO the posi-
ton of chief of engineers of the United
States Army and, of course had To
turn over the work on the James tc
successor TIE work was al sue
cessiye times under charge of variouy
officers of tho corps Of engineers
United States Army. as follows
General Peter G. Hams succeeded
General craighill and after him cam,
Sb''si ohlLtls---NIsHeFAl Charles T.. AL,
len, Colonel A, NJ. Miller Captain w
j.. Wootcn, Colonel Smith S. Leach
Colonel r. L. IioNie. Major Spence,
Cosby.
The above is a rapid and very brfe
outline of the various men who huy,
heen most prominently connected wItl
the work of Improvement Of lie river
While come nave passed away an,
Others have retired, either from ad
vanced age or calls to different field
of action. Vet the fact that so uan,
Intelligent minds having been concen
trated upon the question of the river
having pronounced its improvnmer r,
not only possibility, hut also a Urea
commercial necessity proves tina
there is a, bright future ia the acconn
plishment OF this great purpose,
Period nj Improvement.
Returning 10 the period of 1851 an
the extended survey made at tha
time, l was able 10 prove that / Ma
long suspected. namely, that there Wi,
no great slope in the river betwee
Richmond and isortress Monroe, f'rol
an analysts of the tldal phenomena
did not see how there could he an
slope. and although previous survey
ofs had reported "A slope as eNistlni
felt that there must be- u mtpta |;
somewhere. Later OH the United STATE
Il Coast Survey ran series of lines
levels between Rlchmnnd and FORTE,
Monroe. the result OF witch prove
nor On1y. that 4 WAS gorrstf hut tbe