The Cairo bulletin., 1910-04-29
TO FOLLOW CAIRO.
EAST ST. LOUIS WILL BUiLI
LEvEE AND STONE WALL TO
STOP OVERFLOW.
Must Divert Cahokia Creek by Cana
Canal 41a Miles Long improve
ment to Cost 6Ia Million
Dollars.

East st. Louis has just begun what
Cairo did years ago. to protect her
self from overflow by the river. While
Cairo's problem was big, that of East
St Louis is much bigger. One OF
the problems the latter city must
meet before it can build levee II
to direct Cahokia creek. which runs
through the city, draining a large
lrea. This creek would prevent the
building of solid levee around
he city and the purpose is to
run it into the Mississippi above the
city through canal four and a half
niles long. The creek bed through the
.ity will then be filled up. A writer
On the subject in paper of recent
date tells of the scheme. giving also
letails of the levee and stone wall
o be built. similar to those structures
il Cairo. as follows:
With Cahokia Greek out Of the way
he problem became one of simple en-
5ineering, for a properly constructed
evee reaching eastward to the bluffs
'inal boundary and thence westward
0 the bluffs again means the eter-
lal exclusion Of the flood waters OF
he Mississippi and Missouri. OF
Course, there has been the matter of
internal drainage to be considered,
}ut that was an easy matter Later
us and other forms of cuts will take
are of all the waters of the numer-
)us lakes and sloughs lying in the
bottoms, and by this form Of drainage
very slough and lake will be drained
eption being Horseshoe Lake. and
wen this will Ire reduced by one-half,
There Is one spot which will be left
n addition to Horseshoe Lake, but
his will be taken care of by the Park
Board in its plans for the future It,.
however, is not of threatening
character 30 far as the plans of the
lrainage district is concerned.
1t is this levee and drainage sys-
.em that constitutes the real immen
ity Of the project to build a city
rom out Of the depths. The engi-
Neers' estimates, and they have been
cone over carefully and revised more
han once, show that the total cost
will be approximately $G,500000, and
hat nir 1 Ia, Il
Dver a period of ten or eleven years
The diversion of Cahokia creek and
he building of the levee VIII take
ass than half that time, The remain
!cr of the work win occupy the rest
# the time-that and the necessity
or not burdening the people too
heavily and too suddenly with the ex-
ensc.
The leyee will be a solid earthwork
obstruction for most of its, length
nd it will be made broad enough to
withstand any flood pressure and
Ugh enough to overtop the famous
lood of 1874 by not less than z feet
Fhe earthwork will reach northward
dong the Mississippi from about
where the old waterworks stood to
he northernmost boundary of the dis
rict, and thence ca tward to the
bluffs, the line being some two miles
south of the diverted Cahokia creek.
Similarly, from the southern end of
he city east to the bluffs, and earth
work OF the same strength will be
built. There will be an opening in
his levee, closed by gate which will
rave a bearing on the internal drain
lge system.
Stone Wall in River
Along the foot of the city the pro.
lection win be in the form ~ stone
wall which will rest on firm founda,s
ton out of reach of the wasting eff.
'ect Of the river waters, and rising te
a height at the top of it's coping of
3R feet above the flood of 1914.
There will be one or two openings in
this wall to give access to the rail-
road tracks lying on the BERN outside
the wall, but constructed In such man
ner as to afford no ngress to flood
waters, In this manner the entire
area OF nearly hundred square miles
Will be protected from the floods
which are possible.