The St. Lucie County tribune. (Fort Pierce, St. Lucie County, Fla.) 1905-1920, 1911-07-28
THREE CANALS
ADDED TOPLAN
State Drainage Engineering De.
partment Asks for Bids
IN LOWER EVERGLADES
The Construction of These Canals Is Con-
sidered The Most Important Move in
The State Drainage Work

Major j. o. Wright, chief drainage
engineer for Florida, is advertising for
bids for the construction of three more
drainage canals on the East Coast of
Florida one near Pompano, another
near Fulford, and a third near Larkins.
Another canal of much value con-
templated will extend from Chauncey
bay on Lake Okechobee to the south
fork of the st. Lucie river at Stuart,
but this will not be undertaken for
some time as all efforts are now being
directed to complete work in the SOUTH
ern portions Of the Everglades.
The purpose of these canals is to
supplement the general plan of drain
age and to afford better outlet for
draining the territory through which
these canals pass in order to permit
the building of roads and the settle
ment and cultivation of the land.
At POmpanO, Cypress Creek is to be
deepened and widened and given an
adequate opening into the sea; at Full
ford, Snake Creek is to make the canal
basis, and at Larkin, Snapper Creek
giving an aggregate length of sixteen
miles with the bottom width of about
twenty-five and mean depth of six
feet.
The construction of these canals is
considered one of the most important
moves in the drainage work. The terri.
tory through which they pass is re-
markably fertile and contains some of
the most picturesque places in this
section of the State. -,
When the canals are finished it will
be possible for boats to make their way
up their courses right into the Gades
and besides making an opportunity for
farmers along their shores and on the
tributary land to carry their produce to
market with ease and small expense
and will make delightful trips for the
crowds of people that come to South
Florida every winter for recreation.
1t is believed that with the assist
ance of these waterways the water in
the Everglades will he taken off with
great rapidity and that the reclamation
project will be given big impetus
toward speedy completion.
With drop of sixteen or twenty feet
from Lake OkeechObee to the ocean.
there has never been any fear by the
people who have studied the situation,
of ultimate drainage not being secured,
but many thoughtful persons have been
troubled about the water being com
pelled to flow from the immense terri
tory through the few openings provid-
ed by nature into the sea.
With the three canals constructed it
is expected that there will be no dan
ger of any "backed up water even
during the hardest rains, and the land
owners in the vicinity of the three
creeks mentioned are feeling jubilant
over the prospects of early and success
full cultivation Of their farms.
The Snapper Creek canal will be the
one nearest to Miami. 1t empties into
the bay lust south of Larkins five or
six miles below Miami, and is one OF
the famous picnic places of that section.
MANY of the older settlers have own
ed property along its course and today
there are groves of mangOes and sapo-
dilos and guavas and other native fruit
trees that havegrown to great size and
beauty. .,, -,
All three of the canals will be easily
accessible to the hard rock roads of
the county and will open up a vast
amount of land and doubtless bring. IN
hundreds of settlers in comparative
short time.
Major Wright has asked that the bids
for the construction of the canals be-
fled with him on the 10th of August
as it is proposed to push the drainage
work with all rapidity this fall.
In the meantime the main drainage
work under the Furst-Clark Company
is going steadily on-large forces OF
men are employed. new machinery is
added from time to time, and an excel
lent system of time is maintained which
carries the great project forward with
rama rkable dispatch.