The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1912-07-04
"Holed through to-day

layed by telephone from camp Quln-
ton in the Wasatch mountains, Utah,
and flashed by wire to the reclama-
ton service in Washington. 1t mark
ed the completion of the Strawberry
tunnel, one of the largest and most
difficult pieces of engineering work
the reclamation service ever has
been called upon to undertake.
With one exception this under
ground waterway tunnel is the
largest in the world. Many hard en-
gineering problems had to be over
come in planning it; and great physi-
cal endurance was required of the
men who carried out the work.
The tunnel pierces the solid rock
of one of the highest peaks of the
Wasatch mountains at point where
those eternal hills are more than
10000 feet through. 1t will move
good size stream, the Strawberry
river, from one drainage basin to an
other, As miles away. Only 1000
feet below the snow capped crest of
the mountains the tunnel has pierc-
ed it's rock way.
To the south and east of Utah
Lake in one of the most beautiful
valleys in the West, are $4,000 acres
of exceedingly fertile land, now only
partially productive for lack of water.
To transform this valley to a rural
settlement, dotted with thriving
towns and villages and barred with
long rows of fruit trees, the govern
ment engineers have overcome al
most unheard of obstacles.
Beyond. the Wasatch range, which
rims the valleys eastern border,
Strawberry river for centuries back,
perhaps, has run uslessly by, it's wa
ters finally reaching the Gulf of Cali
fornia through the Colorado river.
To divert this water from the Colo
RADIO drainage basin and turn it into
the Utah valley, the enormous Straw
berry tunnel, nearly four miles long,
has been bored through the Wasatch
mountains. It's cross section meas
ures more than 60 square feet. 1t is
walled and buttressed with timbers
and lined with, cement.
Before construction could begin,
thousands of square miles of valley
and rough mountain country were
surveyed and mapped, and tunnel
and canal lines marked out. A tele-
phone 38 miles long, extending from
Spanish Fork to both portals of the
tunnel was constructed, and a wag-
on road from Diamond Switch, the
shipping point on the Denver and
Rio Grande Railroad, to both portals
80 miles long, was made. Down in
the foothills a diversion dam was
thrown across Spanish Fork River
and the waters turned into pow
erful canal X miles long, which
dropped them through huge pipes
on the big turbines 100 feet below.
Power thus generated was transmit
ted electrically to the tunnel site,
where it was used to turn the dia-
mond drills in the rock, light the
camps and run the heavy machinery.
The surplus has been sold to towns
in the valley for municipal and COM
mercial purposes.
The camps are located mile and
a half above sea level, and during
several months each winter have
practically been isolated from the
world, the roads blocked by masses
of snow and ice. For more than two
years the work has gone on without
ceasing, three shifts of men alternat-
ing during the "a hours of the day
and night. Thousands of gallons of
water, poisonous gases and swelling
ground have made the work difficult
and dangerous. The men fed for
their lives on several occasions.
In 1910 the work of placing the
concrete lining was begun and since
has been carried on simultaneously
with the excavation of the heading.
This required skilful handling OF
men and material to avoid delay in
either feature of the work. Notwith-
standing the difficulties of the under
taking it has been carried to compile
tion without the loss of single life.
Beyond the tunnel, in the shadow
of the granite peaks, great reser-
voir is being built. A retaining dam
of rock, cement and steel is being
built so deep that six-story building
might be hidden behind it. Fed by
melting SHOWS the waters will rise
behind this structure, covering 5000
acres with 27S,000 acre eet of wa
ter
=.