The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1912-05-25
CHANGES ON 4. C. |. YARD.
PRESENT YEAR WILL MARK
MANY IMPROVEMENTS.
INSTALLATION of New Yard and Change
of Tracks i'm Old Yard-Freipht
Trains TO Discontinue Passing
Through Passenger Station Yard
New Cotton Platform 10 BE Con-
structcd and "Old Hos" Ware.
house Built.

'''oEN
The present year viii mark quite
a number of changes and imurove-
ments in the freight yard Of the At
lantic Coast Line railroad coupany.
which will add muc TO improve the
service given by that COMPANY and
facilitate the handling Q. freight and
freight trains.
The greatest expenditure IN i'm
pfoVenents is Of course that made in
installing the new freight yard in the
southwestern part Of the city. The
workmen have been employed here
ever since last fall and will probably
tomorrow open up five of the new
tracks for service, connections hav-
Ing just been completed on the east
ern ends of the lines. These new
lines are more than a quarter Of a
mile m length and will help greatly
in the handling OF freight trains.
Probably twelve new tracks will be
laid in all, the others to be installed
as soon as convenient and in time for
the heavier fall trade.
In order TO arrange the yard in
the most convenient shape possible ii
has been found necessary TO remove
the turn table and the coal chute to a
point farther west which will be done
in the near future, or as soon as GER
tain freight tracks in the present yard
are removed or changed. Several of
thees old tracks will be taken up and
removed entirely, while others will
simply be changed. The outside
tracks passing through the passenger
yard will be used entirely for freight
trains and thus eliminate that ele-
ment Of danger which is TO be found
at this point at present owing to the
passing through the passenger yard
Iof freight trains while passenger
trains are standing at the station.
The old main line passing through
the freight yard will be placed back
as it was originally and thus afford
three tracks for transferring through
freight instead of one as at present.
While this will aid in the ease and
promptness in handling freight, the
-ayl, xr-ill L.
the rain and sun as at present, for a
modern freight shed will be placed
over the tracks thus relieving the
men Of some of the inclemencies Of
the weather which they have here
tofore had to endure.
But the Improvements contem.
plated by the Coast Line do not end
here. During the last season it was
found almost an impossibility to
handle all of the incoming and out
going cotton on the platform space
ALREADY provided for this purpose. In
order that ample space may be pro-
vided for handling both at the same
time the road will construct a plat
form. adjacent To the present cotton
platform, capable OF holding 1000
bales of cotton. This new pla form
will be used in the handling OF the
cotton shipped to Sumter from neigh
boring rural districts The work on
the platform will he commenced in
a short time and efforts will be made
to have it completed by the season for
the incoming cotton next fall.
With these improvements installed
the Atlantic Coast Line railroad will
be provided with better facilities
here than il has ever been before and
will be in a condition to compete
with the incoming Seahoard Air Line
for all freight traffic outbound or
coming into this point
In view of the fact that it is cur
rcntly reported that this has been n
dull spring i'm trade lines, II Will be Of
interest 10 the public generally TO
know that the freight traffic at this
point has been approximately the
same this spring as usual, except for
the fertilizer traffic. in which there
was a perceptible falling off. one
thing that has Increased Sumters
freight traffic has been the large
amount Of materiol shipped in here to