The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1914-04-24
DOUBLE TRACK

lone 81 the Facts In Regard to the
Easineering Work on the New
Grade 1t Big stone
The April number Of the Mil.
waukee Employees Magazine
has an article by H. A. Leroy.
Jr., on 1.-THE Ortonville Work.,
an engineers description
Of the grading work and the new
double track between this city
and Ortonville and the cuts at
Big Stone, from which we take
the following:
On August Is, 1912, > party started
from Milbank 70 make the n~ewlocation.
Several preliminaries we're run but
none seemed TO be satisfactory SO .
map showing the topography OF the
country Was made and referred 70 IS
the el,460 map on which line was
projected. This was the location &C.
copied and the one built. 1t departs
from the present main line at the first
curve, about two miles east OF Milbank
and runs straight through to Big
0pOO0e y 0A8t0uCC ~ GbkAV ~ -
miles, joining the present Ortonville
line with q degrees and IL minutes OF 2
degree, and Is minute curve at . point
about one.half mile east Of the pres
ent depot. This change eliminated
1872 degrees and rs minutes curvature,
lowered maximum curviture from q 3
degree to q / degree and rs minutes,
lowered the maximum grade from . l
- n~>N ~ n K kA N0v nnn4 md nlirniA.
ated II grade crossings. In the
country the line ran through two
farm houses together with the out
buildings and il Big Stone City eight
cen houses and one church. In the
city 81 Big Stone, there were 81 build
ings in I'll moved the right OF way
costing e56.l70 but considerable sal
vage was redeemed from this. A 70
merkable thing about the purchasing
Of the right Of way through Big Stone
demnation csse. Peop:e moved in
Qld. tarpeFs. coma =, town e spend
eh(lr decllpinR dsga has sstnsr' th,n
[ds)a1 The work, which th1y could
have done, th9g ws:e eager And GLAD
February when Mr.. Richard Evans
GO ton PneyrHa .sbeeyg shovel began
l0esserte aQA rock froms .cots whose
maximem 4epth Va IS lsess sd. over
ihroe.ouarters Of mile long there
was no time when work vas delayed.
Leaving the old track 81 . point
5000 feet west OF the present O~rtonville
depot on . / degree and 20 minute
curve the new line curves 70 the west
for over . mile acrOss the foot Of Big
Stone Lake, rising on . O.5O per cent
grade. Halt way across this nIl The
line crosses The, Minnesota River.
The arss plans were "a build ! triple
| 60 foot concrete arch .culvert but, ow.
linz 20 the di6bculty in getting suitable
1oundation the plans we're changed TO
three,sp2n steel Qirder bridge. Halt
8 nile west 10 the cut through Big
Stone CITY the most interesting part
| Of tho work. When the line was
located there was some uncertainty
- 70 the nature Of the material in
| this hill 90 TEST pits we're sunk to g.
certain II il contained any ledge rock
The holes 3 lowed aothing but sand
and gravel underlaid by = strata OF
blue shele above which VAS. q vein OF
water from Ave to seven feet deep. As
4 the shovel opened the cut numerous
| bOulders were ia evidence, these in
creased in size and number as the cut
ldeepeped. They were s0Ooth md in,
kmost cases bore scratches showing
kthey we're part of q glacial drift
Twenty feet from the top q layer OF
red sandstone made its appearance,
resembling very much the POtsdam
sandstone of Tennessee. but OF q
coarser nature. It was not IN uncom
mon occurrence for the shovel to break
the hosting cable while digging
through this material. As the cut
deepened the water vein was tapped
and wells in the immediate vicinity
Of the cut began to 60 dry. This was
expected. Some fear was expressed
By the people that all the wells would
be drained but there IL small likeli-
hood Of this because the vein slopes
from the west to the east at an angle
Of s degrees and the cut does not
cross this tr~ansversly. A. the road
bed lies IN this vein it would mean
vet and therefore . heaving and slow
track. This is to be eliminated by
placing Ee4 inch drain tile about
four feet below the surface with man
holes 1T frequent intervals to allow
cleaning. Another drainage conoi-
ton to contend with vas the handling
Of the water from . draw which cross
es the cut transversely, the bottom of
which WAS Is feet above the roadbed.
This had long been q source OF annoy
ance 70 the city washing out the high
way where ~culverts ere TO small to
handle the water. The mayor stood
watching the construction OF the large
fiume that is to handle the water and
said, 'sIsn't that . peculiar place for
i footbridgeY" On being informed
it, use he replied, s.D-,I thought you
fellows would let the water run right
down your cut and We would get rid
Of the pesky stun but there you go
passing 1t on like q lead dollar,
From the Big Stone Cut the line
crosses the MILESTONE valley with q
all that's 48 feet in the deepest place.
Whetst0ne Greek is spanned by q
AA..h10s "a hNoA Nnn0Moto oWnh 0sr1vopt