The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1914-10-22

In view OF recent improvements IN
rock drill practice, and the increased
attention paid to underground WORK
generally, 1t is interesting to, compare
modern rock excavation with meth
DDS in use SO years ago. From 1891 70
l1875 there was under construction IN
Massachusetts what is still the long
est railroad tunnel In the United
States, the famous Hoosac tunnel. THIS
tunnel, ~ miles in length. which re-
'auired u years and $10,00O,o0O to COM
nlete. has additional interest because
in driving 1t there were used. Tor the
first time in tunneling in America,
power rock drills, air compressors, nj
tro-elycerine for blasting, and electric
ity for firing blasts. The modern rock
drill and mine explosives owe great
deal to the Hoosac tunnel. where many
Of the initial problems connected with
their practical use were solved. " II
odd that the state Of Massachusetts
which has never been mining state,
should bring into use in America sucn
important innovations as power drills
and nitro glycerine. For several years
previous to 1875 force Of 500 Cornish,
Irish and French Canadian miners
worked at the tunnel, with Its accom-
panying problems of shaft sinking, and
during that period the northwestern
corner of Massachusetts resembled q
Rocky Mountain mining camp. Alto
gether, 1875 men lost their lives in the
q years required to make the great
bore, as It was called, and this list OF
fatalities was not considered especial
ly remarkable, as the Mount Gents tun-
J mel in Europe, completed shortly be-
fore, had cost 1000 lives.
Formation.
Hoosac mountain is part of the
Green mountain range extending
through western Massachusetts,, and
had, up to the opening of the tunnel,
formed a natural barrier between the
states of Massachusetts, and New York
Boston capitalists desired direct
route between Boston and the west
and it was seen that, except for Hoosac
mountain, the river valleys made the
route comparatively easy one. One
of the important questions which arose
8 when the tunnel was suggested, con-
cerned the geological character Of the
mountain. Edward Hitchcock of Am
, hert college, was consulted and gave
. herst college, was consulted and gave
legislative committee that the rock tc
. be cut would be micaceous slate with
occasional seams Of quartz; the
, ground, he thought, would not be es-
pecially hard to drill and but small
> part would require arching. This
prophecy In most respects proved
!, strikingly correct, the only important
variation being at the western end o.
, the tunnel. where much soft rock was
. found that required careful and ex.
pensive arching. However. the rock ir
general was harder than had been ex.
, pected, and resembled schist rather
than slate.
Boring Machine Failure.
= In 1851, work was begun on the east.
ern end of the tunnel with ponder.
Gus boring machine weighing IS tons
cutters or knives were made to re.
: volve in circle "a feet in diameter
: and after each short run had beer
made the machine was backed away
" and the center or core blasted out Al.
ter boring 10 feet the machine strucl
! a quartz seam and refused to bore far.
Their. Discouraged. the company II
: charge deferred operations, until II
1854 contract was let to Herman
Haupt & Co. Incidentally, Herman
4 Haupt was later famous general II
D the civil war. His company worked or
. the tunnel until 1862, using hand drill
ing and black powder; the progress
D was at the same time slow and thu
cost high. So dark did matters look
!, and so much opposition was encoun.
tered in political quarters that in 1857
} pamphlet was published in Boston
entitled 1.-THE Road to Ruin, or the De-
!! cline and Fall Of the Hoosac funnel
At this point the state of Massachu-
sets took the matter into It's own
, hands, and Investigations were direct.
ed into power drills and air compress
J ors which were being used in the
Mount Gents tunnel between Italy and
France. Finally, in 1868, some con-
tractors were found who gave prom
ise OF finishing the work. They were
the Stanley brothers Of Montreal and
they agreed to complete the tunnel by
March l, 1874, for $4,594,26S At this
time, about one-third Of the work had
been done and many millions had been
spent. The Stanley brothers succeed.
J ed admirably, and on November a.
1873 Thanksgiving day. the final blast
was made that connected the two head
ings. The first train went through on
February .. 1875.
Many Air compressors.
The first air compressors used on
the Hoosac tunnel were built by James
Hunter & Son Of North Adams, Mass,
These together with number of 9TH
ers manufactured by the Burleigh
IL TNs-lvt