Crossville chronicle. [volume] (Crossville, Tenn.) 1894-current, 1918-10-09
WITH THE HIGHWAY BUILDERS
Splendid Progress Being Made South
to BIedsoe County Line.

to Bledsoe County Line.
At the Invitation of the Highway
Commissioners the editor of the Chron
icle had the plasurvee of going ovel
! the new road, that is projected from
Crossville south to the Bledsoe county
line via Linary and Sequatchie valley.
! We were much gratlfied to see how
far the work had progressed and what
good grades they were securing. Be-
tween Crossville and the top OF the
mountaion, a distance of TWELVE
miles, the road is completed, with the
exception of few culverts and RUM
ing the grader over for a final dress
ing up.
The distance down the mountain is
to be three miles and a maximum
gra de of SIX per cent is to be main
taioned. Enough work is now conf
pleted on the mountain side to equal a
completed mile, if it was all applied to
that single mile. AS it is a wagon can
travesrse the road for a mile or a
little more of the way down the
mountain, but autos cannot do so
with safety.
EXPENSIVE WORK
While this is second to no road in the
county IN point OF business Importance
and reaches almost as many people as
any other rOau, it has been an
expensive road to build am ,uuch
more expense will be necessary be-
fore the line is complete TO it's objec
I've, the Bledsoe county line, about
II miles from Crossville.
The conditions ON the mountain side
are peculiar. The whole surface for a
depth of about one foot is literally
covered with sand rock from the
size CT an egg to the SIZE of d rail-
road boxcar, while there Is much un.
derbrush and considerable large timber.
Before a team and stu mp puller
could be gotten to the work numerous
men had to be employed to cut the un-
derbrush and remove many of the
stones. After that the stumppuller
made quick work of the stumps, but
not so with that first foot Of surface
anC the many rlg boplders that lined
the way. dynamite was employed to
break the large stones and afterward
rolled down the mountain by hand.
Then came the real tug of war. All
efforts to plow met with much delay
because of the many rocks. But by
persstant effort all troubles were
overcome until the plow and scraper
could lie used effectively at which time
grade construction went on rapidly,
except in such places as very large
boulders blocked the way and had to
be dynamited repeatedly. All the
W orst places Tor the first mile have
been overcome, except one and much
Of it has been conquered.
DRAINAGE PROBLEM
The commissioners are finding in this
piece Of road as on all others that the |
iralnage problem is d hard one solve |
and in this intance proves source of
much extra expense.
In carrying the road down the noun
ain it is necessary to make regular
etter IS" to maintain the desired
,rade. This will necessiate extra ex-
,ense for drainage, for unless the sur
ace water is carried under the road
hree times, it will be necessary to
onstruct a large ditch for several
undred yards to carry the water be-
ond the curves of the "S'. 1t is
robabls tnat this plan will be fol-
,wed as carrying the water threh
ines under the road will require muce ,
lrger culverts and always presents .
ne possibility of heavy damage by the
llverts becoming clogged and the
ater thereby cutting up the roadbed. =
CAPABLE FOREMAN 9
E. K. Dorton IS in charge of the Y
ork as foreman and while he is fair O
I'd courteous to every one he makes b
clear to all who are on the job that t
expects them to do an honest days Il
ork when they neglect to do that he S
lietly lets them go.
IMPORTANCE OF THIS ROAD a
The Importance of this road will be "
tier understood when 1t Is remem- y
red that it not only connects with u