Year: 1859

lOh IH5


Report -


At meeting ofthe citizens of Auburn
held for the purpose of taking into con-
sideration the propriety of taking
measures for the construction of a
railroad from Auburn to Folsom, to
intersect with a road to Sacramento, the
undersigned we're appointed a committee
for the purpose of procuring statistics,
and drafting an address to the people of
Placer, Nevada and Ell Dorado counties
upon the subject. The undersigned
have performed their duty and beg
leave to submit the following:


First, rs to the practicability of the
Road. S. c. Elliot, County Surveyor
of Placer county, in the month of March
last past, made careful survey of the
route and asccrtained the following fact ::
Commencing at Auburn and following
the Auburn Ravinc down for a distance
ofabout two miles and then crossing over
to Dutch Ravine about ore mile further
tie route is entirely feasible, with a
grade at no point exceeding eighty feet to
the mile; crossing Dutch Ravine n short
bridge of trcstlc work would be required
about forty feet high. Thence to the
franklin house the route is favorable
and from this point to the Rock Spring
House equally so, the grade at no point
exceeding eighty feet TO the mile. From
the Rock Spring House the route follows
the general course of the American
River Water ana Mining Cos Ditch, to
the junction of the Folsom and Deal's
Bar roads; thence past Stockton Mill to
the American River opposite Folsom at
which a junction could be effected with
ether the 5. V. Railroad or the Central
Road. The only deep cntting on this
lac is AT the junction of the Beals' Bar
and Sacramento roads, where cut of
81 feci deep would be required for
short distance. This would be through
earth and soft rock easily excavated-
There are, besides this, two ravines to
cross, where embankments would be
required, bus not greater than are found
ON all the principal roads in the United
States. Mr.. Elliot's survey establishes
the fact that the road is entirely
practicable. and that too, at an expense
no grtater than has attended the
construction of most of the roads in the
hilly portions of the Northern States.


The distance by Mr. Elliott's survey
to Folsom is only seventeen miles aud
the entire cost cannot exceed $4,000
per mile.


That the road. when completed, would
be remuncra'ivc to the Stockholders
can easily be shown. When constructed
i: would command the entire passe niger
travel and freight carriage of Placer
county, Tie north part of Ell Dorado, and
large part of Nevada and Sierra
From careful estimates made by S. w.
Lowell and others in 1856 by having an
an account kept of the number of teams
that crossed the various toll bridges, and
by procuring estimates from mercha MS
whose freight did not cross those bridges
it appears that there was then more than
two thousand seven hundred tons of
freight monthly coming into Placer
county alone, and since 1886, the amount
has largely increased. All this freight
would come by Railroad if one was con-
structed to Auburn. This does not in
clude The freight to Ell Dorado, Nevada
and Sierra which would naturally come
on this road, and which if added to the
first, could not amount to much less than
sixty five thousand tons per year. The
passenger travel upon this branch would
be large, inasmuch as the road would
come into the midst of one of the most
extensive mining countries in the State
BY the report of the Superintendent of
the S. " R. for the year 1858, tappears
that the number of passengers who
passed over that road during the year
was $1,000 A large portion of these
came from the counties named, and by
the extension of the road TO Auburn, the
passenger travel would be doubled. your
committee believe. With the above