USA > Washington DC > Washington DC > Historical sketches of the ten miles square forming the District of Columbia : with a picture of Washington, describing objects of general interest or curiosity at the metropolis of the Union. > Part 5
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Late Potomac Company.
Three canals, without locks, have also been completed. The first, below Harper's Ferry, at Shenandoah Falls, where the Potomac breaks through the Blue Ridge, is a mile in length. The second, along the Seneca Falls, is three quarters of a mile. The third, at House's Falls, five miles above those of Shenandoah, is fifty yards in length.
On the Shenandoah there are five locks, each a hundred feet long, and twelve feet wide; and six canals, each twenty feet in breadth, and four and a half in depth, extending two thousand four hun- dred yards. The water of all the locks and ca- nals is supplied by the river. The boat naviga- tion of the north, or main branch, of the Potomac, now extends to Western Port, near its source, a distance of two hundred and nineteen miles above tide water.
The south branch of the Potomac is navigable a hundred miles from its junction with this river, and the north fork about sixty miles.
The boats employed for the navigation of the Potomac and Shenandoah, are seventy-five feet in length, five feet wide. draw eighteen inches wa- ter, and carry twenty tons burthen. Two of them, with more than a hundred barrels of flour each, pass the locks of the great falls in the space of an hour.
T
Lale Potomac Co .- Transportation-Rates. 69
The following comparative estimate has been made of the transportation of a barrel of flour by land and by water, to the tide-water of the Poto- mac-
From Cumberland, by land. 2} dollars.
By water, including tolls. 1} do.
From Williamsburg, by land 13 do.
By water, including toils. 1 do.
From Harper's Ferry, by land.
do.
Ry water 1 do.
The original capital, or stock, consisted of se- ven hundred and one shares, which, at four hun- dred and forty-four dollars and four ninths, the value of each, amounted to three hundred and ele- ven thousand five hundred and sixty dollars. Of these shares, two hundred and twenty are the pro- perty of the State of Maryland, and seventy of Virginia.
In 1821, the affairs of the Potomac Company became the subject of serious investigation. Com- missioners, appointed by Maryland and Virginia, assembled in Georgetown on the 2d of June 1822, and reported that the company had not only ex- pended the whole of their dividing stock, but had incurred heavy debts, which their present resour- ces could never enable them to discharge-that not only the whole of their original stocks in at- tempts to improve the river, but nearly all their
£
1
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70 Late Potomac Co .- Low.Water Survey.
tolls had been appropriated to the same purpose; and that the failure to accomplish the objects of their incorporation, they attributed to a want of information on the subject, at the very early pe- riod when the company was formed. Accord- ingly a low water survey of the condition of the navigation and depth of water was presented by the commissioners, taken minutely from day to day, in 1822, as the river was descended, from which it was ascertained that the Potomac, from . the confluence of its north and south branch, to Goose Creek, in Loudon county, Virginia, below the mouth of the Monocacy, is 157 miles long: is no section of ten miles at all navigable in low wa- ter, by loaded boats of any kind or dimensions, and for more than eighty miles obstructions from shallows, sufficient to stop a skiff, arc to be met on an average division of that distance every half mile. As this journal of the commissioners is au- thentic, but seldom met with, and furnishes the only low water map of this interesting portion of the Bed of the Potomac river, it is inserted at large, as follows:
Thursday morning, August 8, 1822 .- Moved from the con- fluence of the north and south branch of the Potomac; good water a short distance; to Old Town Falls, upwards of two hundred yards long, water in best channel, at the upper end, seven inches deep, at lower end five inches; very narrow chan- pel, and crooked, the water good a small distance, then a shoal
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Potomac-Low Water Survey.
fifty yards long, six inches water; passing a short distance of good water, enter a shoal above Taylors', extending to the mouth of Town Creek; through this shoal the commissioners boats, (drawing under five inches water, ) pursuing the best channel, rubbed, and were dragged by men wading nearly the whole way through; at the mouth of Town Creek; wing-dams; ant shute in the middle of the river, water six mches deep in the shute. Good water to Macomb's Island, but difficult na- vigation among scattered rocks, appearing above the surface; then commences a shoal in which the boats rub and pass with difficulty a wing-dom and narrow shate; then better water 12 to I5 inches to O'Ned's bottom; Young Maleomb, the tenant; here the boats moored for the night.
Friday morning, Ang. 9 .- Moved at 8 o'clock; good water; passed Malcomb's Island and mouth of little Cape Capon, two perebes wide; good water continues to Coxes' Falls at Coxes' Island. Along this Island are three rapids extending upwards of a mile, through which the boats rubbed the whale way, ex- cept about 100 yards between each rapid, where the water was from 2 to 3 feet deep, with high rocks appearing on the surface which rendered the navigation precarious, the lower rapid more gradual than the other two, but longer and shoal the whole way; boats rab and stick on the shoal, then good water, still current from 2 to 4 feet deep for one mile, to the Devil's Nose, a ra- pid above Col. Greenwell's house; at this rabid are wing-dams, a narrow and shallow shete, and crooked channel, making the navigation difficult; then good water 100 yards to Greenwell's ripples, 100 yards long, where the channel is crooked and shal- low, the boats rub most of the way through; to Greenwell's second ripples, 100 yards long, boats rub through, then better water to a reef of rocks, nearly crossing, the river, leaving a narrow channel where the river is not more than 10 paces wide; then good water, still narrow, to John Mitchell's bottom, ex- cept a reef of rocks, where there is a small fall, then good wa- ter from 5 to 20 feet deep, opposite McDonalds, on Virginia side; then water good, half a mile, to Mitchell's rapids, half a mile long, in which are six reefs ac. oss the river, narrow, very crooked, and difficult channels, the boats rubbing at each reef; the rapids end nearly opposite Boxwell's the tenant of John Mitchell, where the boats m ored for the night.
. August 10th .- Moved from Boxwell's; for 200 y rds good water, then encountered small falls or ledges of rocks quite across the river, 300 yards in extent; the water from 3 to 8
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Potomac-Low Water Survey.
inches deep; good water for near quarter of a mile, then for the next mile, occasional ripples, water 4 inches, along which the boats were dragged; between the ripples, water good; cane to Swede's Falls, half a mile in extent, the boats frequentiy rubbing, and with difficulty passing over them. Good waters short distance, then difficult navigation for near half a mile frons the prodigious number of rocks peering above the surface, ties water between them 12 inches. Travelling by land as difficult as the navigation.
.August 12th. - Moved from N. Abel's ripples, where, for some distance above and below, there are large rocks standing 2 or 3 feet above the surface of the water, and so numerous that the passage between them is very intricate, by which it was necessary to cross and re-eross from shore to shore, to avoid them, some times hanging upon the ripples, where there was not four inches water. These ripples continued a consis derable distance, the boatmen having frequently to get out and lift and drag the boat over them. Inmediately above the tumb- ling dam falls, there is a shallow bar, affording only 4 inches. At these falls, there is among many others, one perpendicular pitch, apparently of 18 inches and exactly in the boat channel. Beside these natural obstructions, there are here and at many other places artificial ones, made by building fish dams in the river, in shameful violation of law. Below the bar falls, the boat hung and rubbed for a long distance, in water not mere than from 3 to 4 inchess deep, and before we could pass, the boatmen were under the necessity of going into the water, and clearing the channel by throw ing out the stones. Good water for 13 miles, with some short interruptions. Afterwards cante to another long ripple, where the boat hung for a long time, notwithstanding all the exertions of the men; the water is not more than three inches deep.
Tuesday, August 15 -Started from Neal's. Commission- ers' boat supposed to draw about 7 inches water; good water for a short distance, then grounded on a ledge of rock, run- ning across the bed of the river; 200 yards lower down, ledges occur again, and form the bottom, for several 100 yards, on which we occasionally rubbed, without stopping; further on, grounded on small gravel; boatmen had to jump out and drag for near 50 yards; water varymg in depth, from 8 to 10 and 12 inches among gravel; pushed on for 50 yards further, water very little deeper, when again we had to drag, water 8 inches between and off the stones, had to clear the stone out of the
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Potomac-Low Water Survey.
course of the boat; a little lower down, measured the depth of water on both sides of the boat, and found 5 inches on one side and 6 on the other; shoal continued for 10 or 15 yards, then moved on among scattered stone, almost continually rubbing for some yards, when we grounded again; water 93 inches a- mong the stones; course crooked, boat touched for 100 yards farther, then passed a fish dam, firmly cemented with sand and gravel running across the river; then good water for a 4 mile. ther rubbed over a ridge of rock into water interspersed with large stone, on which we could not avoid rubbing frequently; then good water for some 100 yards, when we grounded on a reef: again good water for a short distance; grounded again on a reef, then passed a small rapid; rubbing all the way, about 30 vards
P. M. For 100 yards, good water, then frequently rubbed, and twice stopped, on large stone, which covered the bed of the river; good water for 2 or three hundred yards, river filled with scattered stone, rising 12 or 18 inches above water; then our course was interrupted by a fish dam, and broken sluice, the boatmen obliged to throw stones out of the way; further down, grounded on stone, abounding here in the bed of the viver.
Nearly abreast of Mr Tidball's house, a reef crosses the rir ver, and caused a small fall, 5 or 6 inches, over which we pas- sed without difficulty; a reef, with a similar fall. just below the above, obliged the boatmen to shove and lift the boat over; for- ther down passed another reet, on which we touched a slunce made through it, misplaced and not used, then reached a gra- dual fall, on which grounded, and passed with difficulty, har. ing to clear a passage; then a few yards of deep water; then rubbed for many vards, agam a space of good water; ground- ed on large gravel, and dragged for some distance; then float- el a little; then dragged again 20 yards, into a few yards passa- ble water then dragged again into water which continued good for near half a mile; then rubbed again on sinall gravel; float- ed a little, then rubbed on large gravel, and soon stopped on & rapid, about 100 vards above Lantz's house and Island; drag- god over with difficulty; then good water to Lantz's where we stopped for the night.
Wednesday morning, August 14 .-- Moved from Lantz's on shoal water; boats rub frequently, and with difficulty pass the small openings in ledges of rock seross the river; these open- ings lying in zig zag line, render them very difficult of access; the hoata rub hard at most of the passes; these clift's and shpats
6
74
Potomac-Low Water Survey.
extend upwards of a mile around the head of Washington's Bottom; then good water half a mile, then ledges of rocks, rising to the surface in three feet water, with narrow shoal pas- ses, rendering the navigation difficult, extending upwards of half a mile; then shoal water from shore to shore, about three quarters of a mile, past Dimmits Island; at one place, boats could not pass until stones were removed to make a small channel; the impediments through this shoal can only be over- come by swelling the water by dam; then good water, three quarters of a mile, to O'Queens; then shoal water, boats rub, and were dragged a mile; then good water to the Burnt Mill Falls; here is a wing-dam, 12 er 15 inches high, turning the water to the Maryland shore, working a small Grist Mill, owned by Thomas King; fall at the Mil 34 feet; a rapid shoal extends near 200 yards from the upper end of the wing-dam, and ending nearly opposite the Mill; then good water 200 yds. to a point opposite to Marshall's house, on the Virginia shore ; where the boats moor for the night.
Thursday morning, August 15 .- Moved from Marshall's; good water continues half a mile, to a ripple, below the mouth of 15 Mde Creek; at this ripple three quarters of the width of the river is bare, 150 yards distance, leaving a narrow, crook- ed, and shallow channel, through which the boats rub; then good water about 100 yards; then a ripple 100 yards, through which the boats rub nearly the whole way; then the water deepens to 5 feet, with scattered rocks near the surface, a quarter mile; then a ripple, a wing-dam, and shute, very shal- low; then good water 100 yards; then appear ledges of rocks across the river, six in number, about equal distance from each other, and extending 150 yards down the river; beats rub thro' the narrow passes in these ledges; then good water by the man of war rock, opposite Matthew Engles'; then a short reach of good water to Willet's Falls, or long canal; through these Falls the beats were dragged with great difficulty; after pass- ing them, enter on water with ledges of rocks across the river there, and below, where shoal water extends across the river a considerable distance, passing Stiling Hill Creek, and to Fer- ree's, no loaded boat drawing eight inches water, could pass. The boat moored opposite Ferrce's, for the night.
Friday, . August 16 .-- Shoal and difficult water, by ledges of rocks and ripples, past Big Capon, and to the upper end of Ridoubt's bottom; then good water 100 yards; then shoals, ledges of rocks, boats passing through the narrows and crook- cd openings, one among rocks four feet above water; the only
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Potomac-Low Water Survey.
pass, very narrow, and close to the Virginia shore; then vari- able water to John Roby's; then good water to Leopard's Mill, worked by the river water, under a fall of three feet and a half; then variable water, the greater part shoal to the mouthe of Little Branch, below Mr. Summers'.
August 17 .- Moved from nearly opposite Mr. Summers', living on the Maryland side, and five and a half above Han- cock; good water a short distance; then passed a reef of rocks with a fall of near three feet, extending quite across the river, and about 50 yards in width, the boat rubbing part of the way, and dragged about 10 yards by the men; the water from 5 to 10 inches; then 13 miles of water, from 20 inches to 3 feet -- then 150 yards of ripple, the water upwards of 12 inches, but large stones arising above the surface, so numerous as to ren- der it very difficut for the boat to pass along, then gor ¿ of a mile of good water; then a ripple 3 of a mile in length, above Round Hill, water from 6 to 12 inches; good water a short. distance, then another ripple; through a canal below Round Hill, water about seven inches, except through the shute of the canal, where the boat grounded; then good water to Hancock, with the exception of two ripples, about a mile above the mout! of Little Tonoloway, the ore 50, the other 30 yards long the water from 6 to 10 inches deep; the boat rubbed part of the way, and twice grounded; moored at the mouth of Little To- noloway.
·lugust 18 .- Sunday, 19th, 20th, and 21st, lay at the mouth of Little Tonoloway, whilst the levellers went back to Cape Capon, to survey the route from thence to Hancock, on the Virginia shore.
August 22 .-- Set off with the boats from the mouth of Tono- loway; a few perches of good water at first; then three ledges of state rock, across the river, two opposite Hancock, and one just below, on all which we rubbed between them; a few per- ches good water; then good water to the lower end of Dono- van Island, where another ridge crosses, at which there is a fish-daun, and fall of 9 or 10 inches, and difficult crossing- good water opposite the mouth of the Warm Spring Run; (Bath); a little good water; then a shoal, and reef of slate and gravel; grounded; then good water; touched another reci- passable water 50 yards; then large stone, so close as to pre- vent passing without rubbing; then grounded in nine inches water, on a shoal and fish-dam; eight inches water; stone so close as to allow an uninterrupted passage; some passable wa- ter to the upper end of Yate's Island; then grounding, rubbing
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Potomac-Low Water Survey.
and touching abreast of the island. Big Tonoloway enters just above this island; for half a mile bad water, five or six in- ches only; bad water, and two more ledges of slate, with five inches water on them; above the Widow Row's or Beven's Is- land, tolerable water abreast of island, for 300 yards.
August 23-Moved from opposite Dr. Jacques' house, where the canal crosses from Virginia to Maryland. Good water for 150 yards, then shoal begins opposite Jacques' Isl- and, water from five to eight inches; boats rubbed for eighty yard's and then grounded, and hands had to open channel by. removing the gravel and stones; not three inches water; boats lifted over with hand-spikes; after this, water deepens to about ten inches or a foot, filled with large loose stones, which impede the navigation, and caused the boats twice to get fast; good water begins below fish dam, opposite lower end of Jacques' Island, and continues to about 100 yards be- low upper point of Miller's Island, about half a mile, where begins a shoal, at a fish-dam, where hands had to make a chan- nel, by removing stones, &c. for 20 yards water, at four to six inches; then increases to nine, but interrupted by stones and rocks for about 50 yards; then shoal from ten to four iuch- es, for distance to Licking, say one and a half miles; men out again, and making channel between upper and lower point of Miller's Island, and repeatedly aground on ledges between this island and Licking. Moored at mouth of Licking.
August 2i-Moved from mouth of Licking; good water for 100 yards to a fish-dam: then rapid!, and full of big rocks; boots fast from six to eight inches; water then good for 150 yards to another dam below, which is a rapid of short contin- dance; then water sufficiently deep, but bed very rocky for So yards; boat rubbing on the rocks. Here a line of large rocks reaches nearly across the river, Coats fast among then. Deep water from this, for 50 yards; then shoal, and boats fast upon a bed of large stone; then rocky bottom, but good for eighty. yards, to a fish dam; boat occasionally touching on the large stones, several ledges here across the river, upon one of which boat got fast; below this deep water, with slate ledges, upon which boat repeatedly got fast; this kind of water and bed continues for one and a half miles, in this distance, a bed of moss across the river extenda for half' a mile; good water through it, but full of rocks. 'T'his water extends to the elin spring on the Maryland side; a shoal then begins, and conti- nues for upwards of half a mile; boats fast, and lifted over with great labor; men obliged to open channel by removing stone,
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Potomac-Low Water Survey.
&c .; this shoal extends to Cherry Run, on Virginia side, with the exception of about 50 yards just above fish-dam, which is a rapid for a few yards, and then good water for one mile and an half to Johnson's Falls, nearly opposite Back Creek, on Virginia side, where we moored for the night.
Sunday, 25 .- The boats lay too, and the party rested.
Monday morning, August 26 .- Moved from Johnson's Falls; shoal water to Garrison's Falls, one and a half miles; here are high ledges of rocks, extending across the river, and only one narrow pass for boats, then good water-be fiddle- strings, so called, from four ledges of rocks near each other, appearing above water, extending across the river; the boats passed the ripple with great difficulty, there being no passage affording sufficient water; the boats were lifted and dragged over, by doubling the crews, and were more than an hour in moving less than 100 yards, then good water to Claveomb's ripples; then shoal from shore to shore, to Pott's Spring, boats rubbing; then good water to Prather's saw-mill, made by his mill-dam; then shoal one-fourth of a mile; whole distance from the fiddle-strings four and a quarter miles, to Prather's, where boats moor the night.
Tuesday morning, August 27 .- Moved from Prather's on good water, passing Charle's Mill, at the mouth of the big spring-run, b.If a mile; good water continues to Barkman's Ssh-dam, raised in a shoal part of the river, extending a quarter of a mile; here the boats passed with difficulty, being drag- ged and forced over the shoals by doubling the crews in seve- ral places, and by making little channels, by moving the stones, in the way; the water is then better for a small distance, say a quarter of a mile, which reaches another shoal, called Trval- fish-dam, a very appropriate name, as it sufficiently tried the strength and skill of the men in lifting and drugging, the beats rubbing the whole distance of two hundred vards and up- wards; the water then became deeper for a short distance, then very shoal to Middlecalf's island, and some distance along it; the water then good to the mouth of Little Conoco- cheaghe at Middlecalf's; then becomes shoal, passing two isl- ands known by the name of' Buzzard islands, and then, on passing Hawk's island, the whole of the distance, the water very shoal; the boats were got over with great difficulty, and by doubling crews, one mile and a half, the water then be- comes deeper; the boats, after passing a quarter of a mile, put in for the night.
August 28th .- Left the upper end of a high ridge of rocks on the Virginia shore, about 54 miles above Williamsport; for
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Potomac-Low Water Survey.
two miles the water 8 or 10 feet, the beatman using their oars the whole distance, the next mile the water varying from four feet to 18 inches, then a mile of about one foot water, moored for the night about 15 miles above Williamsport.
August 29th .- Left the station, 13 miles above Williamsport, the river being wider than at any place above, the boats rub- bed on the gravel a great part of the way to Williamsport, when we were detained four hours by the hands going on shore. From Williamsport to the place called Falling Water, on the Virginia side, the boats often stuck fast, and were only got along by lifting and dragging them by main force.
.August soth. - Started from the Falling Waters -- water good; velocity of the current diminishing: general depth in- creasing, and the navigation less frequently interrupted by reef's and shallows; in the space to Hadley's Rock, about 23 miles, a fish dam on a gravel bank, and two ledges of lime- stone, rising nearer the surface, are the only difficulties, but were passed with a rab; the bed of the river for the above space is uniformly Time-stone rock. Opposite Lefebre's house it rises, and forms the bank of the river, on the Virginia side, for 50 yards; at Hadley's, the rock displays itself on the shore for more than a quarter of a mile, on the Maryland side. A fish dam and ripple, on which we grounded just below Had- ley's; then good water till we passed the mouth of Opecon, when we grounded on Oprcon ripple, where there is another fish dam, and water about nine inches deep; then a little good water, then grounded again on Opecon ripples; moved on a little, then rubbed hard again, then better water. For three quarters of a mile above Oprean, rocky shore on the Mary- land side; just belw, the rocks approach the shore on the Ving tia side, and continues for one and a quarter miles .- Another fish dam obstructs the navigation in Opecon ripples, and then three narrow reefs of time-stone rock; below this last dem cross the river, on which there is not more than 6 or 7 inches water; then deep water to Spring's mill, where we stopped for the night; considerable fall in the water in the space occupied by Opecon riple. Here Boyd went home for a day, and parts rested on Saturday and Sunday.
Strember 24-Started from Newcomer's; good water for a naile and a half; cliff's on Maryland side for quarter part of the way-aledge of Time-stow extends nearly across the river, just below Galloway's mill but does not interrupt the naviga- tion; water very deep, out of the reach of the pole, water
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