USA > Pennsylvania > The Delaware and Hudson Canal, a history > Part 2
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known rules of calculation, and being previously proved, they are sure to be strong enough : inch iron will suspend 60,000 pounds, or 27 tons. Chain Cables are tested to the extent of 18 tons per inch.
Tosuspend a boat of 25 tons with tho water, in which she floats, which together with the counterpoise is about 60 tons, four chain cables of one inch iron would be sufficient ; or 16 chains of half inch iron. But in practice, the additional expense of # inch iron, would give 125 per cent more strength to the chains than is theoretically requisite.
The load, whatever it be, necessarily distributes itself over the whole foundation, upon every pillar, to every chain, and with a steady pressure.
The controul or management of the Transit, is principal- Jy by levers, which are established in the roof with other apparatus, not necessary now to describe; nor the manner of compensation for the transfer of the chains over the pul- lies.
This improvement will be applicable to elevated districts of country, and to Canals conducted along vallies, where there are mills ; when, instead of taking the whole waterfrom them, it borrows only enough for the operation of the Lifts, so small a quantity as scarcely to be a damage. For example, the upper mill pond of a stream, would in the spring, by its redun- dant water fill the Canal ; which would then leave almost the usual quantity to follow its natural course ; thus saving the proprietors a heavy expense, and the neighbourhood of the Canal from the inconvenience of an interruption of a pro- ductive branch of business.
J. L. SULLIVAN, Agent for Mr. Dearborn.
the "transit" in which the boat was carried. He explains that if the boat is to be lowered, it is merely floated into the transit which remained full of water, and thus when the brakes were released the whole thing descended by reason of its own weight. To raise a boat from the lower level the boat was to be floated into the transit, the water allowed to flow out, leaving the combined weight of the boat and transit less than that of the counter balances, causing it to rise to the upper level where water was again admitted and the boat floated out.
Sullivan contended that his "Hydraulic Lift" was best suited for use in mountainous country such as that to be traversed by the new canal. He also argued his lift would conserve water in dry seasons, but there were more conservative men planning the canal and the Colonel and his schemes were soon forgotten.
The Lackawaxen Coal Mine and Navigation Company and the Dela- ware and Hudson Canal Company, working together, established head- quarters in "Sykes' " Hotel and advertised that the charter of the Dela- ware & Hudson Canal Company "May be seen at the bar of the Tontine Coffee House; or if any person should wish to examine it with more mature deliberation than so public a place will admit, he may procure a copy for that purpose, by calling upon a committee of the Lackawaxen Company, at Sykes' Hotel." One pamphlet which was published during 1824 pointed out that the charter granted to the Delaware & Hudson Canal Company by the State of New York was perpetual, but they neglected to point out that the charter granted to the Lackawaxen Com- pany expired in thirty years, at which time the rights reverted to the State with no provision for renewal by the company. This restriction was to cause the managers a great deal of worry in later years, but it was apparently thought best to keep it from the investing public at the time.
Coal Burning Exhibit
A grate in which anthracite coal could be burned was set up in a fire- place at the Tontine Coffee House and the public invited to come and see the "fine burning qualities of the Lackawaxen Coal" a small quan- tity of which had been rafted to. Philadelphia where it was transferred to the sloop "Toleration;" which reached New York City on December 10, 1824.
Subscription books for the purchase of stock in the Delaware & Hud- son Canal Company were opened on the 7th of January, 1825, and by two p.m. that day all of the stock had been sold. According to advices given out by representatives of both companies, later in 1824, consolida- tion of the two companies had also been planned for January 7, but these plans seem, for some reason, not to have been carried out and the merger was not completed until June, 1825, when the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company succeeded to the rights and privileges. originally granted to Maurice Wurts.
The Wurts brothers, or the Lackawaxen Coal Mine & Navigation Com- pany, which was the same thing, were to receive $40,000 for the mines and their franchise but this was not paid until late in 1827, at which time they received the equivalent in stock.
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ADDRESS.
NOTICE having been given, that Books will be opened on the 7th of January next, to receive subscriptions to the stock of the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company, it is deemed expedient, on behalf of the Lackawaxen Coal Mine and Na- vigation Company, at whose instance the chartered privileges of the former company were granted, briefly to lay before the public a few facts and documents, which have not yet been submitted for its consideration.
The charter of the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company having been published, in pamphlet form, in connexion with the Report of Messrs. Benjamin Wright and J. L. Sullivan, it is deemed unnecessary to give it a place among the docu- ments hereto annexed. Those who may wish to examine it, are respectfully referred to the pamphlet above mentioned .* Suffice it to say, at this time, that the charter is perpetual in its duration, and as liberal in its provisions as could be de- sired. The extent to which the banking privileges may be used in aid of the primary object of the incorporation, will be seen by reference to the Act granting them, which is pub- lished herewith.
The above remarks, as to the liberal and comprehensive nature of the charter of the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company, will also apply to the one under which the Lack-
* This Pamphlet may be seen at the bar of the Tontine Coffee House ; or if any person should wish to examine it with more mature deliberation than so public a place will admit, he may procure a copy for that purpose, by calling 'ipon a Committee of the Lackawaxen Company, at Sykes's Hotel.
the bre he wing and
-.; and furnish an estimate
n may be proper here to remark, that at the time of the passage of the bill, conferring bank privileges, the Lackawaxen Coal Mine and Navigation Com- pany voluntarily agreed, that the Legislature of New-York might, at its next session, pa-s a supplement to the charter, fixing the maximum of toll, between the Delaware and Hudson rivers, upon all articles save Coal, at a rate which will average about 50 per cent. above the tolls charged on the Northern and Western Canals. But the tolls upon Coal are to remain as now fixed in the Charter, so that the Company may retain that trade exclusively in its own hands, if it shall see proper.
Is authorised of the river I likewise be jing the Re- hese several ilvania and to open a Ison river, ge, to the uch terms ntrol and sing from
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" It may not be uninteresting to remark, that the line of the Canal may be so extended, on this route, as to command the trade of the Susquehanna river. The Lackawanock river, which is a fine stream, interlocks with the Lacka- waxen, and discharges its waters into the Susquehanna about nine miles above Wilkesbarre. The statute book of Pennsylvania contains an act, authorising an incorporation of a Company to make a Canal, or lock navigation, on the
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I N SPITE of the avidity with which the public had subscribed to the stock of the company, there were still many who doubted the prac- ticability of building a canal over such mountainous country. The "Gazateer," a New York City newspaper of the time, commented:
"A good deal has been said among some very enterprising and intelligent persons about a canal making an artificial navigation between the Hudson and Delaware Rivers to bring the coal of the Lackawaxen, a river of Pennsylvania, to the New York market.
"People, generally, doubt the practicability of the proposed route, from the vague ideas of the mountain character of the intermediate country."
Early in 1825 the accompanying estimate for the cost of operation, based upon figures supplied by Benjamin Wright, was published. The figures were somewhat low, probably because they were intended to paint a favorable picture of the prospects in view. They are of particular inter- est because they do show prevailing wages.
Also early in 1825 John B. Jervis who had gained a great deal of experience on the Erie Canal under Benjamin Wright, became the Chief Engineer of the Delaware & Hudson, and on July 13th, near the present town of Summitville, Sullivan County, New York, Philip Hone, President of the company and mayor of New York, turned the first shovelful of earth in the construction of the D. & H. Canal. Later the same month the first contract, for construction of sixteen miles of canal known as the "Summit Level" were signed. Two other contracts were let that year for construction between the Delaware and Hudson Rivers. Work con- tinued throughout most of the winter and by early spring construction was moving rapidly.
Encouraged by the success of the Erie Canal, the managers had En- gineer John B. Mills make a detailed survey up the Delaware Valley from the mouth of the Lackawaxen to Deposit with the expressed pur- pose of constructing a branch canal northward and then westward to the Susquehanna River and the southern counties of New York State. Benjamin Wright, then Chief Engineer of the D. and H., was of the opinion that the Erie Canal would be inadequate to meet the needs of western towns and what was more, he argued, the D. and H. being further south would have a longer boating season.
Although advocating this branch canal to compete with the Erie, Wright argued against building the D. and H. with a greater prism than orig- inally planned because "smaller boats were easier to handle and speedier."
The "Kingston Advocate" reported twenty-five hundred men and two hundred teams at work in the spring of 1826 and added that more were needed.
Work on the section between Port Jervis and Kingston continued through 1826 and into 1827, and on July 4, 1827, the following bit of news appeared in the Kingston "Plebian:" :-
"We last week, mis-stated the information of our informant on the subject of letting water into the canal. We should have said that it was expected that the water would be let into the
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canal, that day a week this present day. We do think that the occurrence of that event, on this or at all events some day near at hand, very probable, as we know of no obstacle to pre- vent or retard it."
Water was let into the canal during the first week of July, 1827, and appropriate celebrations were held at Bethany, Wayne County and else- where along the line of the canal. But it was soon found that the banks were too porous to hold a boating head of water; also several of the locks were imperfect so that it was not until September that the first freight, a raft of pine lumber consigned to Theron Steel of Kingston, was shipped from Wawarsing, arriving at its destination on Monday, September 17th.
Because the company was unable to lay its hands on the necessary ready cash, the board of managers found it impossible to proceed with the construction of the canal west of Saw Mill Rift until March of 1827, when an additional eight hundred thousand dollars was obtained, over half of which was in the form of a loan from the State of New York. At that time contracts for the Delaware section and the Lackawaxen section as far as "The Narrows" were let, and work immediately begun. In April contracts for thirteen additional miles beyond the Narrows were signed, bringing the part contracted for to within seven miles of Kean's Pond, the planned terminus, but the report to the stockholders concerning the activities for 1827 explains: "It is determined, after much reflection and examination, to stop the canal at Dyberry Forks and from thence to construct a railroad to the coal mines, a distance of fifteen miles nearly."
This same report states that fifty acres of land (owned by Jason Torrey and William Schoonover) were given to the Delaware & Hudson Canal Company by these far-sighted land owners, who retained a like quantity for themselves, "in consideration of the benefits to accrue to the land which they retained." We can infer from this that the gift of land to the company to some extent influenced the choice of a terminus.
Work was plentiful throughout this section of the country at the time and there was some difficulty in obtaining labor, with the result that there was a temporary increase of about 20 per cent in wages over the daily rate of seventy-five cents, but with the importation of more "wild Irish" wages returned to normal.
With the coming of the canal now a certainty, a group of citizens from Wayne County gave serious consideration to the possibility of construct- ing a branch canal up the Dyberry to a junction with the Lackawanna River parallel to which, the confidently expected, another canal would shortly be built. The plans never went beyond the discussion stage, but during the early days of the canal, the managers were ever hopeful that the State would build a branch canal up the Delaware River from the mouth of the Lackawaxen to bring to the D. & H. the freight of western New York. Benjamin Wright had gone over the ground and reported that "this proposed canal will open a week earlier and close a week later than the Erie Canal. Its route will be shorter and the cost of transportation consequently cheaper."
The signed contracts called for the completion of the entire Lacka- waxen section by July, 1828, and the work was pushed to the limit. The records are not specific as to the maximum number of men employed
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on the Lackawaxen section, but one account states that over six hundred men were at work all winter (1827-1828). The number of wild Irish engaged during the spring and summer of 1828 undoubtedly exceeded that figure by a wide margin and large barracks for housing these men were built near Paupack Eddy (Hawley), and here they soon became the terror of countryside. They were beyond control of the local au- thorities. They fought with the other laborers and among themselves, but their main enemies were the raftsmen and lumbermen, upon whose domain they were encroaching.
Man for man these two factions were an even match and the dislike was mutual. The raftsmen in particular, had, or at least thought they had, a real grievance against the canal and all those connected with it, for the dam being built across the Delaware below the mouth of the Lackawaxen and the feeder dams on the Lackawaxen itself would inter- fere seriously with the navigation of their rafts, and then further water drawn from the river to fill the canal would, they contended, so reduce the river level as to make rafting impossible. The canal itself, they thought, would put an end to, or at least seriously injure, their calling. This would have been a severe blow to many people, for during the late 1820's, on the average of seven million feet of lumber were rafted down the Lackawaxen each year. With this in mind we can more easily under- stand the alarm with which the raftsmen viewed the advance of the canal.
Unfortunately, there are no detailed accounts of these encounters, but Ebeneeaer Scheerer, of Paupack Eddy, a famous Lackawaxen raftsman, claimed to have "cracked a good many Irish skulls" during these early years.
Construction of the canal through the wide flat valley of the Never- sink River and upper Rondout Creek was an easy matter compared to the undertaking along the shores of the Delaware and Lackawaxen where the mountains drop abruptly to the river's edge and numerous cliffs rise abruptly out of the river. The blasting was continuous, and in those days, before the invention of dynamite, it was a slow laborious process. It took hours, even days to drill, by hand, one hole which today could be finished in half an hour or less. The steel or iron rods, which were then in use for drilling, were far below present-day standards of hard- ness and required frequent sharpening. When the blasting hole was finally ready it was partly filled with black gun powder, an uncertain fuse, made of twisted paper, which had been saturated with saltpeter and dried, was inserted and the rest of the hole plugged with not-too-moist clay. When all was ready the "blower" lit the fuse and ran to safety, hoping that, if the fuse did not sputter out, it would fire the powder within a reasonable time. Many were the lives which were lost when a charge hung fire only to explode when the "blower" returned to re- light it.
At the foot of Hawk's Nest Cliff, where the mountain walls rise a sheer three hundred feet out of the Delaware River the canal wall, hugging the base of the cliff, was built up forty feet directly from the river bed. An- other problem presented itself at the Narrows of the Lackawaxen, where the raftsmen, years before, had blasted away the sixteen foot falls. Here the canal also was built along a sheer rock wall and the embankment
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was built upon a cribbing of heavy timbers to a height of thirty feet above the river, which here boils through a narrow gorge no more than forty feet wide.
A mile above the Narrows at the mouth of the Tinkwig Brook the river made a sharp "L" turn. To have followed the river would have made it much too difficult for navigation of the boats. A new channel was dug for the river and the canal embankment built across the mouth of the inlet thus formed. The basin or lake created by this hazardous under- taking which was fed by Tinkwig Brook was known up and down the canal as the "Poolpit" and the rumor that this basin had "no bottom"
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was widely believed. It is a fact, however, that the bed of this old channel was from ten to sixteen feet below the bed of the new channel, and there the trouble lay, for, as the canal was nearing completion in 1828, this embankment gave way for a considerable distance, causing a flash flood and leaving the river obstructed.
This was the opportunity for which the hostile raftsmen were waiting and they lost no time in presenting to the legislature of Pennsylvania
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POOL-PIT BASIN
NARROWS OF THE LACK AWAYEN
their claims that the Canal Company had violated their charter, that the canal embankments were inadequate and that the Delaware dam was improperly constructed so as to make rafting unnecessarily dangerous.
That there were influential interests friendly to the canal is evident from the accompanying reproduction of the rough draft of the resolu- tions proposed to be published in the local papers of Wayne & Pike Counties to refute the allegations of the rafting interests.
It could not but be conceded that "some individual losses had been sustained" because of this break, and as a result the Canal Company was obliged to settle the claims of various raftsmen.
The break also caused considerable delay in the opening date of the canal, for the embankment had to be rebuilt in a more substantial manner. However, the following article appeared in the Albany "Argus" on October 20, 1828.
"The canal is complete and will be ready for navigation on the whole line in the course of the ensuing week, and the railroad, from the termination of the canal to the coal mines, is in a state of forwardness and will be finished during the present season."
The "Argus" reporter was somewhat behind with his news, for it appears that the packet boat "Orange" had left Rondout on October 16th with many notables on board bound for Honesdale. The "Orange" appears to have been the first boat to navigate the entire canal, and upon its arrival at the new settlement, named in honor of the first presi- dent of the Canal Company, the passengers were accorded an elaborate welcome by the local citizens under the leadership of Wayne County's most outstanding citizen, Jason Torrey.
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not
Whereas Memorials have been circulation in this of the axisent Countries, addressed to the Legislature If this Commonwealth Representing that the Delaware i Studion Canal Co. have been quilty. of dining hans prefung & misdemeanors in violations of them chartered Quility=
And theway from an acquaintance with Lesoperations. of the said Solomare & Hludiane
Canal C. we have every reason to believe ·that their conduct has been in perfect courteney with their chantent Rights, and that, notare thestate. come individual itumiss have been sustained by reason of a failed of a part of the works when the Hackamayer they reaction of an imperfections in him down when the Relaciones yet we are not aware that there has been any want of. diligence the part of the said Co. in
there defects & difficulties ; t if this works, com -retir with there Drivers have not yet been book, to that state of justicia - required by there chartis we have every reason to believe that there will be zon delar a. the part of the said Co. but that all Things will be done with the greatest :
pelable dificitet I with perfect good faither Ho the community:
And Whereas the said Memorials have. org. - sister with an individual who entertains en / most deadly hostility to the rights of the said Delaware & Hudson Canal Ca, & who it would.
seem to gratify his maliquity I intrame to our peacharing would be willing not vily " the said Co. but with them the front . - entry & dearest rights of an entire com . Fred Whereas the said allemonialys, combining changes of a very service & aprenated charactin, un founded in fact, have been infrared upan- a large fraction of the unionstationg part of Community, who have since discovent of infarction - Theface
2
Grolved that we viene with indignation of disgust, the motines which digniater the
our prosperity individually, Iar a community is most epicstically connected with the existen I successful operations of that is. which the cuitian of the said Memorials is seats, that the said Co. ( Though they may have circled to pratify the conflicting withes of individuale) have neustrelitz actor with good south towards the Community generally, ist ine consistency with the. Charlie Rechts- 200 4
Analued that the proceedings of this meeting published in the Maque Engine. A other papers, in the adjacent Quintes. fuindly to neleisial improvement
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P HILIP HONE was not amongst the passengers on the first packet. He was far too busy to spare the time to travel by canal boat, but he did arrive at Honesdale by stage on October 28, 1828, and after viewing the gravity railroad he began the return trip to New York, on horse back, along the tow-path of the canal. He was greatly impressed by "the stupendous rock work" at the Narrows of the Lackawaxen and the dam at the mouth of the Lackawaxen.
Again contrary to the report in the "Argus" the Gravity Railroad from Honesdale to the mines was nowhere near completion although a quantity of coal had been hauled over a hastily finished wagon road through Rixe's Gap to Honesdale where by late November, 1828, there was a sufficient quantity on hand to load ten small boats with ten tons each and start them on their history-making voyage to tidewater.
In the lead of this small squadron was the "Superior" in command of Captain Hickson, followed in order by the "United States" commanded by Captain Cortwright; company boat number two commanded by Cap- tain Lomerau and the "Oliver H. Perry" commanded by Captain Ter- williger. Unfortunately the names of the boats, composing the rest of the squadron, and their captains, have been lost in the passage of time.
As this little squadron passed through the various locks and towns, toasts were drunk to-(and by)-the captains and their crews in cele- bration of the great event, and as the boats neared the end of the canal the Kingston band, which had come out to meet the flotilla, boarded the "Superior" and "accompanied it to Rondout amidst the playing of appro- priate airs." At Rondout the boats were greeted by volleys of musketry fired in salute by the assembled militia following which there was a parade and-of course-many speeches. The orators of the day made many fabulous predictions of the future prosperity of the canal but, few, if any, of those present that day realized how far short of the actual truth these seemingly fanciful predictions fell for not one, of the many who gathered to hear those speeches, could foresee that the canal, even if they could have imagined its final larger proportions, would be com- pletely inadequate to carry the quantity of coal later demanded of it.
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