Source:Great-bridge
"A great bridge to be remodeled: Changes to be made on wonderful Ohio Connecting structure at Esplen: Railroad baseball parade: Will hold a great demonstration to-morrow afternoon—great R. R. wall contracted for here: News from all the railroads." Pittsburg Post, Oct. 1, 1901, p. 10. Newspapers.com 86364868.
The greatest railroad bridge in Pennsylvania which is located in the Pittsburg district is to be remodeled. This is the wonderful structure spanning the Ohio river between lower Allegheny and Esplen borough, and known as the Ohio Connecting bridge. This wonderful webwork of steel has two channel spans, one over each channel of the river which separates the island from each shore. When it was built more than 24 years ago, it was considered one of the marvels of the world, and passengers from New York, Chicago, St. Louis and Cleveland who view it from P. Ft. W. & C., Pittsburg & Lake Erie and Panhandle trains to-day wonder at its splendid proportions.
When this bridge was first planned the engineers arranged to have the abutments and piers built first, and then they had the two immense channel spans constructed at the bridge works close to the river on barges. These barges supporting the spans complete were floated down to a position immediately under the piers and abutments and controlled by tow boats, were floated down in the proper position and sunk by boring holes in their holds, and the massive spans were allowed to slowly settle to their proper places. This great task was completed successfully but the promoters of the Ohio Connecting railroad never realized that they would be compelled to finally double-track the bridge and spend many thousands of dollars for widening the roads that feed it and building new trestle works and stone retaining walls.
Now the work of remodeling the piers and abutments at the west end for a new connecting line has been started, and one by one the stone blocks are being dug out and space prepared for a foundation for the connecting track from Esplen which will form a Y reaching the Pittsburg, Chartiers & Youghiogheny from the west side and the Ohio Connecting railroad from the east side, via the Sheridan yards branch line, which has been improved at a cost of $200,000.
It is admitted that the bridge will have to be entirely reconstructed soon to meet the requirements of modern traffic. When it was built the heaviest locomotive did not weigh over 125,000 pounds and the average weight of an ordinary freight car was not more than 40,000 pounds.
At present the standard engine weighs 180,000 pounds and the standard steel car weighs 36,500 pounds without its load, and loaded weighs 136,500 pounds. The bridge is capable yet of sustaining this weight, but the traffic is more than they can handle over it.
The local passenger agents and freight agents have arranged for a big demonstration to-morrow to present the cup which was described in the "Sunday Post." This parade will start between 1 and 2 p. m., and will be the event of the season. A meeting was held yesterday morning at which all the preliminary arrangements were completed. The following committees were appointed:
Executive committee—F. H. Tristram, C. W. Bassett, C. A. Boyden and E. C. Dunnavant.
Finance committee—E. A. Richter, E. D. Cornston, C. H. Jackson and H. Clevenger.
Press committee—L. T. Fowler, J. R. James, O. J. Hammon and J. R. Pott.
Carriage committee—G. W. Lukens, G. Winthrop and E. C. Williams.
Parade committee—J. E. Weller, W. P. McCormick and C. H. Kingsbury.
Cup committee—F. H. Tristram, J. R. James and E. A. Richter.
Music committee—E. C. Morgan, R. L. Gallagher and W. Milligan.
Badge committee—Sydney VanDusen, E. [⸺ke] and O. M. Connelly.
Reception, hurrah and whoop-'er-up committee—T. H. Grill, chairman, to be assisted by all railroad men on the grounds.
Mascot committee—C. O'D. Pascault, Albert Arnold, E. D. Smith and J. M. Bellville.
Strenuous committee—W. B. Chislett, W. G. Funk, Charles Marthens, Sam Lauck, W. D. Lichliter, Tucker Hunt and John Kline.
Umpire-mobbing committee—L. T. Fowler, J. C. Armstrong and Perry Griffin.
Noise committee—Messrs. Fowler, Gleason and Wallace.
Bouncers' committee—Messers. [sic] Young Constance and Bristol.
It is expected that the Duke and Duchess of York will be here, but this is doubted. It is certain, however, that Walter Townsend, of Buffalo, will be here with a squad of Indians. It will certainly be a magnificent parade unless some unforeseen weather conditions prevail.
The latest important rumor is that the Allegheny shops of the P. & W. and the Glenwood shops of the B. & O. may be concentrated at New Castle junction. The division terminal yards are to be established at this junction and it will be a very important central point on the system. They have arranged now to run all trains between Painesville and New Castle, between Chicago junction and New Castle, at that point as already explained trains for Connellsville will be made up and run through via Pittsburg. This will necessitate a vast amount of repair work at New Castle, and as the ground on which the Allegheny and Glenwood shops are located is very valuable the company may decide on a concentration at New Castle, and may build new and modern shops at that place.
The company owns a considerable amount of ground at New Castle now but it is all taken up by the big yards and these yards will not be any too large for the additional business which will be handled when the place is made the division point.
Work has just been commenced on another great and expensive section of stone retaining wall between Saw Mill Run and a point near Esplen. This will be several hundred yards in length and about 45 feet high, and will cost over $100,000. It will complete the new wall from Esplen to Painter's Mill, nearly a mile in length, which will support the new Panhandle four-track system. This has been one of the most expensive pieces of masonry work undertaken in Pittsburg in many years, but it will make further expense unnecessary, as it has been built to last for many ages.
It is proposed to elevate the wall from near Point bridge to a point near Birmingham, so as to correspond with the new grade which is about 15 feet higher at one place than the old tracks, but tapers gradually both ways.
An army of men is concentrated below Hasleton, leveling down the Mahoning terrace for the new Pittsburg & Lake Erie yards. The entire terrace is being excavated to a depth of from six to 12 feet, and at least 25 acres of the topography will be changed. Contractor Thomas McNally has an army of men at work, and there are a number of steam shovels and dump cars in use, with many narrow-gauge locomotives. Here the great freight traffic of the Pittsburg & Lake Erie will be divided up for Ashtabula, Cleveland and other points, and the freight coming from these points bound for Pittsburg and the Shenango valley will be run in on tracks suitably arranged to facilitate the handling of the cars. The main tracks of the Little Giant will pass through the center so that the curves on the present line, near the river bank can be eliminated.
Conrad Carbaugh, of Johnstown, has been granted a patent on a new form of rail joint.
J. E. King, engineer on the Baltimore & Ohio, has returned from a trip to the Pan-American Exposition.
The Moran Contracting Company has received some new dump cars which are being unloaded in the vicinity of Woodville.
The Pennsylvania has ordered 300 combination steel and wooden box cars, the first order of the kind given by this company.
Most of the nickle [sic] steel rails put down on the Pennsylvania railroad as an experiment two or three years ago have been taken up.
The Ohio Valley Express is still running through between this city and Cincinnati, but they are making a transfer of crews at Kenova.
Most of the local railroad men who went to Buffalo for Railroad Day returned on Sunday. They say that the exercises were of an interesting nature.
Owing to many improvements the Pittsburg & Lake Erie has about six slow orders on the main line at present. The nature of the work necessitates these.
At Connellsville the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company has established the position of night general yardmaster, and T. E. Jameson has been given the job.
Some of the ponderous new freight engines of the 2000 class are now hauling freight on the Pittsburg & Western between this city and Akron and Painesville.
C. G. Strayer, of the general passenger office of the Pittsburg & Lake Erie, was in Youngstown on Sunday. Mr. Strayer is a pleasant gentleman and has many friends in Pittsburg.
Conductor Frank Murray of the Pittsburg & Lake Erie took his annual vacation at Cleveland and Buffalo. He happened to be in Buffalo on the day President McKinley was shot.
A hot box on engine No. 93, hauling train No. 20 on the Pittsburg & Lake Erie, caused considerable trouble on Sunday evening. It was a very stubborn thing for the men to contend with.
Colonel T. E. Watt, Western Division passenger agent of the Pennsylvania railroad at this city, returned yesterday from his vacation trip, which was enjoyed in an overland trip through the mountains of Central Pennsylvania.
Engineer W. J. Harris, of the Pittsburg, Ft. Wayne & Chicago, has returned to work, after spending a two weeks' vacation trip with his brother-in-law, Mr. John W. Watson, a well-known Panhandle conductor, who resides at Dennison, O.
