' The Alaska Railroad;
A Development Project
(Continued from Page One)
party started operations from Chit
ina before supplies from Seattle
could reach them. The supplies for
all the other parties were secured I
in Seattle.
The advance guard of the Al-'
w a'kan Engineering commission’s
forces, composed of five men, with
twenty horses, lumber and supplies,
left Seattle on May 26th, on the
steamship Dirigo, to establish head
I Quarters at Ship creek. They ar
rived at their destination on June
6th, and with some local help pro
ceeded to erect some wooden build
ings for the use of the commission, j
and corrals for the horses. Con- j
siderable land had to be cleared for j
this purpose.
On May 29th, party No. 2 left j
Seattle on the steamship Alameda:
for Passage canal, arriving at their j
destination June 6th. On the same
steamship was the assistant master i
v of tranportation and two packers, i
in charge of eighteen horses des
tined for Fairbanks via Skagway j
and Whitehorse.
On June 3d, a member of the j
commission, with 37 men, left Se- \
attle on the steamship Dolphin for
Fairbanks and vicinity, via Skag
way. This comprised the nucleus
of parties Nos. 7, 8, and 9, which
were to cover the country north of
Broad pass. They arrived at the
mouth of the Nenana river, on the
Tanana river, on June 15th. Par
ties Nos. 7 and 9 were unloaded;!
party No. 8 disembarked at Fair-|
banks June 16th. The parties were j
Tecruited to their full strength, and j
necessary additional horses to the I
number of forty-four were pur- j
chased locally. Party No. 7 left j
Nenana for Broad pass as soon as j
fully supplied with men, horses,!
and provisions, on Tune 20th. Par- j
* ty No. 8 was in the field June 20th. j
To survey alternate routes from
Nenana to Fairbanks, two addi
tional parties were organized and
put in charge of assistant engineers
promoted in the field. One route
to be surveyed was from the Tan
ana river crossing near Nenana up ^
Goldstream to Fairbanks. The oth-j
•er route followed along the south!
side of the Tanana river from Ne-!
nana to the upper Tanana crossing
near Chena. These two parties were
organized and equipped locally in
Fairbanks. They were at work on
l June 23d. A pack-train of eleven'
horses was hired for the Goldstream j
party, while the party south of the |
Tanana was served by launch. A
50-foot power barge, with her;
freight barge, the Midnight Sun,
was lent to the commission for the
season by the commissioner of the'
Alaska boundary survey. The boat 1
and barge were used for transport- f
ing supplies to camps on the Tan
ana river.
On June 5th and 6th, the re-j
-maining six parties, viz., 1, 3, 4, 5, j
6, and 11, with ninety-one horses
and a large amount of supplies for
^ the headquarters camp at Ship
creek, left Seattle on the steamships
Admiral Sampson and Northwesi
■ern. Accompanying them were two
members of the commission. Party
No. 6, consisting of thirteen men!
and thirty-eight horses, disembarked
at Cordova on June 12th for the
► trip to Broad pass. Party No. 1,
consisting of twenty-five men, dis
embarked at Seward on June 13th j
This party was divided into two
sections, one taking up the valua- ]
tion of the Alaska Northern rail
road, and the other making surveys
looking to possible grade reductions ,
on that line. Parties Nos. 3, 4, 5,
and 11 continued on to Ship creek,
where they disembarked on June
15th. The next two days were
spent largely ir, getting supplies
and horses ashore.
All supplies arriving at Ship
creek (Anchorage l have to be
lightered ashore, a distance of about
a mile, and then transferred a short
distance up the bank to the camp
site. The tidal range being over
thirty feet, this can be accom
* plished only at certain periods.
Available for their purposes the
commission had one navy steam
launch, transferred from the bureau
of mines, together with a large
barge, and numerous barges and;
gasoline launches belonging to pri
vate parties.
Conduct of Surreys.
In order to best facilitate the
work, two main bases of supplies
were selected, one at Ship creek, in
Cook inlet, and one at Fairbanks,
in the Interior of Alaska, and at
the northern end of the route to
be surveyed.
i Ship creek, or Knik Anchorage,
as it is sometimes called, is situ
ated on Knik arm of Cook inlet,
about twenty miles south of the
little settlement of Knik. It is at
the head of navigation for ocean
going steamships. At this point,
transfer of freight and passengers
is made • to launches and barges,
and thence transported to Knik, on
Turnagain arm, or up the Susitna
river. It is within about four miles
of the main line of survey of the
Western route, and is therefore a
very favorable point for the distri
bution of supplies. At Ship creel:
was established the headquarters
camp.
As Fairbanks was the only town
of size in the Inteiror within rea
sonable distance of the work, it was
selected as the distributing point
for that region. It was decided
that it was more expedient to pur
chase most of the supplies required
by -the parties working in the
Northern section, in Fairbanks. It
would have resulted in delay and
additional expense if these supplies
had been purchased in Seattle and
shipped from that point via the
Skagwav-Yukon route.
Work Authorised.
The work of surveying: out the
various routes from the coast to
the Interior, assigned to the vari
ous parties in the field, was rushed
forward vigorously, and a detailed
report was submitted to the Presi
dent through the secretary of the
interior.
On April 10, 1915, the President
issued an order outlining the se
lected route from the town of Sew
ard, on the westerly shore of Res
urrection bay, to the Tanana river
at its confluence with the Nenana
river, a distance of 416 miles, more
or less. The order also authorized
the purchase of the Alaska North
ern railroad and the construction
of a branch line to the Matanuska
coal fields, a distance of 38 miles
from a point on the main line se
lected by the Alaskan Engineering
Commission.
Work Commenced.
Actual preparatory work was
commenced almost simultaneously at
the coast and interior ends of the
railroad. In June, 1916, the clear
ing of right-of-way from Nenana
southward and the clearing of the
Nenana townsite was taken in hand.
The work was directed from the
head office established at Fairbanks.
A party was also sent to Happy
station, near Fairbanks, under a
resident engineer, and preparatory
work was undertaken for the build
ing of a railroad from Nenana to
connect with the Tanana Valley
railroad at this point. Clearing and ,
grading operations were also com- ]
menced on the Fairbanks line, from
the Nenana end.
Settlers also began to arrive in
Nenana, and as townsite lots were
not available, nondescript buildings
of a temporary nature were hur
riedly constructed. These consisted j
mostly of tents, and thus Nenana
had its beginning.
With the transfer of the head of
fice from Fairbanks to Nenana and
the sale of townsite lots shortly
afterward, the present town of Ne
nana began to take shape. The
contracts let for grading and clear
ing also had progressed consider
ably, and a light narrow-gauge rail
road soon began to creep out from
Nenana toward the Broad Pass
country. The narrow-gauge road
extended south for a distance of
about seven miles to Bailey sta
tion, where a corral and supply!
depot were established. Grading
contracts were then let in great
number and the work of extending |
the road was rushed- After having
been in sendee for about four or I
five months, the narrow-gauge road
was converted into a standard-gauge j
road. Rolling stock in the way of'
locomotives and cars was received i
during the summer of 1917 and
the trains were operated for a dis
tance of about sixteen miles.
The summer of 1917 also proved
disastrous for the railroad. An arm
of the Nenana river, known as Lost
slough, which crosses the right-of
way at a point about twenty miles
south of Nenana, was invaded by
the main river, and the large body
of water, in forcing a passage
through the narrow slough, soon
overflowed its banks and washed
out a considerable portion of the
completed road and rendered fur
ther extension practically impossi
ble. Every effort was made to dam
the mouth of the slough and divert
the waters to the former channel,
but without avail, and a considerable
stretch of completed railroad had
j to be abandoned and another route,
| which will carry the line away from
I further encroachments by the river,
had to be selected.
Mr. Frederick D. Browne, a lo
teating engineer of wide experience,
sent by the Alaskan Engineering
Commission, arrived in Nenana to
ward the latter part of May, 1918.
t# take charge of the work on this
division. After a preliminary ex
amination of the country, a survey
was ordered on June 3d, with a view
to making a line change.
The line change was approved
and the work of construction was
authorized on June 20, 1918. This
was known as the D line, and com
mencing from a point on the main
line about three miles south of
town, extended for a distance of 21
miles to the point where it again
joined the old location.
Construction work was started on
the D line on June 22, 1918, and
the distance was completed on Oc
tober 31st of the same year. Work
on this line was continued night
and day so that trains were op
erated immediately after its com
pletion.
The work of completing the road
farther south was a comparatively
easy matter, as the grade had been
completed and put in readiness for
the steel. The work was rapidly
pushed forward, and by the end of
April of the present year it was
possible to operate trains as far as
Mile 365, which is within a very
short distance of the Nenana coal
j fields at Lignite.
The summer's work for the 1919
| season is nearing an end now,
and all of the available forces of
'the Alaskan Engineering Commis
jsion have been concentrated on the
[line between Nenana and Fairbanks,
| in an effort to establish through
communication by rail with Fair
banks. It is expected that a jour
ney by train to Fairbanks will b«
possible during the early winter.
•_
COAST DIVISION.
Intelligence, efficiency and econ
omy have characterized the work of
the Alaskan Engineer Commission
in building and operating the gov
ernment railroad, in the opinion of
Anchorage business men. Aet'ng
through their Chamber of Com
merce, they have addressed to sen
ators and representatives in Con
gress a pamphlet setting forth, in
brief yet comprehensive form, what
has been accomplished on the fed
eral transportation project in the j
Anchorage division. Their pamphlet
is in the nature of an answer to J
all criticisms that recently have been
directed at the management of the j
enterprise. The text of the pam- j
phlet follows:
“If you want to know about the
government railroad being built in
Alaska, read what the citizens of
Anchorage have to say concerning j
the Anchorage division, which com
prises 280 miles of government rail- 1
road and begins near the northern j
end of the Alaska Northern railway
and extends to the summit of the,
Alaska range.
“The most expensive work on this'
division and probably on the whole
road is along Turnagain arm and i
on the branch to the Matanuska
coal fields, and this work has been
completed.
“Track has been laid and trains'
are operated over 154 miles of new
main line as far north as Talkeetna,;
and 38 miles of branch line, making
a total of 192 miles on this divi- j
sion. This does not include the
many miles of track in yards and
sidings. In addition, 30 miles of
roadbed are ready for the track
north of Talkeetna.
“More than six miles of wooden
bridges have been built.
“Twenty-four hundred acres of
right-of-way have been cleared and
grubbed.
More than 3,000,000 cubic yards
of solid rock and nearly 6,000,000
cubic yards of other material, in
| eluding loose rock, frozen material,
jearth, etc., have been moved.
“Two hundred and thirty miles of
! trails and 195 miles of wagon roads
were built to get supplies and out
| fits to camps.
I “Approximately 350 miles of tele
I graph and telephone lines have been
| constructed.
“More than 200 buildings, both
temporary and permanent, have
| been erected to house employes and
| care for supplies. These buildings
j include the general office building;
j permanent hospital with up-to-date
(equipment, having a capacity for 64
| patients; power houses, cold stor
jage plant, etc., located at Anchor-J
i age.
“Coal mines were opened at Eska:
j creek and Chickaloon by the Alas
!kan Engineering Commission; equit
jment was bought, houses were built,
j and 90,000 tons of coal mined and
I shipped from these mines in two
| years.
“Temporary wharves and docks
I were built at Anchorage, over which
j 20,000 passengers and 188,000 tons
| of freight have been handled in
! three years. A permanent dock is
under construction.
“Seven water tanks, five pumping
plants, three and one-half miles of
water mains, one and one-half miles
of sewer, and many incidentals
have been supplied and constructed,
all necessary adjuncts and required
| to carry on this work.
j ‘‘There are now on the Anchor
age division 12 locomotives receiv
! ed from Panama, all rebuilt and as
i good as new; five passenger cars,
i 421 freight and other cars, besides
j five steam shovels, a number of
: cranes, piledrivers, tugs, barges,
lighters, etc.
“There is a marine ways for re
pairing and taking care of floating
equipment.
‘There are also ample contrac
! tors’ equipment and tools, not only
sufficient to complete the road, but
having a salvage value when con
struction is finished.
“Since the first train was op
erated less than three years ago,
‘nearly 100,000 passengers and one
j quarter of a million tons of freight
have been handled over the rails.
“What about townsites?
“Three townsites have been laid
I out along the government railroad
j in the Anchorage division, and lots
'sold. They are Anchorage, Matan
uska. and Wasilla. In these town
sites there have been 143 acres of
land cleared. 10 miles of streets
! graded, nearly five miles of wooden
land one and one-fourth miles of
! cement sidewalks laid, seven and
i one-fourth miles of water mains and
tone and one-fourth miles of sewers
j installed. Payment for these im-'
| provements is made from funds re
eeived from lot sales and by assess
ment.
“What is there at Anchorage*
“There is a large public school
I building, five churches, and some
jSOO privately-owned stores and resi
jdences, including several buddings!
that cost from $20,000 to $0.1,000,
tacb. The government has a mu
nicipal building, a federal and jail j
building, telephone and electric
building, postoffice building, pump
jing plant, water tank, warehouse,
fire station building, cottages for
.families of employes, living quar
ters, etc.
“The sanitary conditions are ex
cellent. There have not been any
epidemics of typhoid fever or other
contagious diseases, except influ
enza.
i “The business men of Anchorage
are practically all Alaskans, men
who have been in the territory many
years.
“The harbor at Anchorage is free
of ice practically eight months of
the year, which is as long a season
as the port of Duluth, which han
dles as much tonnage as any port
in the United States, and when per
manent dock facilities are provided,
which will be done a: a very small
cost, ships can come to Anchorage
every month of the year without
; breaking ice. Twenty thousand pass
j engers and nearly 200,000 tons of
freight were landed in this harbor
| without the necessity of any dredg
ing. There was some dredging done
i
PHONE 60 FIRST AND A STREETS
The Portland
Nenana’s Largest and Most
Up-to-Date House
ICE CREAM SOFT DRINKS
CANDIES FRUITS
CIGARS TOBACCO
BILLIARDS, POOL FREEZEOUT. AND PAN
O. M. JACKSON ALF EKELAND
last year in front of the new per
manent dock, which will require a
small amount of such work—about
300,000 yards.
“What about politics?
“There has been no politics in
the Alaskan Engineering Commis
sion here.
“Efficiency, merit and loyalty to
the government are the qualifica
tions required to obtain work on
the government railroad.
“Has there been inefficiency or
waste in the construction of the
government railroad?
“Evidently not. for although la
bor and materials have advanced
from 33 1-3 per cent to 100 per
cent, the completed cost of the road
will exceed the estimate made in
1914 by only a little over one
fourth. so if prices had remained
at the same level as when the esti
mate was made, the cost of con
traction would have been below the
original estimate.
me men in charge ot the con
struction work under Mr. William
C. Edes, the present head of the
commission, are all railroad en
gineers of many years’ experience,
drawn from such roads as the
Southern Pacific, the Great North
ern. the Northern Pacific and other
roads in the States.
“We the business men and resi
dents of Anchorage, who have been
here since the work was started and
who have observed the work from
year to year, know that it has been
carried on in a strictly business-like
manner, and that there has been no
waste or negligence on this divi
sion.
“Has the present constructed por
tion of the railroad been of any
benefit to miners, prospectors and
other-residents of Alaska?
“It has. As an example: It for
merly cost more than 25 cents per
pound to move freight from tide
water at Anchorage to Chickaloon
by packtrain. Now it costs less
than one-half cent per pound by
railroad. It formerly cost at least
six cents per pound to move freight
from tidewater at Anchorage to Wa
silla by dogsled. Today it costs
■ one-third of one cent per pound by
| railroad.
“The railroad enabled farmers o
; locate in the Matanuska valley and
j raise potatoes and other supplies,
6,000 tons having been produced
since the railroad started construc
tion, part of which has been sent
to cities as far south as Seattle.
“The railroad has a first-class
roadbed and track from the coai
j mines to tidewater at Anchorage,
.and sufficient coal-handling machin
ery and other equipment on hand
to load 2,000 to 3,000 tons of coal
per day into ships or barges.
"Has any private monopoly the
| cream of the Matanuska coal fields?
"Emphatically XO!
"There are two operators who
j have units leased from the govern
ment in the Matanuska coal fields.
One operator at the present time
has suspended on account of lack
of capital; the other would gladly
exchange his unit for the one the
government has reserved and is op
erating.
i “Has the railroad generally been
located in the proper place?
“We believe it has. It is the
1 shortest distance from tidewater to
the navigable waters of the Interior.
It has the best grade within th"
Territory of Alaska. It penetrates
a region rich in natural resources.
“The waters of Cook inlet abound
with fish, and the fishing industry
will be an important one. The rail
road passes through 648,000 acres
■of agricultural land in the Matan
i uska and Susitna valleys, in which
sufficient produce can be raised to
i supply the whole territory. The
railroad taps the Matanuska and
N'enana coal fields. Adjacent to the
railroad are productive mines and
many prospects of mineral deposits.
“In conclusion, business men and
residents of Anchorage submit, in
justice to the Department of the In
terior and the Alaskan Engineering
Commission, that construction and
operation activities on the govern
ment-owned railroad in the Anchor
age division have been directed and
effected intelligently, efficiently and
economically.”
i PIONEER EXPRESS S
Wood Coal
Water
Hauling of All Kinds
g PETE SCHMIDT, Prop. |
A