

HOOSAC TUNNEL. 



357 



stake. Nine years had elapsed since the work 

 was undertaken, and yet only about one- 

 twelfth of the whole length had been exca- 

 vated, and that in a very small section. An 

 entirely new line was now established, follow- 

 ing the axis between the centre of the west 

 shaft and the centre of the work at the east 

 end, bringing the line out 18 feet north of 

 the old we.st portal. At the east end the old 

 bore was made available by enlarging it, while 

 the west end was begun anew. The position 

 of the central shaft was determined, and work 

 upon it was begun in December, 1863. 



The next epoch in the history of this gigan- 

 tic enterprise dates from 1868, when the State 

 decided, after much public discussion, to have 

 the work completed on contract. At this time 

 the total length of the east heading and tun- 

 nel was 5,282 feet, while 4,056 feet, in various 

 stages of advancement, had been pierced from 

 the west end eastward ; and the central shaft 

 Im 1 baen sunk 583 feet, leaving 15,693 feet of 

 tunnel and 457 of the central shaft to be ex- 

 cavated. 



In December, 1868, the contract was award- 

 ed to Walter and Francis Shanly, of Canada, 

 for $4,623,069, the work to be completed by 

 March 1, 1874. The tunnel was to be 24 feet 

 in width, and 24 feet high in the clear, while 

 where arching was required it was to bo 26 

 feet wide in the clear, and 21J feet high above 

 the rails. Under this contract the work was 

 vigorously and successfully prosecuted day and 

 night. On Thanksgiving day, November 27, 

 1873, the workmen advancing from both ends 

 met, and light was admitted through the en- 

 tire tunnel. 



The whole length of the tunnel is 25.031 

 feet, or four and three-quarter miles. It is 26 

 feut wide, by a height varying from 23 to 26 

 feit, wherever a brick arch is used. Passing 

 through solid rock excavation, the section is 

 reduced to 24 wide by 20 high. As originally 

 projected the tunnel was intended for a single 

 traak, but the enlargement made by the State 

 gives it a capacity for a double track. The 

 open cut of the new tunnel at the west end 

 extends into a portion of the Haupt tunnel 

 which strikes it diagonally. It is probable 

 that the old tunnel will be used as a culvert to 

 carry off the water from the west end. 



The tunnel grade is 26 feet to the mile for 

 nearly the whole distance, rising from each 

 portal toward the central shaft, and leaving a 

 short length of level immediately under the 

 shaft. The height of the interior summit over 

 the portal will be something over 60 feet. 

 This dip in the grade each way from the centre 

 was made to secure good drainage. 



This grade in the tunnel has necessitated 

 some very careful labor in carrying the eleva- 

 tions. The main difficulty was to establish the 

 three tunnel points of the ea-it and west ends, 

 and at the foot of the central shaft, in proper 

 relations to each other. To reach this, the 

 engineers carefully went over the mountain 



with their leveling instruments and deter- 

 mined the' relative position of the portals, and 

 the depth of shaft which should be sunk to 

 reach the proper grade at ns bottom in the 

 tunnel. 



The tunnel has two shafts: one near the 

 west end, only 318 feet deep ; and the other, 

 or central shaft, nearly in the middle of the 

 tunnel. The central shaft is an ellipse 27 feet 

 long by 15 feet wide, and is sunk to a depth 

 of 1,028 feet. The west shaft was sunk prior 

 to 1861 by Haupt, after his encounter with the 

 "demoralized" material at the west end. It 

 was sunk so as to enter the mountain where 

 it was solid, and supposed to be free from 

 water. 



The central shaft was sunk for two purposes : 

 first, to secure two facings, one east and one 

 west, and thus expedite the work; and, sec- 

 ondly, to afford ventilation for the tunnel. It 

 is a matter of great doubt whether the tunnel, 

 constructed as it is with a grade from each 

 portal to the centre, would ventilate itself at 

 all. Since this shaft was built, and connection 

 made with the east end, a strong draught is ob- 

 tained from it, and the tunnel is readily cleared 

 from smoke and gases. Before communication 

 from the east was opened with the shaft, the 

 introduction of a locomotive into the tunnel 

 to carry off the debris was a source of great 

 discomfort, and even sickness, to the men. 

 Now this difficulty is entirely removed. On 

 the completion of the whole tunnel, the west 

 shaft will be closed up, to secure a better 

 draught for the central one. 



In May, 1872, it was estimated by the State 

 Auditor that the road and tunnel would cost 

 the State $12,792,233. It is believed that the 

 actual cost of the tunnel alone will be about 

 $10,000,000. It is thought that the tunnel will 

 be completed and ready for use as a part of 

 the through railway-line by September, 1874. 

 It many be here stated that the Mont-Cenis 

 Tunnel, the only one in the world longer than 

 the Hoosac, is seven and four-fifths miles long, 

 and after fourteen years' progress was opened 

 September 17, 1871, at a cost of about $13,- 

 000.000. 



Now that the tunnel is approaching comple- 

 tion, the most important question before the 

 people of Massachusetts is, what to do with 

 their 44 miles of railroad and tunnel. The 

 original purpose with respect to the tunnel 

 was to open, in conjunction with roads then in 

 operation, a new and competing line between 

 Boston and the Hudson Eiver. The situation 

 has somewhat changed since the work was 

 begun. The objective point is still a point 

 reached over the Boston and Albany, but con- 

 solidation and concentration of business have 

 altered the conditions of competition. The 

 Boston and Albany has now a double-track, 

 fully-equipped road, and, by its connections 

 and contracts, is ?neasurably enabled to con- 

 trol freight to the lakes. That the population 

 along its line requires and sustains frequent 



