234 [Assembly 



STREET PAVING. 



By m. e. THOMPSON, of New-Yofk. 



Street Commissioner's Oppic 

 J^ew-YorK Feb. 25, 1848 



ICE, ) 



Dear Sir — In pursuance of the reference to nae by the American 

 Institute on the subject of " Street Paving,'' I" enclose you the fol- 

 lowing report, in which I have endeavored to express my views and 

 the results of my observations and experience. 



MARTIN E. THOMPSON, 

 Street Commissioner. 

 T. B. Wakkman, Esq., 



Cor. Sec. of the Jim. Instituto 



The common pebble pavement which is in general use here has 

 been laid in the following manner: first the road bed is excavated 

 to the depth of about two feet, the full width of the part intended to 

 be paved, or from curb to curb of the side walks; the space is then 

 filled with clean sand and gravel to within six inches of the top of 

 the pavement, and well rammed or rolled. The paving stone, of an 

 oval shape, of from six to ten inches in their longest diameter, are 

 then bedded into the sand, with the smallest end downw^ard, being 

 set perpendicularly and as close to each other as they can be made 

 to fit; they should then be well rammed, after which they should be 

 inspected, taking out til soft or fractured stone; they should then be 

 covered with sand, and be well brushed with a broom made of 

 brush, or some other tough elastic twigs of trees, till the top of the 

 pavement is bare, a second ramming should then be given, leaving 

 the surface as even as possible, and if a heavy roller could then be 

 passed over the surface it would add much to the solidity of the 

 pavement, After the final ramming or rolling has been finished it 

 should be covered with about two inches of clean, sharp sand, to be 

 pressed into the interstices by the travelling of carriages. If the 

 pavement could be left to receive a heavy rain, and then to remain 

 till the sand had become fully dried to the depth of a foot below the 



