II 



This map shows the meadow area lying within the limits of 

 the cities of Newark and Elizabeth, partly in Essex County, 

 partly in Union County. The line of the Central Railroad of 

 New Jersey running between Broad Street Station, Newark, and 

 Elizabeth, is shown as running through this meadow area ap- 

 proximately north and south and forming a dike about 4^2 miles 

 long, which was utilized without expense to the counties in 

 protecting the meadow to the west of this railroad. The drained 

 area is clearly indicated by the lighter shading. It would have 

 been very simple if the dams with tide-gates could have been 

 put across Peddie Ditch, Maple Island Creek, and Bound Creek, 

 where these are crossed by this branch of the Central Railroad; 

 but this was deemed unadvisable because of the large amount of 

 sewage draining into Peddie Ditch, and because of the naviga- 

 tion of the other streams by hay boats. Advantage was taken 

 of the dredged material thrown up on both sides of Peddie 

 Ditch by the sewer department of the City of Newark, and 

 this added nearly four miles more of dikes at no expense to 

 the county. 



The Mosquito Commissions constructed the dikes along the 

 other creeks west of the railroad and where large streams or 

 ditches were crossed by the dikes, tide-gates were installed. 

 These consisted of sluiceways which permitted the water to flow 

 in one direction only. At low tide the water which had ac- 

 etxmuiated in the ditches would run out until the rising tide 

 reached the level of the water on the meadow area, then the 

 tide-gates would close automatically, and the flow would stop 

 until the tide had reached its full height and had fallen again 

 below the level of the water in the ditches on the meadow side 

 of the dike. Not only has it been found possible 'by this method 

 to keep the water level on the meadows down to mean tide 

 level, or what is known as "sea level," but the seemingly im- 

 possible thing of making water run uphill has been actually 

 accomplished; for during a large part of the time the water in 

 the ditches on the protected side of the dikes has been kept 

 nearly one foot below mean tide, or sea level. More than 20 

 tide-gates are used to drain this area west of the Central Rail- 



