Selections From The Splinters - Volume 12

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Sends profile from Ottawa to Lisbon.

Oak Park, Ill. Aug. 11, 1886

B.F. Booker, Esq.,
Engineer in Charge of Surveys-
Chicago to Kansas City.

Dear Sir:

I have the honor to report the completion of the preliminary survey from Ottawa, Illinois to a junction with the Wisconsin Central RR. south of Oak Park in Sec. 18, Cicero Twp. Cook County, Illinois.

The notes of this survey will appear in 3 sections-

Section #1 - Ottawa to Lisbon, 1089.91 Stations
Section #2 - Lisbon to Plainfield per line "A", 889.30 Stations
Section #3 - Plainfield to Junction with Wisconsin Central, 1480.80 Stations

This report will deal simply with Section #1 the profile of which has just been forwarded you.

I think the profile will show for itself all the information you will desire and I will now confine myself to a few general explanations.

The line from Station 0 to Station 220 was run twice. The elevation at 220 and the general appearance of the country ahead which was rolling and hard to judge led me to think I was well over the troublesome part of the work and I laid a course direct for Lisbon and so confident was I from the appearance of the ground that the rate of rise and fall was less than 0.8 per Station that I paid no more attention to the levels and it was not until I reached Lisbon that I discovered what a mess I had got into. It seems that the summit of Station 360 is 40 or 50 ft. higher than the general elevation of the prairie and my tangent took the line over about the highest point. This can be avoided by keeping south ½ mile.

I have shown 3 - 10 ft. raises of grade on the profile so that the grade line would show about average work through this section. Only the first of these is necessary. The other two can be thrown out by being on lower ground with the line. There is no chance to reduce the heavy 25 ft. fill between Station 30 and 45. On my small map of Illinois (which I send you again; I have Mr. Randall's line - Ottawa to Plainfield - via Newark, part blue and part red). My present line by a full red line and a possible line from Station 2040 of Mr. Randall's line (Ottawa to Newark) to Lisbon by a dotted red line.

These lines compare as follows -

Mr. Randall's line = 2021.35 Stations
Dotted line = 1957. "
Ropes' line = 1942.21 "

to Plainfield or a saving on my line of 79 stations and 15 stations respectively.

The length of the dotted line was computed from the map and when measured might prove shorter than my line, besides, I shall have to lose about 1500 feet of distance on my line in order to get the proper location, thus making the last two mentioned lines about equal in length.

In comparing my line with Randall's call Station 47 = 1930 R's line and at Plainfield Station 0 of my preliminary "A" = 3956 of R's line. At Newark, Mr. Randall's junction of two lines is Station 2837+35 = 2842.

The obvious result of the above comparison is that the difference between my line and the dotted line is so small that before a final decision could be made, both lines would have to be carefully located and compared.

I am having a map prepared and shall be able to send you a tracing in a day or two.

Yours most respectfully
(Signed) Horace Ropes
Locating Engineer

Volume 12 Splinters transcribed in altered form for the web by Matt Lee.

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