The New York Herald Newspaper, May 2, 1851, Page 2

ORIGINAL ARTICLES. j New York and Erie Ratlroad—History of Its | Origin, Progress and Completion. ‘The completion of the New York and Erie R. road forms an era in the history of this Stat second only in importanee—in its influence aud bearing upon the interests of the city and State of New York—to that of the opening of the Erie canal. ‘The event of the completion of the canal was ce brated in this city about twenty-five years since, | namely,on the ith of November, 1825, and its wonder- ful effects on the commerce, trade and prosperity of New York,ave universally admitted. But the railroad | system, and its extension—already exceeding that of canals in magnitud promises to be still more important in its favorable influence upon the com- | mercial and industria! pursuits of the people. It seems peculi appropriate, at this time, to | inquire into the origin and progress of the great | work just completed; and in the following histor eal sketch we shall endeavor to state, as briefly a possible, from authentic sources, and our own fa- | miliar knowledge and recollection, such facts and eirsumstances as will be most intere public. It will be our purpose to show the which have, from time to time, retarded or vated the prog of the work--to give er where it is j due, and, in the narrative, to | “nothing ¢ wht in malice.” For the convenivuee of referem state, tha ack Hudson riv srmont, twe ing to the causes fe nor set down & , we may here xtends from the the e Ra vania,) to ater place southwest of Buffalo. By in Orange ¢ being forty-five mil the branch road from Chee to Newbu: doa half miles, another termine Hudson river, making Newburg’ Dunkirk. By the Ramapo end Pat i mile ecnne Su there is another from Dunkirk. » Wes with f rail hs structed or extend fro: t the Delaware V t Pennrylve e,on the lake, forty ebain of va which is © harbor on the south sh route will be about §) »: the same place by way of this city ; and, consequentl, his » that to YeWed route to the West. Th ut 49 miles north of the F 3 south of the d Buffalo chain of ut what wa ‘ ls of the Erie Rail xtend ite influence on pa each si In other words, t! Erie canal, and the rail- about 70 ster, and published by im 1842: that it average, at least 2 by 446 miles in average distance fr roads near and pa Jersey and Pennsyly gress, is about 110 mile ie intersected, nearly midwa. and in its turn the latt lateral railroads, ram north and south, mo-t of which will benefit its revenues. ‘The cost of the I Railroad, as stated in the Bast report of the directors, up to this time, is $20,500,000 ; of which, $2,500,000, at least, is ebargeable te equipment account. The amount of eapital stock issued is $5,790,000, leaving the re- mainder of cost, in the form of bonds and othe: debts against the company, $14,710,000; exclusive ef the three millions loaned by the State and relinquished to the company on eonditions which have now been complied with ; and $750,000 relin- will of railroads in pro- h section of count rie Railroad ie quiehed by the original stockholders on certain | conditions, in It, making the total cost of the road and equipments $24,250,000 ; although the liabilities | are only about $20,500,000. The gross earnings ef the road for the year 1849 were $309,777; and for 1950, $1,600,300. The average distance in use | 3,607. 2, $5,000 in 189, was 210 miles—earning: per mile, in 1860, miles in use, 320; earnings per mil —showing a gain of 35 per cent. We now proceed with our historical sketch. ‘The subject of a continuous communication by a State road, from the Hudson river to Lake Erie, through the southern tier of counties, very early attracted public attention, in the progress of settle- ments in the interior of the State, en the waters of the Delaware and Susquehanna rivers were settled but slowly, at the elose of the Jast century, but the fertility of the soil of some of the valleys, the salubrity of the climate, and the facilities for the lumber trade, drew to the “ se- qucstered counties,” as they were called, by DeWitt Clinton, a hardy race of emigrants, principally from the New England States, who setiled on the cheap lands that quarter, notwithstanding the difficulties under which they labored for the want of convenient access to market. ‘The position of the small section of the State on ihe Alleghany river also attracted atten- | nat on early period, and the village of O on the head waters of that river, was laid out by the late Major H of Albuny, and by him | theman, who war a great admirer of Alexa | Hamilton, never could bear to hear of the } of name of the ple ite modern designation « “New hern ti eoantic Chena ntained a poy lution of « wh were i rae populati the present t t f tae same coun- Sies is not far f n 7 tit The proprietors of the exten unsettled tracts @f land in the section of the Sate referred to, as well ae the enterprising inhal Were not «low, even at the commence aentary, in deviving plans for commur tween the East and W through th J country. We have befure us a pamphlet printed in New York by T. and yin the year 19, entitied “ Observations on the proposed State Road from Iludson’s river, near the city of Hudson, to Lake Erie, by the ¢ , Catharine's, Bath i Gray's Settlement, to the western bounds of Sreu- * ‘The route laid down in thie pamphlet “ By a course by the head of Cayuga ’ eoun ie ae follows and Seneca lakes, Bath, &c., nearly west, so at to strike the shore of Lake Erie, twenty miles north- east of Presque Isle,” (now Erie im Pennsylvani: “It is intended (*ays the pamphlet) to apply to the Legi re to pass a law for the appointment of ecm mire) « to lay out a State rond from the North River, nearly opposite the city of Hudson, to | Lake Erie, and to aid the inhabitants and pro- prietore of lande, to grant a lottery to raise twenty- one thousand rs by the Ist of May, 1872.” ‘The writer of this pamphlet gives many interest- | ing facts, now rendered curious by comparison. | For instance, be states that the expense at that time of carriage from Vhiladelphia to Pitteburgh, (then called Fort Pitt,) was from seven to nine dol- Jars per hundred and twelve pounds, From Albany, | daring the winter, $1 25 per ewt. per ono hundred woiles. From the Hudson to the Alleghany river, by the proposed road, (from whenee to Pittsburgh by the river, being short of 250 miler,) could not qua over $3 per hundred weight, and the expense ‘of water carriage @1, making @4 per one hundred weight from the Hudson river to Pittsburgh, or Fort Pitt. After w Abrowgh the southwest counter, the project wa | thoroughfare, the most advantageous that the to- edit | on the Hudson. Contlicting and opposing interests | States , tothe New | y | calls the “, ted by various | The counties | o, | river to ) | Eleazar Lord | hat the company might be organized when nalf a * early euggertion of a State road | frequently agitated, and urged upon public atten tion, but without any thing more important being effected than to induce the inhabitants of the se- questered counties to demand that it should not be overlooked among other propositions for internal improvements. When the first laws for the con- struction of the Erie canal were under discussion, the co-operation of the southern tier of counties Was necessary to their success, and a satisfactory assurance Was expressed, and afterwards renewed from time to time, by the Executive and the Legis- lature, that on the completion of the canal, a pography of the country would permit, should be opened through those counties, from the Hudson river to Lake Erie. Pursuant to this understanding, De Witt Clinton, on his election as Governor in 1824, in his message to the Legislature recommended a State road through the counties referred to; and the Legisla- ture, at the nm of 1825—the same year that the ie canal was completed—directed a survey of a ate road, to be construeted at the public expense, on the route in question. The survey was executed lake in Chautauque county, to the Hudson kland county, also to Catskill or Athens, in ne county, thus providing for two terminations from t ink | Gr defeated the project in the Legislature by very close votes, the Assembly it bwas indefinitely post- poned 50 to 48) and although renewed at the sub- sion, and urged by conventions of the people interested, in the 3, the scheme of a macadamized State road was finully abandoned. The subject of a great avenue, or thoroughfare, however, continued to occupy the minds of-various public spirit di interested individuals, until the | subject of railways burst upon the public attention. ‘The first locomotive was constructed in England in 1824, and travelled at the rate of six miles per hour. In 1829, the improvements had been such that the | ve, called the Rocket, attained a speed of ; niles per hour. ‘The first English railway | e on whieh steam power was used, was | the Stockton and Darlington, which was opened | December Is ‘The Liverpool and Manchester | commenced in October, 1826, and opened Sept. | 1830. The first railway in the United States was the Quiney, in M. —a short read, for conveying granite by horse-power, opened in 1827. manufactured the first locomo- | «l States, and it was started on the timore and Ohio Railroad. About eight months before the opening of the Liverpool Manchester Railroad, viz: early in 1880, William C. Redfield, of New York, issued a pamphlet, entitled “Sketch of the Geographical Route of a Great Railway, by which it is proposed to connect the canals and navigable waters of | New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illi- Michig Missouri, and the adjacent | and territories; opening thereby a free communication, at all seasons of the year, between Atlantic States and the great valley of the Mis- i ond edition, with addition: This was written, of course, before any locomotive engine had been introduced into the United States; and the | few performances of engines in England, and the S railways by horse power, in the United | s, are mentioned in the pamphlet. Quincy lway (three miles), the Lackawaxen Railroad (sixteen miles), and Mauch Chunk Ka road (uine miles), in Pennsylvania, and a few miles | on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, had then been dand put in operation. ‘The route of the | ilway suggested by Mr. Redfield, which he | antic and Mississippi Railway,” from the Hudson river at Tappan (now Piermont,) to the Mississippi river, a short distance above St. | Louis, he estimates at $70 miles in length. It is | remarkable that, included in this route, he not only | suggests the present termination of the Erie Rail- | road at Piermont, on the Hudson river, but marks | out nearly the route on which this work has been | | constructed, as faras the Alleghany river. Having in view the continuation of his route to the Missis- sippi, as stated, he says: “Our route enters the val- | ley of the Alleghany, and proceeds along that river, | which affords anavigable communication with Pitts | ; burgh, &e. From the Alleghany, the route inter- | seets the outlet of the Chautauque lake, by which a communication may be established with Lake | Erie, and proceeds to the head waters of the French creek, in Pennsylvania, from whence it again com- | munieates with the Alleghany and the Penneyl- | vania canals, on the one hand, and may be connect- ed with the harbor of Erie on the other.” He then points out the route further west, as follows:—- | “From the western branch of the Alleghany, we pro- ceed in a direction nearly parallel to the shore of | Lake Erie, and ettering the northern counties of | | Ohio, intersect the great canal of that State on the Portage summit. A free and rapid communication is thus established, both with the lakes and the Ohio river.” The route through the northwest part of Ohio, also through Indiana and Ilinvis, to the Mississippi, is then suggested. It willthus be perceived that Mr. Redfield, in | 1830, or perhape in 1829, proposes a railway over the route marked out, as early ax 1800, for a State road turnpike, and in 1*25 for a State macadamized road; except that he fixes the terminus at Tappan, now Piermont, on the Hudson; whereas, the plan | of 1800 proposes Athens, opposite Hudson city, as the terminus, and that of 1825-6 was to have two | termini, viz.: at Catskill, Greene county, and at | Nyack (near Piermont), in Rockland county. Mr. Rodfield claims to have been the first to propose the plan of the Erie Railroad; but when the utility of railways had been proved in England, the idea | of a railroad over the route must naturally have suggested itself to the minds of others who had previously taken an interest in promoting the pro- ject of a State road through the southern tier of punties. We believe, however, that Mr. Redfield ic entitled to the eredit of having been the first to place his plan before the public in print, as well as to | that of having been the first to propesea continuous | | chain of railways to the Mississippi, and that ona | route remarkably near to the one since adopted for uct: sequent loon structe uchuset nois, Besides the construe & at ra | the railroads con In I*31, the 4 were taken, hy eorres- pondence and otherwise, to obtain from the Logis- | latar harter for a railroad from the Hudson e Erie, through the southern tier of | But very | New York were at that time prise. The most promir , Henry L. Pierson and William ( may be here Garret Storm Wyck, Peter 1 were dele inties individuals in the city of in the enter- azar Lord, Redfield. I mentioned that William Paulding, { Ife Van ry 1. Wyckoff, Pierre C pe, Samuel St. Johnand Eleazar | ates from this city to a convention held in Newburg, in the fall of 1826, on the subject of the then f ed Macadamized State road; but | neither of those gentlemen who were living in 1831, appear to have taken any active part in bringing the before the public, except Mr. The few individuals with whom that principally in this city | and Rockland county, having determined on apply. | ing to the I of intention to that effect was published by Eleazar Lord, in behalf of | Erie Railroad proj gentleman was connected, islature, notice | himself and associates, in November, 131, for an i act incorporating “‘ The New York und brte | road Company.” A draft of a bill was prepared, | which, after being altered in certain respects, was enacted into a law on the 24th of April, 1x52. In the bill, as originally drawn, it was provided million of dollars was subscribed to the stock ; and | to provide for a double track, ultimately, a capital of ten millions of dollars was authorized. The charter, aa passed, required @ preliminary eubserip- tion of the whole capital of ten millions, which, of course, rendered an organization that year impra ticable. In the original draft of the charter there was no reetricting clause whatever, with regard te lorating part of the route in New Jereey or Penn sylvania; but while the bill was under discussion | in the Assembly, Mr. Coe, a member from Ontart» | county, proposed the twelfth section of the eater, | in which there is a restriction, forbidding a connec- tion of the road with any railroad leading into New Jersey or Pennsylvania, on pain of forfeiting the privileges granted in the | any more stock than shall have been sub: | ney, Eleazar Lord, Suul Alley, Gideon Lee | rency. ) they had been accustomed A survey of the route being considered indispen- sable before subscriptions to any considerable amount could be obtained, the commissioners named in the charter, through their chairman, Mr. Lord, applied to Congress for a survey at the ex” pense of the general government. It being too near the close of the session, May 1832, for the passage of a law making a special appropriation, an order for the survey, on the application of about forty Senators and Representatives from New York and adjacent States, was granted by the Secretary of | War, General Cass, with the approbation of the | President, General Jackson. Funds out of the ge- neral appropriation for such objects were placed in the then branch of the United States Bank, in this city, and a party of engineers from the topographi- cal corps, was detailed from the service, who ar- rived here near the close of June, 1832, and were on the point of commencing their labors, when the | order was so fur countermanded as to restrict the | public expense to the use and repair of the instru- ments and the pay of the Engineer-in-Chief, De Witt Clinton, Jr. This gentleman, it will be re- collected, was a son of the late Governor Clinton; and during his career as engineer, whieh was terminated by his early death, had the honor of suggesting the plan of supplying the eity of New Y with water from the Croton river, and of sur- veying the route for the aqueduct afterwards con- structed; thus perpetuating the title of public bene- | factor in the family of Clinton. | Under the government order, as modified, the | inhabitants of Rockland, Orange and Sullivan counties, rendered such aid as to procure a survey of a route through the punti f which Mr. Clinton made his report to the Topographical Bureau at Washington, where maps were exe- f Which copi+s were forwarded to the com- n November, 1833. At the next session of the Legislature, anplica- tion was made in behalf of the commissioners, for an alteration of the charter so as to allow an or- ganization of the company, on half a million being subser.bed to the capital. An amendmen: to the charter was passed, April 19, 1533, requiring @ preliminary subscription of one million of dollars, before the organization of the compacy. This amendatory act provides that ‘the waole route of said road shall be surveyed before the construction of any section thereof shall be undertaken; and the said commissioners shall not issue ce! bed for, and on which ten per cent shall have been paid according to the provisions of the bill hereby amended.” The twelfth section of the original act, passed April 24, 1532, is as follows The saic rg tion shall not at avy point connect the said single, double, or treble railroad or way, with any railroad either of the State of Pennsylvania or New Jersey, or leading into either of the said States, without the consent of the Legislature of this State, on pain of forfeiting the powers and privileges con- ferred by this act.” By the act of incorporation in 1832, seventy per- sons residing i sity and the southern tier of counties, are named, who, with their associates were to constitute the company: among whom were Samuel Swartwout, Stephen Whitney, Robert White, Cornelius Huirsen, azar Lord, Daniel word, William C, Redfield, Cornelius J. Blauvelt, Jeremiah Lt. Pierson, John P. Jones, George D. Wickham, Joshua ‘Whitney, James Pampelly, Charles Pampelly, John RK. Drake, Francis A. Bloodgood, emiah S. Beebe, enezer Mack, Philip Charch, William S. Hubbell, and others. Thus ‘was constituted a body corporate and politie by the name of “The New York and erie Railroad Company,” with power to con- struct a single, double, or treble railroad or way, from the city of New York to Lake Erie; commencing at the city of New York, or at such in its vicinity as shall be most eligible and ent therefor, and continue said railroad through the southern tier of counties, by way of Owego, in the county of ‘Tioga, to the shore of Lake Erie, at some eligible point: between the Ca- tarang eek and the Pennsylvania line ; with power to transport property and persons by the power and force of steam, of animals, or of any mecha or other power, or ef any combina- tion of them, for the term of fifty years from the passage of this act. shty commissioners are named in the act, re- ew York, Rockland, Orange, Sullivan, ireene, Delaware, Otsego, Chenang Broome, Tioga, Steuben, any, Cavturau- gus and Chautauque eountict, any five of whom were constituted a board to receive sub- seriptions. Among the commissioners named are, Walter Bowne, Morgan Lewis, William Vauld- ing, John Steward, Jr., Nathaniel Weed, San Swartwcut, John Hone, in Gi. ster, joold Hoyt, Peter I. Nevius, Elisha Rigg: Charles Henry Hall, Robert White, Stephen Waut- and Cornelius Haison, of New York ; Jeremiah H. Pier- son, Cornelius J. Blauvelt, of Rockland; George D. Wickham, Samuel Seward, and John Iul- lock, Jun., of Orange; Erastus Root, of Delaware; John C. Clarke, of Chenango; Joshua Whitney, of Broome; James Pumpelly, William Maxwell, of Tioga; John Magee, Willian S. Hubbell, of Steu- ben; Luther Gere, Francis A. Bloodgood, of Tom kine; Philip Church, of Alleghany; Timothy ih Porter, Henry Saxton, of Cattaraugus; Thomas Campbell, Elias T. Foote, Daniel G. Garnsey, Oli- ver Lee, of Chautauque. We have enumerated part of the list, that it nay be seen who were the prominent men at the time, that were expected to exercise their influence in favor of the measure. Some of these names, and many other of the ori- ginal friends of the road, w numbered with the dead, and some on the list, who were men of influence in moneyed circles when the project was started, would not now cut a very prominent figure on_ “the Rialto,” either as financiers or politicians. The commissioners met in July, 1883, under the act as amended, and received subscriptions for the required, namely, one million of dollars. partof the moneys, however, which were re- ceived on these subscriptions, was expended till uctive operations commenced, after the books were again opened, in April, 135. Early in August, 1533, the company was orga- nized by anelection of directors and ollicers. Eleazar Lord was appointed President, at Directors, on the 10th Sep continued in that office until the 4th February, 1835. Goold Hoyt was chosen Vice President, and William L. Bucknor Treasurer. ‘There was no regularly appointed Secretary until the Ith of September, 1835, when ‘Tulman J. Waters was chosen by the directors to that office, and held it until his resignation, in Octo! . Lord isa prominent character in the history of the Erie Railroad, it is appropriate here fly to notice his career. Ile is one of four brothers, all well known in mercantile life, and for their commercial enterprise, in this city, uamely— Eleazar, Rufus L., Thomas, and David N. Lord, and three of them were active promoters of the great public work, of which the named was the head and one of the proj ‘These gentle- men are natives of Mranklin New London county, Connecticut, the sar n whence the family of the President of the United States, M Fillmore, originated. The Messrs. Lord have been residents of the State of New York from early lit and been identified with its interests. as mere and public men. Mr. azar Lard has be vorably known as the auth ductions, and a writer on politic larly internal improve In 1820, he eslite economy, partion. riff, and the 4 paper in this eity ¢ The Patron of industry, devoted to the intere American manufactures, and wae active at Wash- ington, and in various conventions, in promoting the subject of a protective tariff About the year 1821, the Manhattan Jorurance Company was in- corporated, ostensib y for the purpose of enabling manufacturers to insure th Dlishinents at rates of premium more reasonable than thos t which pay to companies ngage managed principally by perso The idea of chat company, gested by the lat B. Wakeman; at any ‘was one of the promot the concern. Mr. E. Lord was selected as | and eonti- nued to hold the office, with » respectable, though moderate salary, for several years. Having married a daughter of Jeremiah I. Pierson, Heqe of Ramapo, Kockland ¢ unty, an i ria of Pierson & + pe , in New York, in the manuveturing estal lishment of the Piersons, at Ramapo, Mr. Lord, of | course, became familiar with the interests and con cerns of Rockland county, At Ramapo were ex- tensive iron and cotton manufactories, owned and | conducted by the Messrs : and, for a time, | the location was so much noted for affording em- ployment to operatives and labo that it was one of the fires quertions asked by emigrant Irish- men, on landing on our shores—“ And sure can you tell ue where Mr. Pierson’s iron works may be found!” The public spirit which Mr Lord had evinced on other occasions, however, forbids the idea that in the location of the Lrie Kailroad through Rockland county, and the part be took there- in, he could have been influenced by any other motive than the publie good, notwithstanding the awkward ysition in which he was afterwards placed by hig | 4 | Peavy operations in real estate at the teriminus and Me the line of the road, as we shall see in the fequel. board of directors, shortly after their cle tion, in 1833, appointed a committee to devise and adopt measures of such a natare as to promote and jurtify confidence in the undertaking, and partioa- farly to solicit from large proprietors donations of land, and to apply to the next Legislature for the aid expected from that . As chairman of that committee, the president, Mr. Lord, published a circular, coliiting » lands to the compan: te way, and donations of other lands for the benefit of pe og The yey Paice several company offers ie company, mportant tracts, from parties interested in the same. ” ws The Jrourloter of one-half of a thousand acres of land at Dunkirk, proposed, in case of the purchase of the other half by subscribers to the stock, or others interested in the objects of the company, to join them in granting a free donation of one equal undivided fourth-part of the whole, and of such cent lands as they might jointly purchase in addition thereto, on condition that when the requisite surveys had been made, it ould be determined that the road should terminate at that plare. It Sppeariig that no donation out of these lands could be obtained in this Mink se- vyeral of those most desirous of promoting the object of the company, united in neongting: © Py osi- tion. Purchases were accordingly made of about nineteen hundred acres, of which a fourth part was pledged to the company, asa donation, in the manter specified. Subsequen:ly, on a division among the parties, by mutual agreement, the por- tions falling to the company were placed in the hands of trusteee, on the conditions originally pro- posed. It is the oj selves, that tl ion of many persons besides our- is conditional donation of Dunkirk was an unfortunate affair, not only to Mr. Lord, for the jealousy and pre; dice it created against him, for being associated in | the purchase of that property, but to the coupany, in inducing a location of the terminus of the road at that point. Several other harbors on Lake Erie, in Chautauque county, besides Dunkirk, were ex- amined by the engineers, viz: Cattaraugus Creek, Van Buren, Silver Creek, and Portland. Of these, Cattaraugus Creck has the advantage of a good inner harbor, formed by the creek, which the « places named have not, and besides, the er affords a fine water power, and the ban ¥ stream, near its mouth, form a beaati for a commercial town; while Dunkirk is on a small open indentation of the luke, exposed to the | winds und storms of that sleet of wate: peared to us, as an impartial, though casual obser- n 1836, ver, When we Visited these diferent harbor , divested of any extrancou the 10a 8 of the rhrewdest speculators aud polit at Cattaraug’ vested in real estate, in anticipation of the engineers in favor of that p: kirk interest was too strong fort ‘The Holland Land Company bei proprietors of near half a milli the counties of Alleghany and Ca applied to, first through their agents in th try. and afterwards by 2 communication addre to the principals in Holland, tora donation, on ground that the construction of the road would nefit their inte! and that aid in this form w enowurags xubseriptions to the stock of the pany, and eventually compensate the loss of thereon while the work was in progr Jand Company declined making 1» gro road was finished, but were dispos whole of the lands in question on such terms induce the purchasers to aliberal donation On the terms of sale being spe aml gentlemen, including Mr. Lord and others, urcharers at Dunkirk, who were also among largest subseribers to the stock of the road, jo in effecting the purchase ; at the sametime ple and securing to the railroad company a donation of fifty thousand acres of the lands, on the sole tion of a single track of their road bei within seven year: from the da» On the expiration of this period, the; pledge fora further term. Unfort company, the delay of the work had defea object of those who purchased the lands for the be fit of the company, and those who remained in session have been (doubtless relactantly) compelled, by the lapse of time, to retain the: nds for their own ben and appropriate the proceeds to own use, instead of allowing them :o be used tof the compauy, a3 they originally It is seldom indeed, we should su h generous intentions should be de h singular causes. it should be he tioned that Mr. Samuel B. Ruggles, who was no’ himeelf interested in the lands, is entitled to th credit of hav suggested to the proprietors of the lands purchased of the Holland Company, the pro- pricty and expediency of offering 50,000 a8 to the railroad company, to assist in the construction of the work which was to add immensely to the value of the remaining acres of their purchase. ated men- In the year 1833, meetings of citizens were held | in several of the southern tier of counties, and in November of tha mvention of d from thirteen counties met in the city of New \ ork, for the furtherance of the object of the company. At the session of the Legislature in 1834, petitic were presented from the company, also trom the convention which had been held in this and fiom several of the counties, for air to the project, by a subseription to the stock on the part of the State, or in some other form. The result was an act appropriating $15,000 for a survey of the route for the roud. Under this act, Governor Marcy ap- pointed the late Benjamin Wright, who had been a prominent engineer on the Ene canal and other Fc works, the engineer to conduct the survez. Vith a cory Seymour and Charles Ellet, his aids, Judge Wright performed the survey in the course of the ensuing season, and having completed bis maps and esti- mates in December, rendered his report to the Le- gislature, and deposited his maps and profiles with the Secretary of State in January, IS. Accord- ing to this report, Judge Wright made the length ofthe road four hundred and eighty-three milos | fiom the Hudson to Lake Erie, and estimated the | cost of the road, graded for a double track the whole | distance, and a superstructure of iron (fat bar) laid upon timber, for a single track, at $4,762,200—which is about one-fifth of what has proved to be the actual cost of the work—built, however, on a much more expensive and better plan than originally proposed. This report wae subsequently revised, in Septem- ber, 1855, by Judge Wright and two eminent en; neets from Pennsylvanian and Maryland, Messrs. Moncure Robinson and Jonathan Kaight, aud the estimate of the cost increased to $5,174,518, to which the then board of directors, * more abuny dant ceution,” added for contingencios, $525,482; inaking the extimated cost of the road, including $500,000 for equipments, six millions of dollara, It should be sesnsuabered, however, that but little was 1 this country, att e, of the cost of roads. ‘The route surveyed by Judge Wright commenced at Tappan (now Piermont.) and ex- tended to Luke Erie, with an inclined plane aod two branches, each about nine miles in length—one to Portland, and the other Dunkirk harbor. Fayette, at the mouth of Silver Creek, is also favor- ably mentioned as possessing natu fora harbor, But this question respecting a minus on Lake Erie, notwithstanding the in favor of Dunkirk, it is believed must tually be rettled by the superior advantages of the harbor of Erie in Pennsylvania, in rendering that the great depot for this and o:her railroads termi- nating at Lake Erie. The United States Engi- neer’s report, in 183%, ay. The harbor of Erie ie unquestionably the best, in regard to natural ad- Vautages, upon the southern shore of the lake. It ix from four to five miles long, and about one mile in width, with an average depth of water of 25 feet. Piers at the extrance of the channel have made the average depth there at least 12 feet.” 1 from Irie to Philadelphia, by the ds constructed and in progress, will t o New York, by the same rout ew Jersey, the distance will tb. same, and by the i¢ Railroad, 5: les. Having alluded to the speculatic lands onthe and in the vicinity of the route of the Erie we may as well that the Hol- Company, whieh originally owned a large sartot the western counties of the State of New ork, were induced, in consequence of anti- disturbances, ia Chautauque count arly, in IS34 oF IN35, to dispose of their lan: This was done at very low prices to thre apanies, namely: the lands in Allegany, Cattaraugus, & about and were bought by Messrs. Eleazar Lord, Cioold Hoyt, Thomas’ Sufiern, Nevins and Townsend and Nicholas Devereux—whieh company « wards made exten purchases at and Allegany City; the lands in county were bought by a company Rufus Hl. King, of Alba ‘trumbull ¢ George W. Lay, of Batavia; Judge Miller s Ww Aw and the cone Burn, and otk dinebarge of William I. he having aleo a full st in th eward spent some time in Chantauque county, in settling with the people on the lands, he having much infuence among that anti-masonie popula- tien. “The remaining lands of the Holland Com- pany, in Livings+on, Genesee, and W) rchased by a third « oman J, Redfield, Mr. LeRoy, The fayerable report of Judge Wright, after his furvey of the route, encouraged those who had in terested themeelves in the object of the company, to take measures for more active operations, nearly thice yeare having elapsed in accompli preliminary movements referred to. originally subscribed to the stock, by a few i vieunls, in July, 1883, on which five percent was paid, was divided among a larger number; some of whom being willing to serve as directors and off cers, changes were accordingly made for that pur- od w reorganization of the board took on the 4th February, 1885. Mr. Lord resig president, and Mr. James G. King was elected to that office, in which he continued nearly five years, to the close of September, ISM.” ‘Tie igh reputation of Mr. King among bankers and commercial nen in this country, as well a* in Hurepe, led to the expecta that he would be enabied to render important aid in devising 1 i ide funds bere, and, through his connexious J in .ngland, to carry the enterprise to @ speedy com- pletion. ‘Thee anticipations were not realized, partl, ing to the disastrous state of financial mat e | Wi » | in Febru: 5, Samuel P. Lyman, of Ut then in the 7 eof the law at that place, and considerably interested in the western | e | three mil * of assistants, under Messrs. James | advantages | about the | i} k | cana the commercial world, during a portion of | tessions of laud for the right » My. King surprisingly little was accomplished under his ad- peitleeticn, sat work prs on the road; not a mile of rails having been laid down when he retired from the office of President, in 1889, and left the re- sponsibilities and honor of carrying on the enter- prise to others. Immediately after the changes in the direction re- ferred to, in 1885, application was made to the Le- gislature for a loan of the State credit to the com- pany, in aid of the work. A Dill was accordingly reported in the Assembly, authorizing « loan of two millions, to be advanced in four instalments, accord- ing to the progress of the work. The Common Councils of New York and Brooklyn Prtianed the Legislature in favor of the passage of the bill; but after a debate of three weeks, it was lost in the As- sembly, by a majority of two votes. About the middle of ‘April, 1535, books of subscription to the capital stock were again opened, and continued till 13,621 shares were subscribed, amounting, with the subseription of 1833, to $2,362,100, on which pay- ments were made to the amount of $223,760. In the course of the summer of 1835, re-surveys were made preparatory to the final location of por- tions of the road. ‘The directors appointed Benja- min Wright chief engineer of the company, and JSmes Seymour division engineer for the route be- tween the Hudson and the Susquchanna, called the Eastern Division. In October, 1835, the office of | comptroller of the company was established, and Samuel B. Ruggles, who was then one of the diree- tars aypeinied in February, 1835, accepted the office, and heldit without salary, except expenses, till Mth of July, 1838, when the office was, on his motion, (be then being a director,) abolished. Mr. Rug- les was invested by the board of directors with | fulland ample power to act for the company, and entered into the enterprise with spirit and energy, not only deelining any compensation for his services, | but refusing to participate in any speculation in the lands on the line of the road. Ho was largely inte- rested in real estate in this city, which he ered would of course be greatly benefitted by this and other internal improvements communicating with | the interior, Independent of this circumstance, ! Mr. Ruggles always tock a warm interest in canals, ' railroads and other measures for advancing the pros. | } y of the country; his early connexion with frie Railroad Company, and his suggestioas and servi therein, are known to those familiar - | with the history of the road, to have been equal in importance and results to those of any of its pro- ! im His appointment as Canal Commissiouer, | int deprived the company of the benefit of his ices at au important period of i stence. The late David Ru f Newburgh, the first gen dl by the com- | vi cutive mmit- ore very divers! , including the i of 1, voluntary relea tock, | donations of ly of way, subserip | proceedings, attending to the interests of the com- Albany, &c. He continued to act as unill February, 1537, when he resigned. ‘Through the agency of Mr. muel B. Ruggles, din behalf of the the company. It counties of this “tate, w road, to expedite th was thought that his « ves could be made more available at first without his holding any office in | the company, and he so continued to act until | the 27th of April, 183%, when he was appointed | by the directors, “¢ ioner of the company. | He continu of the company until the spring of Ib g with great energy and skill in their behalf tor a period of more than years, til the last dollar of the State loan of ions (as hereinafter mentioned) was ex- yended. His powers and duties were not defined in the resolution of the board appointing him, excep; that he was authorized totake such measures as | might deem ne: y to ions and dona. tions « ds. His othe: ‘todischarge such other active duties, in expediting the work | vod promoting the general interests of the company. as might thereafter igned to him by the direc- tors.” And his compensation, the mode in which be should disebarge his duties, and prt to the com- | pany, were leit to be regulated by the executive committee. Owing to a controversy between Mr. Lyman and some of the directors, who wished to | abandon the road to the State, against his views, he resigned as commissioner in 139, In October following he was appointed agent of the company for the western division, and in Janus 1840, com- missioner of the Su-quehanna divis Ile con- tinued nom ly in this station till August, 1811, | | when he again entered upon the duties of general commissioner of the company. His duties, how- | lever, continued much the’ same under” these | varioas changes, and for a long time he | was the most active person engaged pro | | moting the objects of the company. Ile did as a much or more than any oue towards obtaining the passage of the law by which the loan of three roil- | tions of State credit was granted to the compai | He got up conventions of th ferent counties, wrote resolutions and addre and made speeches explaining and urging the im- portance of the work, and the claims of the south- ern tier of counties for an avenue to market. The important crisis in the affairs of the company was detween the commencement #f the year DS and | the final expenditure of the three million State | loan in the spring of 1542. To induce the Legis Jacure to make that loan, and, on the part of the | company, to fulfil the conditions of the law, was one | | of the most prodigious efforts ever made in the | State. When the company was organized, in 1833, Goold Hoyt was chosen Vice-President, William G. Buck- nor, Treasurer, and John Duer, Couns These offices were little imore than nominal until about the time of the commencement of the work in the | valley of the Delaware river, in 183, and until | then they were without salaries. The offi Vice-President and Treasurer were respec: filled by Mr. Hoyt and Mr. Bucknor until Feb- rua, 1835, when they re and Eleazar Lord ‘(having resigned’ the ctiice of President) | was elected to beth of said offices, and his | salary as treasurer was fixed at $3,000 per year. | Mr. Lord held these offices until the Ith of Septem- ber, of the same year, when his resignation, pro- viously tendered, was accepted, and Peter G. Stuyvesant was chosen his successor. Mr. Stuyve- sant accepted the offive, but deel any salary, and was therefore not required to give security aa treasurer. These offices he held until December 6, 156, when his resignation wus accepted. | Pre- vious to the second election of Mr. Lord, no salar, or compensation was paid to the President for his services, Which were gratuitous on the part of Mr. Lord, during his firet term, embracing the time he devoted to the company, at ile organization, and early movements. Although the duties of the office | required mue A labor in their performance, uring the administration of Mr. King, from Feb- ruary, 1835, to September, 1889, he declined any eompensation whatever for his servic From the | date of Mr. Lord's md election, September 25, 1839, to the close of Mr. Bowen's term, in 842, thy salary of the President was $3,600, The boardof directors, in 1835, being an im | tant one, we here give their | King, President; Eleazar Lord, Vice-Dre: vhn Duer, Goold Hoyt, Michael Burnham, |G. Stuyvesant, Elihu Townsead, “amuel F | gles, man, Peter Harmon | Whit John ¢ people in the dif ¢ 5 mM, George D. Wickham, of Orange ; | Joshua Whitney, of Broome, Directors. | Mr. Jobn Rathb Jr , was a brother-in-law of uggles, and one of the officers of the » the Park, in TS24, pres: blie disapprobation of the | removal of DeWitt Clinton as Canal Commis sioner. Ile was, also, an uneuccessful enndidate for Congress, nominated by the Clintonians and | other p men, in ISM, He had Dreviously | mocratic (Tammany Hail) par Aswembly. In 1825, he joined Mr. Tea rd, taking the first loan ne, ed | byt of Ohio for her canals; and Lord and Rathbone accompanied DeWitt Clin ton to Obio, when he was invited to participate n the ceremony of breaking ground for the ( onthe Licking Summit, on the 4th of July, wing shows the list of Presidente of the company since its O-ganization, with the dates of their appointments : Presidente Eleazar Lord dames @. King vor Lord dames William Maxwell Horatie Allen Bhagat Lord sees demes Harper, (President pro tem.) Benjamin Leder, (now in office The other officers of the Board of Directors and the Seeretaries have been as follows } Viee Presidents. Stephen Whitney, Henry L. Vic Prosper M. Wetmore, James Brown, Samuel Marsh. Treasure William L. Bucknor, — George §. Robbins, Hleaaar 5 James # My Veter (, Stuyvesant, Edward Pierson, Elihu Townse « Brown, The . Townsend. ecretar ves. ‘Talman J. Wat William M. Gonld, Jadwerd Pierson Nathaniel Mareh. ‘The Peard of Directors of which Mr. King was President, in April, IS, passed resolutions design. When ap por Goold Hoyt, Peter (St bleazar Lova. James Bowen, Jobn Duer, evant, eto prevent speculations by the officers and agents of the company in lands of property, the value of | which should be affected by the construction of the | road, and, if possible, to avoid all the influences af personal interests in determining the line of loea- tion. On the 20th of Augnat following, Mr. 1, oe Vico President, and Mewrs. Ii. Towstend and cr 1b | Wright y. | mont. | as the four specified division | tew miles of th tain from caxeor as President of the company; ang | Hloyt, as directors, commynigated to thy board a» $200,000, © letter of resignation (dated 4th A, as their reason sed that they atone ed in lands in the western of this State, and in the counties through which the road was to be located. These gentlemen stata in their letter of resignation, that ‘they were among the earliest promoters of the ob; of the company, and assumed large responsi bi in re spect to the first subscription to the capital stock ; that the negotiations for the purchase of lands in which they were interested, were commenced bo- fore the object of the company had gained any such. hold on the public mind, or such support from indi- viduals as to inspire confidence of its being accom- plished ; that these negotiations were suggested and entered into, as a means of gaining support, and affording encouragement in the great ander- taking for which the company was organized ; that large donations out of the lands purchased had bee» rotfered to the company, on condition of the roat ing completed within a given term of years, &c.”” They also state that they und other partiv! interested in the lands, and in the stock of the com pany, “ are of opinion that the measures so takew, on their part, have been, aud will be, highly advan tageous, and in no respect detrimental to the in- terests of the company ; but the main object hav- ing at length gained such support, and advanced s far as to justify and require active proceedings ov Lo aa of the board, for the construction of the road, the same views which, in respect to the com pany, induced them to take the steps referred to, now ‘indicate the propriety of retiring from th stations which they have hitherto occupied in the direction.” As the number of saints and patriots willing to devote their time and services for the pecuniary in terest of their fellow- ns, without special bene fit to themselves, Was not, at the time, remarkably ge in this money-seeking community, the direc- tors of the Exie Kailyoad Company were soon in duced to reseind their resolution requiring disin terested services. It w: iseovered, or it might have occurred to them at first, that the individuals most likely to promote the means and suecess of thy road would be those most interested in its eomple- tion. lence the subsequent changes in its direc- tion and management. Mr. Lord, in addition to his p ses at Dun kirk, and in the counties on the line of the read became also deeply interested in property at Pier mont, or Tappan, as it was cal when that poiut was fixed on by the engiueers and the directors for the eastern termination of the road. He took uf his residence at that place, and joined Judge Blau velt, of Rockland county, in makinig purehases ot lands at Piermont. A part ef their plan of opera tions was to exchange farms iu the interior of th: county for those situated in the village and vicinity. where the terminus was lo The location of er, and @ part of the line on the shore, at wis made in October, L835, by Mr lent of the company, and a committee tors. They obtained from Judge Blau- velt a grant of about one hundred acres of land for a depot, and entered into a contract with him re- spccting the road way along the south side of th jer, contiguous to his adjacent lands, It sheul? ¢ here stated that Mr. Lord and his brothers were among the largest subscribers to the capital stock o! the company, ‘on which $6 P and Mr. L. states, in a pampl that the loss of interest on the and transferred it, amounted to nearly as much a- ived for it that the donw f lands, condit! to the company in 1835, but afterwards forfeited, as we have stated, were estimated to be worth two millions of dollars, besides the free grants of the right of way generally made by the people of the southern tier of counties In November, 1885, the directors put under con tract a section of the road on the Delaware river, extending from Calicoon creek to the village ot Deposit, a distance of forsy and a half miles. “This section was taken by twenty-six contractors, an? the contracts amounted to O72, exhibiting « saving of $52,736 below the estimate of Jud, in the expense of graduating this sectioa ‘The object in commencing this work at this point which was fixed upon by the advice of Mr. &. B Ruggles, instead of the Iludson river, as desired by those interested in property in Rockland and Orange coun , Was to open & communication with. the fertile valley of the Susquehanna from the Deis ware and Hudson Canal, as soon as possible. That canal, it will be observed, extends from the Hudsov river at Kondout, up the valleys of the Wullkill and Nevisink, and thence up the Delaware to a \ nt where it was proposed to conneet it with th D jlroal. An extensive trade and travel, it ieved, would at once render the section pro: , and urge on the undertaking and comp tion of other ions of the road. of the oars was not considered good poli to commence the difficult and costly construction oi the Eastern section, from the Hudson to the Dela ware river, on which over two millions have beew since expended, including the expensive pier at Pier- The original intentions of the projectors of this plan of operation were, however, frustrated b» subsequent events, particularly the commercial dis asters which affected the stockholders in 1836 and. | 1837, and the change of directors, which caused au alteration of the plan, by abandoning the Delaware section after it graded (but the superstruct not laid down, ) and constructing the section betwe Piermont and Goshen. lmmediately after the Delaware section was pu under contract, viz: on the 5th of November, 1835, at sunrise, on the bank of the Dclawas Deposit, the President of the company, Mr. King, with « committee of the directors, commenced the great work, without ceremony or parade, in the presence of a numerous assemblage of the citizens of that vicinity, who united heartily in the undertaking and displayed the utmost zea! and spirit in pron pry Se progress of the ee he grading of this section was not completed until the of 1837. 4; oii The views of Mr. Ruggles, in commencing the road at the Delaware section, are thus set forth io the repert of the directors, in S35.“ By complet- ing @ continuous line of road from the Delaware and Hudson Canal to Owego, and thence by mean: of the lateral railroad to Ithaca, a very important channel of transportation will be opened to that eanal, from the fertile and populous districts adja cent to the inland lakee of this State and the wes tern tributaries of the Susquehannah; affording als the means of transporting passengers from the in- terior to # point distant less than thirty-five miles from the Hudson river The necessities of the community, and the certain prospect #f a rapid in crease of revenue, could not fail to insure the speedy extension of the line, cither westwardly in one case, or from the canal, eastwardly in the other. We make these explanations respecting the com- mencement of the road, without any prompting: from either of the parties interested, heeanse it hae | given oceasion to much censure and prejudice from those who are ignorant of the motives which in- fluenced the beginning of operations on the Dela ware section, and it is right that it should vow b Perfectly understood by the stockholders and the public, Att of 1836, the Legislature ted to | the company a loan of the credit of the State for three millions of dollars, bearing an interest of four and a half per cent. By the terms of the act, the loan was to be issued in four euccessive instalments, f the read should be completed. Arter a violout contest, it. 1 the Assembly by a majority of one Vote, was concurred in by the Senate, and approves by Govern cy, and thus became @ law. At the seesion of 1S3H, the directors presented a memoria! to the Legislature, stating the couditi of the company, and that IS16 requiring large pr: the resources of the stockholders, before a portion of the loan could be used, the State credit was unavailable to the company, the events growing out of the derangement of ating further calls upon the ding $00,000, therefore, the npelled, in May, 1887, to arrest entirely prosecution of the work, to discontinue the labor o the sections under contract, and to discharge thei hole corps of engineers. The boar, therefore, asked the Legielature to authorize a abeeription, on the part of the State, to the rad, of three millions of dollars. ith euch sesources at command, and a corn ding subscription on the partof individuals, the directors expressed a confidence that they would have means adequate to construct, within three years, atrack from the Hudson to Lake Erie. A tna from the directors, showing the unavaila- and asking for im y. had been presented to ¢ pility of the loan law, diate aid to the Legisla- but was untavorably reported upow by a committee of the Senate, In the Legislature of IS38, the whigs hwl « Inige majority*ia t having, in eon- sequence of the poli not th "" choren 10 of the including a strong whig delegation from this vity, biavid Bi. Ogden, Samuel B. being among the number democrats etill held « deci parties were anxiously prep 7 i matorial election ISOS, they were both anxious to secure the votes of the people of the southerp tier of counties, where, with few exceptions, the Ruggles, and Willie Hall the In the Senat major i democrats generally prevailed. It was, conse- quently, a tuvorabie time for the Erie Railroad Company to apply for aid from the Bat withstanding th te circumstances, the tance Mr. Kuggles was able to give in the As mbly, of which he waea member, it required # poverful lobby and a well-arrayed ayetom of log-rolling to carry the bill in na of the rowd through the Legisiature. The bill amended the former get, #0 #8 to authorize fetes of State stock, in enme of $100,000 against the same rinonnt collected on the stock of the coinpany. fore were the first isene, however, the company required © locate and put under eontrret road, extending westward from distanwe eastward, from company to ob- the fivates of stock for n producing to him satisfactory evidenge Piermont, @ Dunkirk.”