Earth and Space News: In 1848 George Law Ended NYC High Bridge and Began Panama Mail Service

Summary: In 1848 American bridge contractor and steamship financier George Law finished NYC's High Bridge and began mail service between New York and Panama.

In 1848 American bridge contractor and steamship financier George Law completed New York City's High Bridge and co-founded the U.S. Mail Steamship Company as provider of mail and passenger service between New York and the Caribbean coast of the Isthmus of Panama.

The High Bridge was designed as a 15 span granite arch bridge across the Harlem River as a connector between New York City's boroughs of the Bronx and Manhattan. The bridge's eastern end is sited in the Highbridge neighborhood of the west-central Bronx. The western end is located in Highbridge Park, a public park in the Washington Heights neighborhood of northern Manhattan.

The High Bridge comprised part of the Croton Aqueduct, a water distribution system for conveying freshwater from the Croton Dam, located near Yorktown, on the Croton River in northern Westchester County, to reservoirs in Manhattan. The water ". . . was brought down in a covered canal of solid masonry, a distance of 40 1/2 miles from the dam to the lower distributing reservoir. The conduit is of brick, 8 ft. 5 1/2 inches high, and 7 ft. 5 inches wide in the widest part, and descending 13 inches to the mile. It has a capacity of supplying 60,000,00 gallons a day," as observed by Franklin Benjamin Hough (July 20, 1822-June 11, 1885), American historian, mineralogist, physician and first chief of the United States Division of Forestry, in Gazetteer of the State of New York (1872; page 415).

The High Bridge served as a passage for the Croton Aqueduct across the Harlem River and into Manhattan. "At Harlem River it crosses on the High Bridge through three large mains, a little below grade. This bridge is of granite, 1,450 ft. long, 21 wide, between parapets. It rests on 15 arches, 8 of 80 feet, and 7 of 60 ft. span" (Hough, page 415).

The Croton River was proposed as the source of an aqueduct-transported fresh water for New York City by DeWitt Clinton (March 2, 1769-Feb. 11, 1828), an American politician whose career included sixth governorship of New York (Jan. 1, 1825-Feb. 11, 1828; July 1, 1817-Jan. 1, 1823) and 47th, 49th and 51st mayorship of New York City (1811-1815; 1808-1810;1803-1807). A highlight of his governorship was the successful construction of the Erie Canal (July 4, 1817-Oct. 26, 1825) linking the Hudson River near Albany in Upstate New York with the Niagara River and Lake Erie at Buffalo western New York. In December 1832 Clinton promoted the construction of the Croton Aqueduct in a report to the Committee on Fire and Water, a standing committee of the Common Council, New York City's lawmaking body, according to the American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society's Twenty-Second Annual Report the Legislature of the State of New York (1917; page 526) and as noted by Croton Aqueduct civil engineer Fayette Bartholomew Tower (June 29, 1817-Feb. 16, 1857) in Illustrations of the Croton Aqueduct (1843; pages 63-64).

On Tuesday, Feb. 26, 1833, the New York State Legislature, complying with a request from the Common Council, passed "An Act for the Appointment of Commissioners in Relation to Supplying the City of New York With Pure and Wholesome Water." Myndert Van Schaick (Sep. 2, 1782-Dec. 1, 1865), who had just been elected as a State Senator for the First District (Jan. 1, 1833-May 22, 1836), drafted the legislation (F.B. Tower, page 65).

The act established for the city a Board of Water Commissioners comprising five New York City-dwelling citizens nominated by the Governor and approved by the New York State Senate. Stephen Allen (July 2, 1767-July 28, 1852), William Woolley Fox (Sep. 26, 1783-March 1, 1861), Saul Alley (1778-Oct. 19/21, 1852), Charles Dusenberry (Dec. 29, 1792-March 28, 1871) and Benjamin M. Brown were named as the board's first five Water Commissioners (F.B. Tower, page 65).

Prosperous sailmaker Stephen Allen (July 2, 1767-July 28, 1852) was appointed to the newly formed Board of Croton Water Commissioners in 1833 and served as the board's chairman; construction of the Erie Canal (1817-1825) continued during his term as 55th Mayor (1821-1824) of New York City; portrait of Stephen Allen, engraved by John Rogers (ca. 1808-ca. 1888),in C.D. Colden, Memoir, Prepared at the Request of a Committee of the Common Council of the City of New York, and Presented to the Mayor of the City, at the Celebration of the Completion of the New York Canals (1825; Appendix), The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs, New York Public Library Print Collection: Free to use without restriction, via New York Public Library Digital Collections

The question of the Croton Aqueduct appeared on the ballot in elections held Tuesday, April 14, through Thursday, April 16, 1835. The voters decided, 17,330 yeses to 5,963 noes, in favor of the Croton Aqueduct, according to journalist Jonathan Schifman in "How New York City Found Clean Water," dated Nov. 25, 2019, on the Smithsonian Magazine's History page and to Morris A. Pierce, University of Rochester Adjunct Professor of History, in the "References / Earlier References: 1835" section on the "New York City, New York" page of his Documentary History of American Water-Works website.

A correlation between highest tax-paying wards and affirmative votes and lower tax-paying wards and negative votes occurred, as calculated by David Thomas Valentine, Chief Clerk of the Common Council of New York (1842-1868) in Manual of the Corporation of the City of New York for 1854 (pages 220-221). "To complete this view, and to show that the wards which contributed the largest amount of taxes, gave also the largest vote in favor of the Croton project, a list is annexed from the report of the Comptroller of the taxes paid by each ward for the year 1835. In three wards. Ninth, Tenth and Thirteenth, the negative vote preponderated. In all the others the affirmative, by a large majority. As to proportion between taxation and the affirmative vote, the First Ward, paying $246,181 records but 27 negatives against 1,417 affirmative votes, while the Tenth Ward paying but little more than one-tenth the taxes of the First Ward records 1,030 negative against 936 affirmative votes."

On Tuesday, June 2, 1835, the Board of Croton Water Commissioners hired American civil and military engineer David Bates Douglass (March 21, 1790-Oct. 21, 1849) as Chief Engineer of the Croton Aqueduct (Morris A. Pierce, "References / Earlier References: 1835"). Douglass, whose civil and military engineering career included a civil engineering professorship at the United States Military Academy at West Point (1815-1831) and designer of the Montville water-driven inclined planes in New Jersey's Morris Canal (closed 1924), envisioned a Romanesque Revival-style multi-arched stone bridge across the Harlem River for a dramatic entry of the Croton Aqueduct into Manhattan (Schifman, Nov. 25, 2019).

Douglass, however, was dismissed Tuesday, Oct. 11, 1836 (Morris A. Pierce, "References / Earlier References: 1835"). Effective Thursday, Oct. 20, 1836, the project's chief engineership subsequently was assigned to American civil engineer John Bloomfield Jervis (Dec. 14, 1795-Jan. 12, 1885). His engineering accomplishments included designer of New York's first steam locomotive, the DeWitt Clinton (1831) of the Mohawk and Hudson Railroad (M&H), and chief engineer of New York and Pennsylvania's Delaware and Hudson Canal and of Upstate New York's Chenango Canal (1833-1836).

In their required report to the Common Council, dated Monday, Jan. 9, 1837, for the period from Tuesday, Aug. 1, 1836, to Sunday, Jan. 1, 1837, the Board of Croton Water Commissioners explained the replacement of the project's Chief Engineer. “In addition to these perplexing delays, (whether chargeable to the form of proceedings by the Court, or the neglect of applicants, the Commissioners are not competent judges,) they have had to contend with what they have considered much lack of energy in the operations of their Engineer department. We took occasion to state in our communication of the first of August, already alluded to, that on the 23rd of July, 1836, certain information was requested of the Chief Engineer, which he had promised to furnish as soon as practicable; and that, on the production of which, we were still in hopes of being enabled to place some part of the work under contract before the close of the year. These hopes, however, have not been realized, and the Commissioners having felt much dissatisfaction for this disappointment, and for other cause, they finally determined to make a change in the office of Chief Engineer, and he was accordingly notified of the fact. After proper enquiry on the subject, they fixed upon John B. Jarvis, Esq. as Civil Engineer, who had been engaged on most of the great works constructed by this State, and who was extensively known as an energetic and practical conductor of the public works. The negociations with Mr. Jarvis having resulted favourably, he was appointed Chief Engineer of the works for supplying this city with water, on the 11 of October, 1836, at an annual salary of five thousand dollars; and an official letter was transmitted to him by the Chairman, announcing the fact of his appointment. He arrived here on the 19th, and on the 20th two of the Commissioners accompanied him to Sing Sing and Yonkers, where parties of the Engineer corps were engaged, and placed him in the direction of the Engineer department of the works" (New York Water Commissioners, "Document No. 24," Jan. 9th, 1837; pages 103-104).

photographic portrait of American bridge contractor, financier and U.S. Mail Steamship Company co-founder George Law by by American Civil War and portrait photographer Mathew Brady (May 18, 1822-Jan. 15, 1896); "Early Steamboat Man," wet collodion negative (glass plate), between 1855 and 1865; Credit Line Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Brady-Handy Collection: No known restrictions on publication, via Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Online Catalog (PPOC)

On Saturday, June 15, 1839, the Board of Croton Water Commissioners opened bidding on the construction of the High Bridge over the Harlem River. On Tuesday, Aug. 13, 1839, the board accepted the bid submitted by Timothy N. Ferrell, George Law, Samuel Roberts and Arnold Mason (Sep. 11, 1777-March 9, 1861). Mason had hauled stone for Erie Canal-associated locks in Albany, New York, with his teen-aged son, Roswell B. Mason (Sep. 19, 1805-Jan. 1, 18920, future canal and railroad builder and mayor of Chicago (Dec. 6, 1869-Dec. 4, 1871) during the Great Chicago Fire (Oct. 8–10, 1871), according to the brief biography, "Roswell B. Mason," on the New Hartford Historical Society's website.

In their required report to the Common Council, dated Jan. 6, 1840, for the period from July 1, to Dec. 31, 1839, the Board of Croton Water Commissioners described the award of the contract for the Croton Aqueduct's High Bridge across the Harlem River. "In our last report we stated, that a notice had been issued, inviting proposals for building a lofty bridge of masonry, including materials, for crossing the Harlaem River with the Croton water ; the work to be completed on or before the first day of August, 1843. The proposals were to be received on the 29th of July, 1839, twenty-nine days after the said report was presented to your Honorable Body, which precluded the Commissioners from reporting on the subject until now. The result of the proposals were as follows:

"There were thirteen bidders for the work and materials, the lowest of which was made by John B. Ives, Robert Nixon, George T. Olmstead, and Charles A. Olmstead, amounting, by estimation, to $737,755. Ives & Company, however, declined taking the work for the sum proposed, and the Commissioners offered the contract to Timothy N. Ferrell, George Law, Samuel Roberts, and Arnold Mason, who were then contractors on the aqueduct, and well known to the Commissioners. The amount of their bid, as estimated, was $755,130. They acceded to the proposal, and having furnished the requisite security, the contract was executed on the 13th of August, 1839" (New York Water Commissioners, "Document No. 42," Jan. 6, 1840; page 442).

The contractors completed construction of the High Bridge in autumn 1848. The last stages entailed the placement of two lines of pipes on the bridge and such final finesses to the site as an overlay of the pipes with sand and turf.

"The first line of pipes on the Aqueduct bridge across Harlem river, was completed, and the Croton water passed through it, on the 30th of May last. The second line was completed on the 15th of July, and the water passed through it soon afterwards. The contractors then proceeded diligently with the covering of sand and earth, and with the turfing and flagging over all. This work, with the embankments and masonry around the gate-houses, &c., cleaning off and pointing such parts of the masonry of the bridge as required it, and various other items, occupied them till the end of October, at which time it was considered they had completed the work embraced in their contract," detailed the project's resident engineer, Peter Hastie, in a letter, dated Dec. 28, 1848, to Chief Engineer Jervis (New York Water Commissioners, "Document No. 32," Dec. 28, 1848; page 622).

Approximately seven months prior to his completion of the High Bridge in October 1848, American bridge contractor and steamship businessman George Law (Oct. 25, 1806-Nov. 18, 1881) had started a new venture. On Thursday, March 23, 1848, the New York State Legislature had chartered the U.S. Mail Steamship Company as a provider of mail and passenger services via the Atlantic Ocean between New York and the Caribbean, northern coast of the Isthmus of Panama. Law co-founded the steamship business with American financier and art collector Marshall Owen Roberts (March 22, 1813-Sep. 11, 1880) and Bowes Reed McIlvaine (1794-Aug. 30 1866), previously an aide-de-camp to General Isiah Thim in the New Jersey Militia during the War of 1812 (June 18, 1812-Feb. 17, 1815), according to Scott Spears in "McIlvaine Family," posted Aug. 18, 2020, on the blog for his Hunting for My Roots website.

Approximately one month after his completion of the High Bridge, Law and his two co-founders achieved their steamship company's first service between New York and Chagres, Panama. SS Falcon successfully navigated the mail delivery route on Friday, Dec. 1, 1848.

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Dedication

This post is dedicated to the memory of our beloved blue-eyed brother, Charles, who guided the creation of the Met Opera and Astronomy posts on Earth and Space News. We memorialized our brother in "Our Beloved Blue-Eyed Brother, Charles, With Whom We Are Well Pleased," published on Earth and Space News on Thursday, Nov. 18, 2021, an anniversary of our beloved father's death.

Image credits:

"High Bridge New York," 1849 watercolor drawing by English artist and Currier & Ives lithographer Frances "Fanny" Flora Bond Palmer (July 24, 1812-Aug. 20, 1876); "This watercolor view of the High Bridge was published in the first year of Mrs. Palmer's employment with Currier & Ives"; Amos F. Eno Collection of New York City Views, collector New York City-born American philanthropist Amos Ferdinand Eno (June 13, 1836-Oct. 21, 1915), New York Public Library, The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs -- Print Collection: Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:High_Bridge_New_York_(NYPL_Hades-1090705-ps_prn_cd21_307).tiff?page=1;
Free to use without restriction, via The New York Public Library Digital Collections @ https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e3-b9b6-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99

John Bloomfield Jervis served as Chief Engineer on the Croton Aqueduct from 1836 until the project's completion in 1848; "Photocopied December 1977, from copy in Jervis Library. SMALL PORTRAIT OF JOHN B. JERVIS, DONE AT ABOUT THE TIME HE CONSTRUCTED THE CROTON AQUEDUCT. -- Old Croton Aqueduct, New York County, NY," Reproduction Number HAER NY,31-NEYO,87--3; Historic American Buildings Survey, Historic American Engineering Record and Historic American Landscapes Survey Collections, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, Washington DC: Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Photocopied_December_1977,_from_copyin_Jervis_Library._SMALL_PORTRAIT_OF_JOHN_B._JERVIS,_DONE_AT_ABOUT_THE_TIME_HE_CONSTRUCTED_THE_CROTON_AQUEDUCT._-_Old_Croton_Aqueduct,_New_York_HAER_NY,31-NEYO,87-3.tif?page=1;
No known restrictions on images made by the U.S. Government; images copied from other sources may be restricted.via Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Online Catalog (PPOC) @ https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/ny1181.photos.120185p/

Construction of New York City's High Bridge began in 1839 and finished in 1848; "View of High Bridge and the Harlem River," 1844 watercolor drawing by British-born engraver and painter William James Bennett (1787−1844); I. N. Phelps Stokes Collection of American Historical Prints, collector American architect Isaac Newton Phelps Stokes (April 11, 1867-Dec. 18, 1944), New York Public Library, The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs -- Print Collection: Free to use without restriction, via The New York Public Library Digital Collections https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47d9-7c7c-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99

For further information:

"Acts of the Legislature. 1. An Act for the Appointment of Commissioners in Relation to Supplying the City of New York With Pure and Wholesome Water." Pages 3-4. Acts of the Legislature of the State, and Ordinances and Resolutions of the Common Council; With the Rules and Regulations of the Croton Aqueduct Board, in Relation to the Subject of the Introduction, Supply and Use of Croton Water in the City of New York, From 1833 to 1861. New York: Edmund Jones & Co., Corporation Printers, 1861.
Available @ http://www.waterworkshistory.us/NY/New_York_City/1861CrotonWaterActs.pdf

Acts of the Legislature of the State, and Ordinances and Resolutions of the Common Council; With the Rules and Regulations of the Croton Aqueduct Board, in Relation to the Subject of the Introduction, Supply and Use of Croton Water in the City of New York, From 1833 to 1861. New York: Edmund Jones & Co., Corporation Printers, 1861.
Available @ http://www.waterworkshistory.us/NY/New_York_City/1861CrotonWaterActs.pdf

American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society. "V. From the Manhattan to the Croton Systems." Appendix C. Pages 523-529. Twenty-Second Annual Report of the American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society, 1917, to the Legislature of the State of New York. Transmitted to the Legislature May 3, 1917. Albany NY: J. B. Lyon Company, Printers, 1917.
Available via Documentary History of American Water-works @ http://www.waterworkshistory.us/NY/New_York_City/NYCwaterhistory1917.pdf
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/annualreportofa2219amer_1/page/523/mode/1up

American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society. "VI. The Croton Aqueducts." Appendix C. Pages 530-539. Twenty-Second Annual Report of the American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society, 1917, to the Legislature of the State of New York. Transmitted to the Legislature May 3, 1917. Albany NY: J. B. Lyon Company, Printers, 1917.
Available via Documentary History of American Water-works @ http://www.waterworkshistory.us/NY/New_York_City/NYCwaterhistory1917.pdf
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/annualreportofa2219amer_1/page/530/mode/1up

American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society. Twenty-Second Annual Report of the American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society, 1917, to the Legislature of the State of New York. Transmitted to the Legislature May 3, 1917. Albany NY: J. B. Lyon Company, Printers, 1917.
Available via Documentary History of American Water-works @ http://www.waterworkshistory.us/NY/New_York_City/NYCwaterhistory1917.pdf
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/annualreportofa2219amer_1/

Bowery Boys. "Mayor Stephen Allen: A tragic end for New York’s sail-making leader." The Bowery Boys: New York City History. Sep. 7, 2021.
Available @ https://www.boweryboyshistory.com/2021/09/sailin-with-stephen-allen-nys-first.html

Brady, Mathew. "Dolley Madison, three-quarter length portrait of a woman, facing front, seated." Library of Congress Photo, Print, Drawing. Available via Library of Congress Photo, Print, Drawing @ https://www.loc.gov/item/2004664021/

Brodt, Katherine. "Dolley Madison, the Queen of Washington." Boundary Stones. March 26, 2020.
Available @ https://boundarystones.weta.org/2020/03/26/dolley-madison-queen-washington

Colden, Cadwallader. D. Memoir, Prepared at the Request of a Committee of the Common Council of the City of New York, and Presented to the Mayor of the City, at the Celebration of the Completion of the New York Canals. New York: W.A. Davis, 1825.
Available via New York Public Library Digital Collections @ https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47d9-7e6d-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99

Dr.Sliderule. "Happy 168th Birthday to the High Bridge." Thursday, June 30, 2016.
Available @ http://highbridgeparkdevelopment.blogspot.com/2016/06/happy-168th-birthday-to-high-bridge.html

Dr.Sliderule. "The High Bridge and the Park." Friday, July 28, 2023.
Available @ http://highbridgeparkdevelopment.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-redevelopment-of-bridge-and-park.html

Dr.Sliderule. "In the Footsteps of Edgar Allan Poe: A Walk from Poe Cottage to High Bridge." Friday, June 10, 2016.
Available @ http://highbridgeparkdevelopment.blogspot.com/2016/06/in-footsteps-of-edgar-allan-poe-walk.html

Eastern Roads (Steve Anderson). "High Bridge (Aqueduct Bridge) Historic Overview." NYC Roads > The Crossings of Metro New York > Harlem River Bridges: High Bridge Historic Overview.
Available @ http://nycroads.com/crossings/high/

Gavan, Peggy. "1892: The Fox Farm House at Fox’s Corner, Where Foxes Ran in Foxhurst, Bronx." The Hatching Cat of Gotham > Animal Stories. Dec. 5, 2018.
Available @ https://hatchingcatnyc.com/2018/12/05/fox-foxhurst-bronx/

Hall, Edward Hagaman. The Catskill Aqueduct and Earlier Water Supplies to the City of New York With elementary Chapters on the Source and Uses of Water and the Building of Aqueducts, and an Outline for an Allegorical Pageant. New York: The Mayor’s Catskill Aqueduct Celebration Committee, 1917.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://ia802309.us.archive.org/10/items/catskillaqueduct00newyrich/catskillaqueduct00newyrich.pdf

Hall, Edward Hagaman. “Chapter V. The Croton Aqueduct.” Pages 57-68. The Catskill Aqueduct and Earlier Water Supplies to the City of New York With elementary Chapters on the Source and Uses of Water and the Building of Aqueducts, and an Outline for an Allegorical Pageant. New York: The Mayor’s Catskill Aqueduct Celebration Committee, 1917.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://ia802309.us.archive.org/10/items/catskillaqueduct00newyrich/catskillaqueduct00newyrich.pdf

Hastie, Peter. "New York, 28th December, 1848 To John B. Jervis, Esq., Chief Engineer N.Y.W.W. The first line of pipes on the Aqueduct bridge across Harlem river, was completed, and the Croton water passed through it, on the 30th of May last. The second line was completed on the 15th of July, and the water passed through it soon afterwards. The contractors then proceeded diligently with the covering of sand and earth, and with the turfing and flagging over all. This work, with the embankments and masonry around the gate-houses, &c., cleaning off and pointing such parts of the masonry of the bridge as required it, and various other items, occupied them till the end of October, at which time it was considered they had completed the work embraced in their contract. . . . P. Hastie, Res’t Engineer N.Y.W.W." Pages 622, 624. In “Document No. 32. Board of Aldermen, January 15, 1849. The Water Commissioners presented their Semi-Annual Report, ending Dec. 31, 1848.” Pages 613-624. New York Water Commissioners; and New York Board of Aldermen, Documents of the Board of Alderman of the City of New York. From No. 1 to No. 42, Inclusive. -- From May, 1848, to March, 1849. Volume XV Part I. New York: McSpedon & Baker, Printers to the Common Council, 1849.
Available via Google Books Read free of charge @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/Documents/jAQAAAAAMAAJ

Holth, Nathan. "High Bridge." Historic Bridges > Bridge Browser > New York.
Available @ https://historicbridges.org/bridges/browser/?bridgebrowser=newyork/highbridge/

Hough, Franklin B. "Department of Public Works." Pages 415-416. Gazetteer of the State of New York, Embracing A Comprehensive Account of the History and Statistics of the State. With Geological and Topographical Descriptions, and Recent Statistical Tables Representng the Present Condition of Each County, City, Town, and Village in the State. Chapter New York County, pages 410-447. Albany NY: Andrew Boyd, 1872.
Available via HathiTrust @ https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=wu.89064411473&seq=454

Hough, Franklin B. "The Croton Waterworks are the most extensive and costly in the United States. They were first proposed in 1834 and the first surveys were made in 1836, the supply being derived from Croton River in Westchester county, and brought down in a covered canal of solid masonry, a distance of 401/2 miles from the dam to the lower distributing reservoir. The conduit is of brick, 8 ft. 51/2 inches high, and 7ft. 5 inches wide in the widest part, and descending 13 inches to the mile. It has a capacity of supplying 60,000,000 gallons a day. At intervals of 1 mile there are openings and small towers for ventilation. It is covered beyond reach of frost, and it passes through 16 tunnels of rock, varying from 160 to 1,263 feet, in all 6,841 feet. It crosses 25 streams in Westchester co., from 12 to 70 feet below the line of grade, besides numerous brooks by culverts. At Harlem River it crosses on the High Bridge through three large mains, a little below the grade. This bridge is of granite, 1,450 ft. long, 21 wide, between parapets. It rests on 15 arches, 8 of 80 feet, and 7 of 60 ft. span. An inscription records as follows: “Aqueduct Bridge; begun 1839; finished 1848. Stephen Allen, Saul Alley, C. Dusenberry, W. W. Fox, T. T. Woodruff, Water Commissioners. John B. Jervis, Chief, H. Allen, Princ. Assist., P. Hastie, Resident, C. H. Tracy, Assistant Engineers. George Law, Samuel Roberts, Arnold Mason, Contractors.” Pages 415-416. Gazetteer of the State of New York, Embracing A Comprehensive Account of the History and Statistics of the State. With Geological and Topographical Descriptions, and Recent Statistical Tables Representng the Present Condition of Each County, City, Town, and Village in the State. Chapter New York County, pages 410-447. Albany NY: Andrew Boyd, 1872.
Available via HathiTrust @ https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=wu.89064411473&seq=454

Jervis Public Library. "To: Ferrell, Timothy N. -- From: Hastie, P. Date: May 1, 1837." Central NY Libraries Research Council (CLRC) > Jervis Public Library > John Bloomfield Jervis Papers > Index to the Papers of John Bloomfield Jervis > Box 2 -- Croton Aqueduct Jan-May 1837.
Available @ https://clrc.org/digital/jervis/jervispapers.htm

King, Charles. A Memoir of the Construction, Cost, and Capacity of the Croton Aqueduct, Compiled From Official Documents, Together With an Account of the Civic Celebration of the Fourteenth October, 1842, on Occasion of the Completion of the Great Work, Preceded by a Preliminary Essay on Ancient and Modern Aqueducts. New York: Charles King, 1843.
Available via HathiTrust @ https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/008631510
Available via Wellcome Collection @ https://wellcomecollection.org/works/rvf3u69w

Koeppel, Gerard. "Historic Wooden Water Pipes Unearthed." Friends of the Old Croton Aqueduct > Newsletter Articles. Jan. 7, 2011.
Available @ https://aqueduct.org/historic-wooden-water-pipes-unearthed/

Lankton, Larry D. "The Commissioners . . . June 15, 1839 . . . . August 13 . . ." (Page 233; footnote 27, page 258. Manhattan Life Line: Engineering the Old Croton Aqueduct, 1833-1842. A Dissertation in American Civilization Presented to the Graduate Faculty of the University of Pennsylvania in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy, 1977.
Available @ http://waterworkshistory.us/NY/New_York_City/1977ManhattanLifeLine.pdf

Li/Saltzman Architects. "Highbridge Historic Structure Report New York, NY."
Available @ https://www.lisaltzman.com/high-bridge-hsr

Malin, Gwynneth. "The High Bridge." City Lore > Places. December 2016.
Available @ https://citylore.org/places/the-high-bridge/

Meier, Allison. "NYC’s Oldest Surviving Bridge Reopens After Four Decades of Decay." Hyperallergic. July 1, 2015.
Available @ https://hyperallergic.com/218450/nycs-oldest-surviving-bridge-reopens-after-four-decades-of-decay/

New York Water Commissioners; and New York Board of Aldermen. “The Commissioners issued a notice on the 15th of June last, inviting proposals for building a bridge of masonry, including the necessary materials, conforming to the plans and specifications at the office of the Water Commissioners, which will be ready to be exhibited on the 8th day of July instant. The proposals to be presented on the 29th of that month, on or before nine o’clock, P.M., and the work to be completed by the 1st day of August, 1843." Page 127. Excerpted from “Document No. 10. Board of Aldermen, July 1, 1839. The Semi-Annual Report of the Water Commissioners, from the 1st day of January, 1839, to the 30th day of June inclusive.” Pages 115-162. Documents of the Board of Aldermen, of the City of New York, From No. 1 to No. 77 Inclusive – From May, 1839, to May, 1840. Volume VI. New York: Bryant and Boggs, Printers, 1839.
Available via Google Books Read free of charge @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/Document/CmI-AAAAYAAJ

New York Water Commissioners; and New York Board of Aldermen. “Document No. 10. Board of Aldermen, July 1, 1839. The Semi-Annual Report of the Water Commissioners, from the 1st day of January, 1839, to the 30th day of June inclusive.” Pages 115-162. Documents of the Board of Aldermen, of the City of New York, From No. 1 to No. 77 Inclusive – From May, 1839, to May, 1840. Volume VI. New York: Bryant and Boggs, Printers, 1839.
Available via Google Books Read free of charge @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/Document/CmI-AAAAYAAJ

New York Water Commissioners; and New York Board of Aldermen. "Document No. 12. Board of Aldermen, August 1, 1836: the following communication was received from the Water Commissioners." New York Water Commissioners Report to the Common Council of the City of New York. Aug. 1, 1836.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/101576494.nlm.nih.gov/

New York Water Commissioners; and New York Board of Assistant Aldermen. "Document No. 24. Board of Assistant Aldermen, January 9th, 1837: Communication from the Water Commissioners, setting forth the progress of the works for supplying the city with pure and wholesome Water" New York Water Commissioners Report to the Common Council of the City of New York. Jan. 9, 1837.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/101576466.nlm.nih.gov/page/103/mode/1up

New York Water Commissioners; and New York Board of Aldermen. "In our last report we stated, that a notice had been issued, inviting proposals for building a lofty bridge of masonry, including materials, for crossing the Harlaem River with the Croton water ; the work to be completed on or before the first day of August, 1843. The proposals were to be received on the 29th of July, 1839, twenty-nine days after the said report was presented to your Honorable Body, which precluded the Commissioners from reporting on the subject until now. The result of the proposals were as follows: There were thirteen bidders for the work and materials, the lowest of which was made by John B. Ives, Robert Nixon, George T. Olmstead, and Charles A. Olmstead, amounting, by estimation, to $737,755. Ives & Company, however, declined taking the work for the sum proposed, and the Commissioners offered the contract to Timothy N. Ferrell, George Law, Samuel Roberts, and Arnold Mason, who were then contractors on the aqueduct, and well known to the Commissioners. The amount of their bid, as estimated, was $755,130. They acceded to the proposal, and having furnished the requisite security, the contract was executed on the 13th of August, 1839." Page 442. "Semi-annual Report of the Water Commissioners, From July 1 to December 31, 1839, Inclusive. Document No. 42." New York Water Commissioners Report to the Common Council of the City of New York. New York: Bryant and Boggs, Printers, 1839.
Available via Google Books Read free of charge @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/Document/CmI-AAAAYAAJ
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/semiannualreport00newy/

New York Water Commissioners; and New York Board of Aldermen. “Document No. 32. Board of Aldermen, January 15, 1849. The Water Commissioners presented their Semi-Annual Report, ending Dec. 31, 1848.” Pages 613-624. In: New York Water Commissioners; and New York Board of Aldermen, Documents of the Board of Alderman of the City of New York. From No. 1 to No. 42, Inclusive. -- From May, 1848, to March, 1849. Volume XV Part I. New York: McSpedon & Baker, Printers to the Common Council, 1849.
Available via Google Books Read free of charge @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/Documents/jAQAAAAAMAAJ

New York Water Commissioners; and New York Board of Aldermen. Documents of the Board of Alderman of the City of New York. From No. 1 to No. 42, Inclusive. -- From May, 1848, to March, 1849. Volume XV Part I. New York: McSpedon & Baker, Printers to the Common Council, 1849.
Available via Google Books Read free of charge @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/Documents/jAQAAAAAMAAJ

New York Water Commissioners; and New York Board of Aldermen. "Semi-annual Report of the Water Commissioners, From July 1 to December 31, 1839, Inclusive. Document No. 42." New York Water Commissioners Report to the Common Council of the City of New York. New York: Bryant and Boggs, Printers, 1839.
Available via Google Books Read free of charge @ https://www.google.com/books/edition/Document/CmI-AAAAYAAJ
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/semiannualreport00newy/

Pecheone, Kristine. "Arnold Mason." Find A Grave > Memorial. Added Sep 23, 2021. Find a Grave Memorial ID 232371298.
Available via Find A Grave @ https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/232371298/arnold-mason

Pierce, Morris A. "1836 Report of the Water Commissioners, August 1, 1836 to January 1, 1837." In "References / Earlier References." Documentary History of American Water-Works > Geography > Middle Atlantic: New York > New York State: New York City.
Available @ http://www.waterworkshistory.us/NY/New_York_City/

Pierce, Morris A. "1848 Semi-annual Report of the Water Commissioners, January 15, 1849. Document No. 32." In "References / Earlier References." Documentary History of American Water-Works > Geography > Middle Atlantic: New York > New York State: New York City.
Available @ http://www.waterworkshistory.us/NY/New_York_City/

Pierce, Morris A. "References / Earlier References." Documentary History of American Water-Works > Geography > Middle Atlantic: New York > New York State: New York City.
Available @ http://www.waterworkshistory.us/NY/New_York_City/

Robbins, Kevin B. Dusenbury Family Genealogy Submitted to the Horry County Historical Society by Betty Duke Allen, 2006 -- Critical Corrections.
Available @ https://webtrees.mstevetodd.com/tree/M%20Steve%20Todd/media-download?xref=M5141&fact_id=743e15577715c327bf8f8c24ebc4be63&disposition=inline&mark=0

Schifman, Jonathan. "How New York City Found Clean Water: For nearly 200 years after the founding of New York, the city struggled to establish a clean source of fresh water." Smithsonian Magazine > History. Nov. 25, 2019.
Available @ https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-new-york-city-found-clean-water-180973571/

Scott, Robert. "'The thigh bone's connected to . . . my artificial hip.'" The Gazette. May 28, 1998.
Available @ https://sa1s3.patientpop.com/assets/docs/292217.pdf

scottspears (Spears, Scott). "Bowes Reed McIlvaine." Hunting for my Roots > Blog. Aug. 18, 2020.
Available @ https://huntingformyroots.wordpress.com/2020/08/18/mcilvaine-family/

Tower, F.B. (Fayette Bartholomew). Illustrations of the Croton Aqueduct. New York and London: Wiley and Putnam, 1843.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/illustrationsofc00towe/
Available via New York Public Library Digital Collections @ https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/c649f189-3511-f119-e040-e00a180618d0
Available via Project Gutenberg @ https://www.gutenberg.org/files/66640/66640-h/66640-h.htm

Travis, John C. The Memoirs of Stephen Allen (1767-1852). Sometimes Mayor of New York City, Chairman of the (Croton) Water Commissioners, Etc., Etc. New York City: Oct. 17, 1927.
Available @ http://waterworkshistory.us/NY/New_York_City/1927StephenAllenMemoirs.pdf

Valentine, D.T. (David Thomas). Manual of the Corporation of the City of New York for 1854. New York: McSpedon & Baker, Printers, 1954.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/manualofcorporat1854newy_0/

Earth and Space News

Wednesday, March 26, 2025

In 1848 George Law Ended NYC High Bridge and Began Panama Mail Service

No comments:

Post a Comment