Other modifications of the Juniata route have been suggested, and their merits fully considered, but, upon examination, all of them tended to confirm our preference in favor of the river line.
These conclusions were communicated to the Board, and the general route recommended having been adopted by them, I proceeded at once to make arrangements to have the line surveyed throughout. For this purpose three additional corps of engineers were organized—one for Mr. Miller's division, under the immediate direction of Mr. G. W. Leuffer, to operate on the summit and western slope of the mountain, and two upon Mr. Foster's, the first of which was placed in charge of Edward Tilghman, Esq., to whom was assigned the district between Lewistown and the confluence of the Raystown branch and main Juniata rivers.
The other corps was given in charge to S. W. Mifflin, Esq., a gentleman of well-known professional skill and experience, to whom we committed the surveys of the region from the Raystown branch to the summit of the Alleghenies, embracing the most important and difficult district upon the whole route to Pittsburg.
These parties did not take the field until the close of July, but they prosecuted their examinations with so much energy and success that we were enabled to determine the general line of the eastern division in season to place the most difficult points upon it under contract in November of last year.
While these arrangements were in progress, the parties previously in the field were actively engaged in examining the country between Harrisburg and Lewistown.
At the instance of a number of gentlemen from Perry county, a line was tried up Little Juniata creek, leaving the Susquehanna at Petersburg, thence near Bloomfield and along Sherman's valley to Concord gap, where it passed the Tuscarora mountain, thence it followed Tuscarora valley to Shade creek, and down that stream to Augwick creek, along the valley of which it was carried to Drake's ferry on the Juniata. The advantage promised for this route was a considerable saving of distance. The result, however, demonstrated that not only would we have had to encounter gradients running up as high as sixty feet per mile, but the length of the line would be increased four miles by its adoption. It was consequently abandoned.
After a careful examination of the country bordering on the Susquehanna and Juniata rivers, a line has been located as far up as Huntingdon, which is believed to be the best that can be obtained.
If the valleys of these streams had not been preoccupied by other improvements, a route would have been selected differing somewhat in its details from that adopted. Even for the short distance that we are brought into close proximity with them, the cost of the grading of the Road has been greatly enhanced by the confined ground we have been forced upon.
The located line commences at the Harrisburg and Lancaster Railroad depot; thence, passing through Harrisburg, it follows the sloping ground between the canal and the capitol ridge four miles, when it crosses the canal and, touching the point of Blue mountain, recrosses and passes to the west side of the Susquehanna river by a bridge 3,660 feet in length, and 44 feet above low water at grade line, which enables us to place the road on the top of the bridge. Thence we pursue this bank of the river through the villages of Duncannon and Petersburg to the Juniata, along the southern side of which it is continued through Newport and Perrysville to a point a short distance above Lewistown. Here the line crosses to the north side of the river, and within a short distance recrosses, to save nearly a mile of road, and one hundred and eighty degrees of curvature, together with some difficult ground along the bluff shores on the south side of the stream.
After regaining the southern side we follow the river slopes, over favorable ground, to Mr. Harvey's, about seven miles above Waynesburg, where the line again crosses to the north side, and passing back of Newton Hamilton, cuts through the neck of land in the great bend of that stream, 40 feet in depth at the summit and 3,100 feet in length at grade. Descending along the eastern slope of the river, we once more cross it at Shaeffer's aqueduct, and continue upon its southwestern bank through Jack's narrows, without meeting any serious difficulties, and finally pass to its north side, along which it is continued through Huntingdon to the Little Juniata, above Petersburg. Above Huntingdon, a preliminary location has been carried up the Little Juniata to Logan's narrows, at which point this stream divides Bald Eagle and Brush mountains in its passage from Tuckahoe valley.