Road Projects Under Construction

ARIZONA HIGHWAYS Road Projects Under Construction in Arizona DISTRICT NO. 1

G. B. Shaffer, District Engineer Pearson and Dickerson have contract 56% complete for grading, drain ing and placing aggregate base course on approximately five miles of highway, beginning of a mile northeast of Mingus Mountain Summit and extend ing towards Jerome, N.R.H. 17. R. E. Lawrence, resident engineer.

F. D. Shufflebarger has contract 5% complete on the Wickenberg-Prescott N. R. M. 31 (1935), Phoenix-Prescott Highway. Joe de Arozena, resident engineer.

State forces are engaged in grading, draining and surfacing approximately 8.2 miles of road on the Hope-Parker Highway, State Route 72, W.P.S.S. 112 C. Percey Jones, Sr., resident engineer.

DISTRICT NO. 2

F. N. Grant, District Engineer State forces have work 80% complete in beautification work near Williams on the Ashfork-Flagstaff Highway, U. S. 66, N.R.H. 89-D. J. M. Hobbs, resident engineer and construction foreman.

State forces are engaged in grading, draining and surfacing approximately 1.6 miles on the Eager-Springerville Highway, W.P.S.S. 117-A. Howard Shelp, transit man in charge.

DISTRICT NO. 3

R. C. Perkins, District Engineer Geo. W. Orr has contract for grading and draining of approximately 4 miles of roadway on U. S. 60, located about 46 miles northeast of Globe, N.R.H. 99-G, 90% complete. A. F. Rath, resident engineer.

Lee Moor Contracting Co. has contract 60% complete for the grading and draining of approximately 412 miles of U. S. Highway 60, beginning approxi mately 561/2 miles northeast of Globe and extending N. E. N.R.H. 99-1 (1935) R. D. Canfield, resident engineer.

State forces have completed grading of approximately 4½ miles on State Route 75, N.R.S. 13-A (1935). W. R. Stevens, resident engineer.

State forces have completed grading and draining 1½ miles of the CliftonSpringerville Highway, State Route 71, N.R.S. 101-C (1935). W. R. Stevens, resident engineer.

Phoenix-Tempe Stone Co. have completed contract for the widening of roadway and lengthening of drainage structures on U. S. Highway 89, begin ning at Six Points and extending six miles northwest to the city of Glendale. N.R.H. 33 (1935). R. J. Holland, resi dent engineer.

R. C. Tanner and W. E. Hall have contract 60% complete for the con struction of a concrete underpass and incidental work on the Phoenix-Yuma Highway, located on S. 17th Avenue in the city of Phoenix, N.R.H. and M. 30-D. Geo. E. Lang, resident engineer.

Ken Hodgman has contract 41% complete for the grading, draining and furnishing and placing of aggregate base course on the Safford-Bowie Jct. Highway, extending from Safford 6 1-5 miles south, N. R. S. 115-A (1935). A. W. Newhall, resident engineer.

State forces are engaged in grading and draining approximately 3.1 miles on the Clifton-Springerville Highway, W.P.S.S. 101 D. W. R. Stevens, resident engineer.

DISTRICT NO. 4

W. R. Hutchins, District Engineer Phoenix-Tempe Stone Co. have completed contract for the construction of a railroad underpass, with grading, draining, concrete pavement and cut back road mix, located within the town of Casa Grande and extending westerly one mile, N.R.S. 100-C (1935), State Route 84. Geo. Lang, resident engineer.

The Pleasant-Hasler Construction Co. have contract 44% complete for the grading, draining, placing of aggregate base course and oil processing by the plant-mix method of approximately 1235 miles of the Ft. Hauchuca-Bisbee Highway, N.R.S. 108-A. A. J. Gilbert, resident engineer.

The Borderland Construction Co. have completed contract for the con struction of approximately 5.6 miles of the Ajo-Tucson Highway, beginning approximately 5 miles west of Tucson and extending westerly, N.R.S. 110-A (1935). J. R. Van Horn, resident en gineer.

Pleasant-Hasler Construction Co. has contract 99% complete for the grad ing, draining and placing of aggregate base course on approximately 3½ miles, beginning at the N. E. corner of the Ft. Huachuca Military Reservation and ex tending north, N.R.S. 103-A (1935). A. J. Gilbert, resident engineer.

R. E. Martin has contract 75% com plete for grading, draining and the fur nishing and placing of road mix on approximately three miles on the Tuc son-Florence Highway, extending from Florence-Coolidge Highway Junction at Florence easterly, N.R.S. 111-B. H. Pinney, resident engineer.

The Borderland Construction Co. has work 29% complete on the construction of 10.3 miles of grading, draining, fur nishing and placing aggregate base course and oil on the Ajo-Tucson High way, N.R.S. 110-B. Dan J. Lyons, resi dent engineer.

State forces are engaged in grading, draining and surfacing approximately three miles on the Nogales-Tombstone Highway. W.P.S.S. 109C. R. C. Bond, resident engineer.

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE BUREAU OF PUBLIC ROADS PROJECTS IN ARIZONA

G. L. McLane, Highway Engineer in Charge.

W. R. F. Wallace, Assoc. Highway En gineer, Supervising Engineer.

F. W. Flittner, Assoc. Construction En gineer, Supervising Engineer.

R. Thirion, Assoc. Highway Engineer, Supervising Engineer.

W. P. Wesch, Assoc. Highway Bridge Engineer, Bridge Engineer.

W. J. Ward, Assoc. Highway Engineer, Locating Engineer.

R. M. Rutledge, Assistant Highway Engineer, Office Engineer.

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Route 3. Flagstaff-Clints Wells National Forest Highway: The grading and draining of section B of this route, 7.6 miles in length, beginning 8 miles north of Clints Wells and extending north, is under contract to Tiffany Construction Company. The work is about 70% complete.

The grading and drainage of Section C, 3.906 miles in length, beginning at the north end of Section B and extending north is under contract to Ernest W. Everly. The work is about 24% complete. F. A. Bonnell is resident engineer on the two projects.

Route 4. Ashfork Flagstaff - Angell National Forest Highway: Seal coat on approximately 15 miles of this route between Ashfork and Wil liams is being done by day labor under the supervision of V. G. Watson, resi dent engineer.

Route 7. Oak Creek National Forest Highway: Section J of this route, 3.09 miles in length, located about 9 miles northeast of Cottonwood, Arizona, is under con tract to Skousen Brothers. Work is about 20% complete. E. F. Strickler, resident engineer.

SEPTEMBER, 1935.

Route 11. The Payson-Colcord Mountain National Forest Highway: The grading of a 3-mile section of this route, located about 26 miles east of Payson was completed on August 12, 1935, by Hodgman and Mac Vicar. G. E. Nelson was the resident engineer.

Route 30. The Globe-Showlow National Forest Highway: Rogers Brothers are contractors for grading a 4.5 mile section of this route, running in a southwesterly direction from Showlow. Work is approximately 94% complete.

Skousen Brothers have the contract for grading another section of this route extending from Showlow 4.527 miles east. Work is about 8% complete. C. R. Brashears is resident engineer on these projects.

Grand Canyon National Park Highways: G. R. Daley and Vinson and Pringle are contractors for grading and sub-grade reinforcement of all of Grand Canyon Route 8, Hermit Rest, length 9.1 miles. The project extends westerly from the village of Grand Canyon to Hermit Rest, along the rim of the canyon. The work is about 88% complete. J. H. Brannan is resident engineer.

The Cameron-Desert View Approach to Grand Canyon National Park: A contract for bituminous treated surfacing on 14.4 miles of this route, near Cameron was completed on August 19, 1935, by the Lee Moor Contracting Company. V. G. Watson was the resident engineer.

Arizona Federal Lands Project 2, the Kingman-Boulder Dam Highway: H. J. Hagen completed the contract for grading a 2.4 mile section of this route, located just south of Boulder Dam on August 27, 1935.

Grading of another section of the route, 4.7 miles in length, is under contract to R. C. Tanner and W. E. Hall Company. The work is about 98% complete.

H. L. Lyon is resident engineer on the Kingman-Boulder Dam projects.

Arizona Federal Lands Project 6, the Globe-Showlow Highway: K. DeWitt has the contract for grading 3.8 miles of the project, located about 20 miles northwest of White River. The contract work is about 94% complete. C. R. Brashears, resident en-gineer.

SURVEYS: The Horse Thief Basin Survey, extending from the Black Canyon Road near Canon to the Horse Thief Ranch

ARIZONA HIGHWAYS

at elevation of 6,000 feet, is under way, F. J. Wade is the locating engineer.

BIDS OPENED:

Bids were opened on July 18, 1935, for placing a seal coat on Section H of Grand Canyon Route 1, all of Grand Canyon Route 10, and Sections A, B, C, D, E of the Cameron-Desert View Approach to Grand Canyon National Park. The project extends from Desert View to Cameron and also includes the Lipan Point Spur. Lee Moor Contract-ing Company submitted the low bid of $25,830.00.

Bids were opened on August 22, 1935, for bituminous treated surfacing of Sections A, B1, and B2 of Route 1 and all of Route 2, Petrified Forest Na-tional Monument. The length of the project is 25.3 miles. George W. Orr was low bidder in the amount of $133,997.

BIDS TO BE OPENED:

Bids will be opened in the Phoenix Office of the Bureau of Public Roads on October 1, 1935, at 10:00 A. M. for grading Section C of Arizona Forest Highway Route 11, Payson - Colcord Mountain. The amount programmed for this project is $35,000.

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PUERTO YSABEL, GHOST PORT OF THE GULF

(Contined from Page 9) So easy. Along where we expected to find the mouth of the inlet the bank was sheer and high, no foreshore whatever, and no sooner did we see what might prove to be the place than we were past it, carried along by a swift current as the tide ran out. We managed to get ashore and made an uncomfortable camp that night. Then taking advantage of the up-tide next day, we had better luck and turned into our elusive slough.

The banks were high, we could not look out over the country at all. The inlet was by no means straight; it turned and twisted continually. It was quite wide, though, with ample depth of water. The vertical banks were wholly silt and mud (we never saw a rock on that whole river delta), and the high tide mark showed plainly all the way along. The way seemed interminable to us, winding around between these mud walls with no chance to see out, and we began to have our doubts. One last bend, however, and Puerto Ysabel lay before us, somber and brooking, under a threatening sky. We negotiated the mud up to the top of the bank with much difficulty, made our boat secure and looked around.

It was not at all like the ordinary abandoned town; not in the least like our previous conceptions of it; no empty houses, no disintegrating walls. Here was a gigantic junk yard, an industrial skeleton. There was actually a dry-dock and on the rotting ways a river steamboat; alongside were several large barges. Scattered over the flat nearby was a bewildering array of material, rusty and decrepit.

There were cranes, winches, engines, boilers, lengths of used pipe of many diameters, forges, piles of old iron. The place had been a regular little shipyard.

Not a single house was there, although evidences of their previous existences were many. It was plainly to be seen that upon the final abandonment of the place all light and valuable articles had been removed, probably taken away on the last boat to leave. Everything left behind was heavy and cumbersome.

The dismantled steamboat was either the “Cuchan” or the “Cocopah”. I wouldn't be positive as to which one, for memory is not infallible. (The former word is the tribal name of the Yuma Indians.)

We felt depressed; very much depress-

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SEPTEMBER, 1935.

Indeed. Here was no friendly river at our feet, no umbrageous shade under which to linger; no nearby mountains hemming in the horizon. The flat, seeming ly endless Sonora desert, stretched away to the east and southeast, barren of every green thing, alkaline and sterile. There was not the least sign that anybody had been there for years. We knew that on rare occasions men would leave Yuma for the river mouth, just as we had done; but to come out of the way to visit this place was no part of such a trip. The only reason we had done so was because Alex Berry had told us so much about it. The sense of loneliness was appalling; our spirits sank to zero. It wasn't jus because we were so absolutely alone, so many miles from the nearest human being, it was the culmination of many things. It was the absence of mountains, the dead level of that awful desert, devoid of tree, grass, bush or cactus. It was the gaunt remains of those old steamboats, the somber and sinister graveyard, the wind howling across the country, and the monotonous slap of the water against our boat. Viewing the rotting headboards of that burial ground, those now-sunken mounds, abandoned of all mankind in that remote, inhospitable land, we wondered about the men who lay there; ARIZONA HIGHWAYS whence had they come and why? Did, perchance, another "mute, inglorious Milton" rest beneath us? We could frame no answer. Truly a cheerful place in which to spend the night; but spend the night there we did, just the same. Early next morning we tumbled our outfit into the boat and left that unholy spot forever. Our next objective was San Felipe Bay, across on the Baja California coast, and approximately sixty miles away. We were equipped with mast and sail and hoped to put them to good use on this voyage, but the winds were trifling and variant and all that day we took turns at the oars, our sail helping us but little. Land was far away, for the Sonora coast fell sharply off to the southeast and the opposite side of the gulf was most irritatingly slow in its approach. We quickly realized that this was vastly different from travel on our good old river. This was being at sea, no feeling, even if it didn't look very wide on the map. Our flat-bottomed boat rose on the waves and slapped down again in a most disquieting manner. All during that day we had a superb if distant view of the long mountain range which forms the backbone of the peninsula, a range dominated by the snow-clad peak of San Pedro Martir. Toward evening it became apparent we would not be able to make land that night. All this time we had been in shoal waters, for occasionally we touched bottom with an oar. Just about sundown we decided to call it a day. We were far from land. We threw out our improvised anchor with 25 or 30 feet of extra line attached, for we had not the slightest idea what the tide would do to us. After a cold supper we disposed ourselves as best we could for the night.

Morning came; both of us had slept well. Our anchor line, though, was stretched down taut into the water; evi-

21

Evidently a tidal rise of goodly proportions. Hutt and I have of en since discussed that night afloat, and agreed that we took desperate chances in case a windy squall had arisen; but right at the time we never bothered our heads about it; it was all in the day's work. We proceeded southward, rowing continually, for there was no wind. Far in the dim distance ahead of us appeared what looked like the white sail of a vessel. The illusion was perfect. We speculated as to whom it might be; wha kind of people were we about to meet? The morning seemed interminably long, the supp sed schooner most dilatory in its approach. "As idle as a painted ship upon a painted ocean." Not until we had come within measurable disance did we realize that it was not a schooner, but a tall, conical, rocky peak, rising abruptly out of the sea and its dazzling whiteness was that of bird guano.

Myriads of screaming sea birds wheeled in the air; countless numbers of big white pelicans ccupied points of vantage on the rocks. Never had we seen anything comparable. But to make a landing was impossible there was no landing place. The breakers dashed the spray high on the rocks; clearly it was no place for us.

We rounded headland after headland, but not until mid-afternoon did we clear the final one, to behold ahead of us a pretty, half-moon bay with a fine, sandy beach and a brush-covered flat between shore and foothill.

Alex Berry had assured us that here was a well of fresh water, the first to be had along that arid coast after leav-ing THE COLORADO BUILDERS SUPPLY CO.

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Enjoying the river. This place looked good to us very good indeed, after the wastes of mud and water we had so re cently experienced.

There was no sign of human occu pancy; nobody lived in that country then. We commenced our search for the "well", finding it was no easy mat ter. We spent a couple of hours comb ing that brushy flat. We kept our eyes alert for a trail, but there was no trail.

We stumbled on it at last, in the thickets, just a hole in the ground a few feet deep, full of trash and many small, dead animals. It was far from inviting, but there was water in it. For tunately we still had sufficient fresh water for that night, so we gave it a good cleaning out and left it t settle until morning. It proved to be excel lent water.

The weather, which had been far from ideal around the river mouth, here was delightful. Down here were signs of spring. The air was balmy, the quail were beginning to mate and there was an abundance of small bird life. We reveled in sea bathing. We caught great Jew-fish for which we had no possible use. We shot a porpoise, equally use less to us. Big sea turtles frequently appeared in the bay, but we never were lucky enough or expert enough to cap ture one of them. Ashore were quail in large numbers, not only the variety with which we were so familiar, but an other kind then new to us, which we afterwards identified as the Gimbel, or fool quail, equally good eating. We were alone in a world to our selves. The Sonora coast was not visi ble; everything to the east was water.

One day we rowed down the coast a few miles on a little exploring expedi tion. Our excitement may be imagined when we spied a wrecked vessel just above high tide mark. We pulled ashore eagerly. It was of sloop build, appar ently, having a single mast and was probably 35 feet in length. Evidently it had been there a long time; still, it was in pretty good shape. We examined it thoroughly, even using a shovel (we never made a move without a shovel).

We found no dead mens' bones-no signs of tragedy. Just what we did find neither William Hutt nor I have ever told, and we certainly will not now at this late day.

Remembering our difficulty in finding the well we decided to do a good deed 'hat day. We took a white painted cabin door and the mast of the vessel, which was broken off. We put the door aboard our boat and towed the mast back to camp. We secured that white door to one end of the mast. We dug a deep hole in a well-selected spot,

ARIZONA HIGHWAYS

prominent and visible, and set up our beacon. Below, protected from the weather, we posted a notice, telling how to find the water, and appended our names and address. Altogether it was a noble job and pleased us mightily.

Right here I cannot refrain from making a short digression. Last winter (December, 1934), Hutt and I were visiting together for a few days and, of course, "fighting our battles over." Hutt said to me: "Did I ever tell you about that fellow who hunted me up to thank me for putting up that beacon? He said it sure proved a life-saver for him." "Why, no," I replied, "this is the first I've heard about it, and anyhow, didn't he thank me too? My name was on that notice as well as yours; and if I'm not mistaken, I dug more of that hole than you did."

Honestly, I felt quite indignant. Silly, of course, but there you are.

A momentous decision now faced us. Should we continue our voyage south ward or should we return? Adventurous, no doubt, we were, but not fool hardy. Our experiences on the desert had taught us pretty thoroughly that beyond a certain point it was distinctly unwise to tempt providence. Moreover, we were good boatmen, and that very fact served to emphasize the knowledge that was already ours that our flat bottomed river boat was entirely un suitable for ocean travel. Furthermore, our water-carrying capacity was ex tremely limited and it was a very long way to the next fresh water. All our inclinations were to go forward; good sense was equally insistent upon our re turn. The latter prevailed; not, how ever, without regrets.

Our last farewell view of San Felipe Bay showed our beacon, standing up bravely; a landmark, indeed, to be proud of.

On this, our return voyage, we were favored with a spanking south wind be fore which we bowled along merrily; but, alas! that same wind kicked up the very dickens of a sea and, oh! how sick we were.

All that day we sailed, one steering, the other bailing. We had our hands full; we had to keep going; there was no turning back. It was a strenuous day.

Towards evening, as we approached the entrance of the Puerto Ysabel in let, I shouted to Hutt: "Shall we head in here and camp in the graveyard to night?"

"Not by a damn sight!" he replied. "Trim that sail a bit and for God's sake keep further out."

In Yuma we sold our boat to a young son of Althee Modesti, then a prominent merchant of that town.

SEPTEMBER, 1935.

Concluding I will say that ever since our leaving Hardy's Colorado, Hutt had lugged those deer horns of his around faithfully. Up to Puerto Ysabel, down to San Felipe, back to Yuma and on the train home have those awkward things accompanied us. For many succeeding years they continued to be a familiar sight to me. I shouldn't be surprised if he still has them.

THE HUMAN EYE AND MOTORING

(Continued from Page 11) Perhaps a faster rate of speed than his own and an accident has occurred before either party has had the power to avoid it.

Do you know how things look in a fog? Outline is not clear and distinct, no sharp lines of definition, and a fuzzy blur all over the object. This is the way objects at close range look to the far sighted person, his arm is never long enough to get his paper far enough away to read it. Oh yes, he may be able to see the mountains and far dis tant objects quite clearly, but the closer an object approaches him, the more blurred the outline becomes. Yes, he may be able to know that it is an auto mobile and not a horse standing in the road at some distance, but as he ap proaches the object, it becomes harder for him to define its exact outline, and he is sometimes forced from the road by a wide truck, which he did not see was that wide, until he had been hit by it, or he did not see clearly that the sign said "Soft Shoulders", and therefore went too close to the edge of the road. The culvert which he hit, because he did not see it, caused a blow out and sent his car hurtling over the edge of the embankment and another number was added, to the already too high total of accidents.

Of course, an individual's knowledge of the fact that they have a visual defect is half the battle, he will watch his driving very closely and eventually have proper corrective work done to eliminate his visual trouble, but merely to have eyesight is not sufficient in these times of speed, glare, and immediate action. Many people think their vision is perfect, but uncorrected, faulty eye sight is the cause of fifty percent of automobile accidents, according to a report of the California League for the Conservation of Vision. In these times of emergency and imminent danger, the eyes must send messages to the brain with lightning like rapidity and if they fail, disaster follows.