Some Valuable Additions

 Marietta Daily Leader, April 7, 1899

Mr. George Weiser, the undertaker, has made some very valuable additions to his business equipment in the way of wagons for the conduct of business.

He has had the home firm of J. H. Oesterle, the Wooster Street carriage builders, make for him a casket wagon or ambulance which in point of design and style of finish is much the finest that has ever been seen here. It is quite an innovation in the way of a casket wagon, as it has large plate glass panels in the sides and ends and is thoroughly up-to-date in every particular, being constructed of the very best material known to the carriage builder.

The other addition is a funeral car, which was purchased from the Riddle Coach and Hearse Co., of Ravenna, O., who made the shipment of the car to Mr. Weiser in a car of their own. In order to get the hearse into this car it was necessary to take off the regular wheels and put on a set of smaller ones to allow it to enter the freight car. 

It has a very massive and elegantly carved body, everything being of the heaviest and best wood obtainable. The workmanship is perfect. The wheels are equipped with rubber tires and the bearings are of the latest improved pattern, which makes them very easy running. There is no doubt that the car is the finest in this section of the state.

Mr. Weiser has been to great expense in getting these very handsome additions to his equipment and can feel justly proud of the selections he made when ordering the vehicles.

Cars Are Hit By a Runaway on Putnam Street

 Marietta Daily Times, April 29, 1922

When he suddenly concluded to run away, a large bay horse owned by the American Railway Express company and driven by Walter Mugrage, created a sensation on Putnam Street Saturday afternoon. Incidentally the runaway mashed up a new Maxwell car parked in front of The Times office, wrecked a Chevrolet car in front of the court house, and knocked about a ton of mud off a Ford on Second Street. The "Lizzie" was the only one of the three to escape damage.

Murgrage left the horse standing on Third Street while he delivered a shipment to the Marietta Laundry. The animal was eating grass at the curb when, without any further ceremony, he bolted. Rounding into Putnam Street on a dead run, the express wagon careened into the Maxwell car, smashing up two fenders and a hub cap. 

By this time, the runaway was "just hitting the high spots" so to speak, and the Chevrolet was sideswiped with telling effect. Fenders and running board were ripped away. 

Turning down Second Street, the flying horse swung the wagon against the rear end of a Ford that was parked at the curb, spilled part of the freight out of the express wagon, and never even made a mark on the Ford. From there to the Union Depot, the runaway followed an open course, stopping in his accustomed place alongside of the train shed.

T. N. Fenn, agent of the American Railway Express, is preparing to settle up the damages, and in the meantime a score or more of people are thanking their lucky stars that they were able to get to places of safety when they saw the runaway coming. This is the second time that the horse has run away recently, he having upset the wagon when he started the first time.

 

Road Building in Marietta and Washington County, Ohio

The Marietta Register, November 30, 1923

Building Roads From Beginning to Present Time

The evolution of the road and transportation question in Washington County is one covering many years and there are many angles to the story. From the unbroken, uncharted dirt road of the Pioneers in 1788 on down through the coming of the waterway age, the steam cars, the electric lines and then the hard surface highway, is told in the many stories that are told in this Good Roads edition of The Register and it is needless to tell them again in a recapitulation.

From all sections of the county we have been favored with sketches of the vicissitudes incident to road building from the time that the citizens worked out a road tax in a haphazard way with the result that the roads were impassable much of the year, to the opening of the new Marietta-Cleveland highway.

All along the route, covering more than a century and a quarter of time, the work has gone on and with every year there has come an approach nearer the goal - now one all-the-year-round road leading out of the city and connecting with the outside world. And work is well on its way to the road to the west which will lead to the state capital

It's a long, long story and it will require the reading of the entire paper to get even an inkling of just what it has taken in time and money to accomplish the work thus far acquired.

Oldest Paving in United States at Marietta

Marietta is a pioneer in the street paving business and well toward the first line of the cities in the nation that took to improving their public ways by giving them a real hard surface. And while it was among the first, it also soon dropped back into inactivity and other towns passed her as she pointed the way to the improvement of the county roads.

It is not generally known, a fact however, that the oldest piece of brick paving in the United States still laying as first put down is the Front Street paving from Greene to Putnam streets and the square on Greene to Second and the one on Putnam to Second.

This work was completed in 1891. J. P. Hulbert was the City Civil Engineer. Council, however, employed E. Frank Gates and A. F. Cole as his assistants, and it was these boys, each one of them now having arisen to high estates in the business world, that Marietta owes the honor of possessing a piece of street paving that has withstood the ravages of time and tide - many floods having covered it - and today points to the work with pride as the first step in the labors of pulling the city and the county out of the mud.

From step to step, street to street, the work was carried on till the city has today as good system of paved streets as is enjoyed by any in the nation.

And this was the forerunner of the paving that reached out into the country and from it the ceaseless work of getting the county roads in to an all year round condition the labors have continued.

The story of the county paving began with the year 1908 and the story is told in a most able way by County Surveyor C. M. Weeks in this issue of the paper.

County Paving as it Came With the Years

By Charles M. Weeks

When the pioneers made the first settlement in Ohio they selected the confluence of the Muskingum and Ohio rivers, because these two large streams afforded ready means of transportation. As the settlers began to push out into the wilderness they made paths near the banks of the streams. These to begin with were mere trails blazed through the forest but were soon widened sufficiently to allow the passage of ox-cart and sled.

The first road of record in Washington County was surveyed in 1793 and followed the bank of the Ohio River through what is now the Village of Belpre. Others followed in rapid succession and by the year 1810 almost all parts of the county were accessible, at least by horseback. These early roads followed the banks or in may places the beds of streams and the dividing ridges between watersheds where little or no grading was required.

From the years 1830 to 1845 many so-called "State Roads" were established, any road passing through more than one county being so designated. During this period the public funds were insufficient to meet the demand and private companies were organized to build roads and bridges, the stockholders to be reimbursed from tolls collected from the traveling public. The Marietta and Newport Turnpike Company and the Marietta-National Road Plan Road Company were notable examples. These roads were eventually taken over by the county commissioners and the toll gates removed.

During the later years of the nineteenth century many miles of road, especially along the rivers, were graveled and much so-called "Stoned Road" was built. These roads were temporary, inexpensive affairs and there was no adequate system of maintenance but they helped to get the people out of the mud and some evidence of them still remain. Viewed from the present day, perhaps their chief value was educational.

As there developed in the people a desire for a better type of road and in a real sense paved the way for the present hard surface highway.

In 1904 the Ohio legislature created the State Highway Department and appropriated for salaries and running expenses $7,440 and for state aid in building roads $10,000 - which was to be apportioned among the counties making request for it before the following January.

It was not until the season of 1908 that Washington County received any part of the State Highway fund for road construction.

During that year the brick road from the north corporation line of Marietta, through the Rathbone Addition to the Mill Creek Road, was built. This was the first step in paving the main roads leading from the county seat to the rural communities. The same year the Newport Pike was paved to the Duck Creek bridge, and Virginia Street was extended to the railroad crossing at Mile Run. These two projects were financed by the County Commissioners, as was also the paving of 1.25 miles on the Watertown Road the following year.

The second state aid road which was also built in 1909 extended out Greene Street from Phillips Street to the upper Duck Creek bridge. This section is 1.14 miles in length and is also of brick; the contract price was $15,490.

The residents of Waterford Village and vicinity were the first outlying community to petition for an improvement, and in 1910 work was begun on one mile of brick and macadam pavement leading from the Muskingum River toward Watertown and the west end of the county. In 1911 the contract was let for 1.21 miles of brick on the Newport road beginning at the Duck Creek bridge. Up until this time the brick pavement was the only type given serious consideration. But in preparing plans for this section estimates were made for both brick and concrete. It was found that 1.57 miles of concrete would cost $500 less than 1.21 miles of brick, even though the brick was to be laid almost directly on the old roadbed. In the meeting of the commissioners when the type of pavement was to be selected, both the county and state engineers advised concrete but the brick association had representatives present who won the decision for their product.

Such was the power of the Brick Association in those days that soon after his stand in favor of concrete pavements, this representative of the Highway Department lost his position. However, the concrete road was soon to come to its own in Washington County, where both the Ohio and Muskingum rivers abound with excellent concrete materials. In 1912 one mile of this type of pavement was built south of New Matamoras. The contract price including grading - pavement and bituminous wearing surface was $12,125.

From this time concrete pavement has been the dominant type on state aid roads in Washington County, the only exception being the brick section through the Village of Beverly and the macadam sections above Beverly and at Bartlett.

In the year 1911 the State Highway Department in cooperation with the officials of the various counties designated a system of Inter-County Highways and from this on all state funds were expended on these roads. These highways are the most important routes from County Seat to County Seat and the plan was developed with the idea of finally getting a system of improved roads covering the whole state.

Even with this restriction on the location of improvements, the County Commissioners continued to pass out the state road improvements as sort of political plums or memorials to their terms of office. During the years from 1912 to 1918, sections of pavement, each one mile or a little more in length, were built at Newport, Grandview, Lowell, Beverly, Bartlett, and Belpre, while the Newport Pike was extended through Reno, the Lowell Road through Unionville to near the foot of March Run hill, and Pike Street to Westview.

Up to the close of 1918, miles of road had been improved by state aid, out of __ miles of the Inter-County System in this county and while the showing seemed small the educational stage was passed, the automobile had become well night universal and the people were ready to pay for good roads, even at prices three times the cost of ten years ago.

In the meantime, other section of the state with more funds available and level country to build over had built continuous roads and the demand in Washington County became insistent for a way out. The State Highway Department refused longer to permit its funds to be used on isolated sections, but insisted not only that each county build on one road until its completion, but that the adjoining counties should also build on the same main line. This policy adapted about 1918, together with the fact that Federal funds were available only on certain roads, tied Washington County up to the building of the Marietta-Caldwell-Cambridge Road to its county line.

Every effort was put forth to complete it in record time and those who have recognized the difficulties in the way are satisfied with the results attained.

Those in charge of this department of the county's activities have not been content to rest on the record thus made, but even before the completion of the Cambridge road, work was well underway on the Marietta-Athens road via of Barlow and Bartlett, and the grading and drainage structures on__ miles of this road is already under contract. While plans are being prepared for the remaining portions to the county line.

A Pioneer in Ranks of Local Road Boosters

By N. N. Thorniley

Being asked as a pioneer good road enthusiast to write a short article on the early road building in Washington County, I would say that the Valley Farmers' Club played an important part in the beginning of brick road building. Commissioners Ballentine and Cutter attended a club meeting at the home of Mr. and Mrs. T. O. Scott, April 21, 1906, and they had a proposition to offer regarding the building of a miles of macadam road.

Being president of the club at this time, and familiar with conditions in the location, I was very much opposed to a macadam road on account of high water and with the loyal support of the club pointed out clearly that such a road could not be a success on account of the cross currents caused by floods, as this was the lowest, boggiest piece of road in Washington County.

So at the next meeting of the county commissioners, arrangements were made for a levy sufficient to build a brick road from the westerly end of Duck Creek bridge to the corporation line, 1540 feet of this road to be 16 ft. wide and 1166 ft. along car line to corporation to be 24 ft. wide.

This road was build of Marietta brick on sand foundation and sand filler, at a cost of $16,781.10 or 90 cts. sq. yd. for paving and 30 cts. a foot for sand stone curb. It is the best piece of brick road in Washington County today and in seventeen years has not had one dollar repair.

This road was built of Marietta material, Washington County labor, under Washington County superintendency, with Washington County capital entirely, as it was built without state aid.

The next piece of road built was Virginia Street or Mile Run road, which was built of Marietta brick at a cost of $1.04 per sq. yd. and 32 cents for curbing.

This road was followed by the first mile of the Marietta-Watertown road, built in 1908, with Marietta brick with brick curb, and never proved satisfactory. These roads were followed by state aid roads, the Muskingum Drive, Beverly road, Watertown, and Newport-Matamoras roads, all partially built by state aid, and as these roads will be discussed by others, I will not dwell upon this feature.

In 1910 Capt. Cutter came to me and asked me to talk before the Good Roads Association on bonding the county for $1,000,000 for road building. I declined for two reasons - first, I am not a speech-maker, and second, I did not know which side of the subject I was on. But at the Good Roads meeting, Hon. C. C. Middleswart made an impressive speech on this subject showing that $1,000,000 would build 150 miles of hard surfaced road at this time and also showed by blackboard illustrations the different roads intersecting the county both north and south, east and west, that would be so improved. Before Mr. Middleswart was through with his talk, I was positively sure which side of the subject I was on and I still think it would have been a wonderful thing for Washington County if we had grasped the opportunity and built these roads at this time when material and labor were both cheap. But the good roads movement was then in its infancy and there was a great deal of opposition to this bond issue throughout the count, so the opportunity of building the maximum amount of roads for the minimum amount of money was lost.

Lower End of County Getting Out of the Mud

By H. P. Curtis

The main highway of Belpre loop which connects Marietta and Parkersburg with Athens is now being graded and gravelled by the combined efforts of the county and the State Highway department. This is an important and long-needed piece of work which will eliminated the stretch of mud from one of the main outlets of Ohio to the eastern states. It is the only mail road to carry traffic out of central and southern Ohio across the Ohio River between Wheeling and Portsmouth.

The Northwestern pike from Parkersburg to Clarksburg, W. Va., will soon be completed and then another route from the Atlantic coast to the Mississippi River and points west will be open for the use of autos, trucks, and bus lines that will be an important artery both for commercial work and touring purposes.

The improvement of this road will remove the mud stain from the lower end of Washington County for people wishing to come through this section of the state and will also mean that residents in this part of Washington County will be able to reach markets in Marietta and Parkersburg at all times of year with whatever products they may have to offer.

It is also a step nearer the completion of the proposed Cincinnati-East Liverpool road along the Ohio River..

This road now being gravelled joins the Athens County paving job from Coolville east to the county line. The culvert and bridge work on the Athens County job are now complete with the largest part of the grading done so that another winter should see the most of the brick in place and an additional four miles of good road open to travel

This Belpre Township road has meant a great deal to the development of the southwestern part of Washington County by providing a means of travel for the residents of the township back from the river as well as for the people living near it.

During the Indian war of 1791-92, the redskins doubtless followed the general location of this road through lower Rockland, keeping watch on the settlers gathered in "Farmers' Castle," located on the riverbank below. This same soil which served as a hunting ground for the white man and a hiding place for his foe now produces garden truck and vegetables in abundance and will become still more valuable property with the completion of the road improvement now underway. Later as the land was cleared and the danger from redskins removed, the oxcarts creaked along the road hauling material to erect houses - several of which were considered mansions in the early days - and some of which are still standing in good repair.

By this road travelled the pioneer men on their way to the salt springs south of Chillicothe to bring back this precious necessity in the early years of the nineteenth century and to visit the grist mill on the banks of the Little Hocking River which was completed at the close of the Indian war. This mill has long since disappeared and little grain of any kind is milled in this section, but the improvement of the highway will bring the delivery of food stuffs to the very door of those who live along the route with the same convenience and ease that places the groceries in the kitchen of the city housewife.

The footpath, the ox-car trail and the mud wagon road have all served their generation on this thoroughfare and the eternal wheels of progress demand some better form of roadbed upon which to carry the commerce of this part of Washington County.

Good roads spell economy and speed in transportation - whether by motor or horse power - and time of handling a given product is a large factor in determining the profit or loss of the transaction.

The gravel which is now being applied will not make a job as permanent as hard surface, but it is being put on at a moderate cost by using native material already on hand and will go a long ways toward making it passable winter and summer.

There is a little piece of work below Little Hocking that has surely stood the wear and tear of time. An impassable mud hole was repaired by using a foundation of large sandstone with a top covering of gravel, fifty years ago last spring. This piece is about fifty yards long and has carried the traffic high and dry without repair until torn up by the grading before the gravel was applied this summer.

The western half of Washington County has long floundered in the mud, while the eastern half has been more fortunate along the road line for some years past. The life and prosperity of any community is largely determined by the quality of the rods that pass through and connect that community with its outside neighbors. Good roads are worth all they coast - when economically constructed - and will more than pay for themselves, not only by increasing the value of the land along these highways, but also in the greater comfort of travel, the higher respect of a community for itself, and the ability to move larger loads both to and from market in less time. Poor roads are dear at any cost.

The start is made in the western part of Washington County and the improvement of more roads should be pushed as rapidly as possible.

Dudley Gap Was Closed Turkey Day

The finished hard-surfaced road between Marietta and Cambridge will be open for light automobile traffic December 13th, a week from next Thursday, according to the present plans of the contractors and those in charge of the work.

The last gap in the concrete between here and Caldwell was filled at 3:30 Thanksgiving afternoon after a stretch of thirty-six consecutive hours of work by the sturdy crew of men on the job. The light rain that fell practically all day Thursday did not hamper the work. They went right ahead and accomplished their objective - closing the gap on Thanksgiving Day. The joint was made just at South Olive.

Representatives of the civic clubs of both Marietta and Caldwell were present when the last foot was poured, but the honor of laying the final concrete went to the workers who had staid on the job through daylight and dark, rain or shine, to get the gap closed.

To Open in Two Weeks

While it is not customary to open a new concrete road for traffic for three weeks after the last concrete is poured, the contractors are planning to "hunch" a little bit and let pleasure cars through on this new bit two weeks after the finish instead of three. Heavy trucks will be barred until the full three weeks period has elapsed, but those in charge of the work are sure that no harm will be done to open the road earlier to lighter traffic.

The closing of this gap completes the hard-surface road to Cambridge with the exception of a short piece at Tunnel Hill beyond Caldwell in Noble County, which will be paved in the spring. The grading has been done and there will be a good surface to drive over during the winter months, however.

Workmen Deserve Credit

The achievement of linking Cambridge and Marietta within the past two days was made possible through the extraordinary efforts put forth by the State Construction Co., who worked ceaselessly to complete the job. Credit is also due the Marietta civic organizations, which at the last minute furnished the contracting company with two carloads of cement, when the supply ran low, in order that last of the concrete might be poured Thanksgiving Day.

It is probable that a program celebrating the event of completing the inter-county highway will be arranged as near as possible to the date set for the official opening.

Washington County Has Entered Road Building Epoch, Engineer Carr Says

By George E. Carr

Washington County just entered the road building epoch. This great movement started in a major way in 1918 with the award of the contract for the construction of three miles of hard surface highway known as the Second Creek road. This movement has been gaining momentum as the intervening years have passed and no one would care to predict just when the peak will be reached or what it will mean to the citizenship of the county when this epoch will have become history.

The coming of the automobile created the demand for a highway connection with the outside world. It was not a matter of the greatest importance, by just what route, this connection be made, or what type of pavement be used in its construction. The Marietta-Cambridge road, due to its geographical location, was during the late war, designated as a part of the Primary Federal System of Highways and was therefore eligible to receive Federal Aid money in its construction. It was also a main market as well as an Inter-County Highway. Since this was the only route in the county upon which the State Highway Department could appropriate funds from all three sources, namely: Federal, Main Market, and Inter-County Highway, it seemed logical that the county should spend her efforts along the route upon which she could receive the most support from the state.

Road Cost $920,000.00

The Marietta-Cambridge road in Washington County, approximately 21 miles in length, was built at a cost of approximately $920,000.00. This sum was divided as follows: $500,000.00 for pavement, $280,000.00 for grading, and $140,000.00 for bridges and drainage structures. Of this sum the federal government contributed $190,000.00, the state $270,000.00, and the county $460,000.00.

We realize that this is an enormous amount of money. But time and experience have proven the false economy in building a road for today which we expect to be using five years hence. Only those who are familiar with the enormous tonnage carried by our main arteries of travel can conceive the magnitude of travel on this main thoroughfare leading from Marietta and Washington County.

The highest type of construction has been used on this road because it was realized that this would be the one route which would carry the heavy tonnage to and from Marietta. The work in Washington County has been inspected by federal and state inspectors and is claimed to be the best piece of construction on the entire route from Marietta to Cambridge. Those in charge of the work took the attitude that only the best workmanship possible was good enough for Washington County and the results are self evident.

Enter Upon Second Project

This work completed, we have immediately engaged in a second project almost as great in magnitude, the Marietta-Bartlett-Athens road. Probably no highway leading into Marietta is of greater local importance than the Marietta-Athens road, since it taps the great agricultural and fruit growing section of the county, which has no other means of transportation except that provided by this public highway.

Since September 1st, 1923, 13 miles of this road have been placed under construction, and there is no reason to doubt that the remaining eight miles to the Washington-Athens county line will be under contract by April 1st, 1924. Placing under contract in the short space of a few months, 21 miles of continuous construction is an achievement of which the county and state may well feel proud. This route has been established as a secondary federal aid road, and may receive federal funds to the extent of $15,000 per mile. The Federal government is interested in just such projects as these, and there is every reason to believe that the county will receive liberal appropriations from federal funds. It is expected that the unimproved part of this route in Athens County will be under contract early in the coming year.

Monument to be Erected on Highway

Reno G. Hoag and his son, S. Durward Hoag, of Hotel Lafayette will erect a marker at point on Marietta-Cambridge Highway near Elba where Gap was closed, "Getting Us Out of the Mud."

Sentiment throbs often times among strange people and under peculiar circumstances. Even hotel men are not "immune" from the malady.

There has been chronicled in these columns how Reno G. Hoag had the honor and glory of shoveling in and smoothing down the last few shovels-full of concrete at the place where the gap was closed so far as Washington County is concerned upon the Marietta-Cambridge Highway.

Yesterday the two Hoags, father and son, made arrangements with Mrs. Amy Alban, who owns the farm property adjacent the spot where the event took place, and leased for a term of years, the privilege to erect there on the hillside a monument or marker, designating time and place.

The exact spot is in section 27, Aurelius township, about 1/2 mile this side of Elba, toward Marietta. The space is rather an open one upon the hillside, the road at that point running close to Duck Creek.

Here, upon the bank there will be erected some suitable design by the Hoags, with wording to the effect that it was here the great event in road building took place, with date, etc.

As yet the parties interested have not decided what style of marker or monument will be erected, but it goes without saying it will be in keeping with the idea. This will be perpetuated for a least ten years, and it is hoped to have some illumination at night so those "who run may read" at all times. Of course it will be natural to expect that the two hotel men will ring in the "Hotel Lafayette" thus mixing business with this sentiment, but even at that we consider the matter a very laudable one, along the lines of progressiveness which the father and son exhibit at all times for Marietta and the county.

Last Car on Muskingum Line Oct. 31

 The Marietta Daily Times, October 25, 1929

Last car over the Muskingum division of the Monongahela West Penn lines will leave the court house at Marietta on Thursday, October 31, at 10:45 o'clock. It will make the regular run to Beverly, arriving there at 11:30 o'clock, then will deadhead back into Marietta and service so far as the public is concerned will be done.

The Ohio public utilities commission granted permission more than six weeks ago to discontinue service on the line which has been a losing venture for years. Expansion of the automobile industry and building of good roads has spelled ruin for this division.

The Beverly line was completed and the first car was run into the northern terminal more than 20 years ago. Sam Brittigan of Marietta was motorman on that first car. If he so desires he will be permitted to bring the last car out of Beverly next Thursday night.

The company has not decided as to what it will do with the line that it is abandoning. It will either put its own force of wreckers to the task of removing it or will sell it outright to a wrecking company that will take it up.

The Second Street spur from Second and Montgomery streets to the fairgrounds will be left in place for periodical operation. In regular service, however, no cars will operate beyond Montgomery Street after next Thursday night.

Covered Their Ears

The Marietta Daily Times, April 10, 1905

Women On An Inter Urban Car

John Romire, who makes his home at Marietta and Parkersburg, created a scene Saturday afternoon on the Inter Urban car which left here at 2:30 o'clock.

The conductor had trouble in getting his fare after the car had reached Williamstown. When the fares were collected at Central, Romire was asleep and when awakened he refused to pay, and it is alleged called the collector of fares all kinds of indecent names. 

Among the passengers were about 25 women and they held their hands over their ears to keep out the sound of the oaths uttered. The conductor took Romire by the neck and ejected him from the car.

He continued his utterances and Policeman Noland placed him under arrest. His hearing was set before a Justice of the Peace at Parkersburg this morning.

Local Improvements

Marietta Intelligencer, August 29, 1839

Marietta and Newport Turnpike and Bridge Company

We have no desire to puff our goodly Town and County, or to boast of the enterprize and public spirit of her citizens. But we intend to speak fully and frequently of our natural advantages and shall also endeavor to show the distant public that something is doing here in the way of improving these advantages.

One important improvement - and this perhaps is nearer its completion than any other now in progress - is that of the "Marietta and Newport Turnpike and Bridge Company." This Company was incorporated in the winter of 1837 & '38 with a Capital of Sixty Thousand dollars, one half of which is taken by individuals, and one half by the State.

The road commences at the Corporation line of Marietta, crosses Duck Creek and the Little Muskingum a short distance above their junction with the Ohio, and terminates on the Ohio river at Newport. It is sixteen miles in length and the probable cost of the road, when completed according to the plan, is forty-five thousand dollars. It is proposed to McAdamize the road the whole distance in the course of the ensuing season.

The Bridge across Duck Creek has a length of one hundred and forty-eight feet between the piers, with extension bridges of forty feet at each end, making the entire length of the bridge two hundred and twenty-eight feet. The Bridge over the Little Muskingum has a span of one hundred and seventy-eight feet, with extension bridges the same as at Duck Creek, making the entire length two hundred and fifty-eight feet. The piers upon which these bridges are erected are thirty-three feet in height and built of the most substantial masonry. The superstructure is entirely of white pine, and on the plan of Col. Long's patent. They are well painted and the ends are finished in good taste.

At Newport this road connects with the Middle Island Turnpike, which is thirteen miles in length and connects with the great North Western Turnpike leading from Parkersburg to Winchester. At Winchester this road connects with Rail Roads leading to Baltimore and Washington.

In point of magnitude, this work does not compare with some others now in progress, and of which we shall speak in some future number. We believe, however, that it will affect the prosperity of our county more favorably than many, even of its friends, have anticipated.

The road will be opened as far as the Little Muskingum about the 18th of September.

*     *     *

Muskingum Valley Turnpike

The Directors of this Company have put a portion of the road under contract and are advancing the work with all possible speed. On Saturday last, sections B, C, D, E & F, were let to the following contractors.

Sections B & C, embracing the south side of March Run Hill, a distance of 144 rods, and the north side of the same, a distance of 168 rods, were taken by James Dutton and G. W. Trout.

The Culvert at Dyer's and Section D, embracing the narrows at widow Dyer's, were taken by James Dutton.

The bridge at Mason's run and at I. Devol's were taken by William Mason.

Section E, embracing the Steam Mill narrows, and Section F, embracing Mason's narrows, together with the bridges at Wincil's, at Decker's, and at Cole run, were taken by G. W. Trout.

The Directors have secured the services of Samuel R. Curtis Esq. as Principal Engineer, and under his superintendence there can be no doubt the work will e promptly and faithfully executed.

 

Lower Muskingum Ferry

 Marietta Gazette, July 24, 1841

Sealed proposals will be received at the Mayor's Office in Harmar until the 29th inst. for leasing, for the term of two years, from the 1st day of August next, the Lower Muskingum Ferry; the lessee to be governed by the provisions of the Ordinance regulating the Lower Muskingum Ferry, passed July 20, 1841, and to give security for the payment of the rent semi-annually. The Council reserve the right to reject all offers, if not satisfactory.

James Whitney, Mayor

Harmar, July 24, 1841.

An Ordinance,

Regulating the Lower Muskingum Ferry.

Section 1. Be it ordained by the Mayor and Trustees of the Town of Harmar, that the Town Council may lease the Ferry across the Muskingum river, below the dam, upon such conditions and for such length of time as the said Council shall prescribe.

Sec. 2. That the lessee or lessees of said Ferry shall provide and keep in complete repair, good and sufficient boats for the safe and speedy conveyance of persons and property, and shall, at all time, when the river is passable, give due attendance, with a sufficient number of hands to work and manage said boats, from sunrise in the morning until nine o'clock in the evening; and for a failure or neglect to perform the duty herein enjoined, the said lessee or lessees shall forfeit and pay, for every such offence, a sum not exceeding five dollars to be recovered, on complaint, before the Mayor, in the name of the town, with cost of suit.

Sec 3. That the sum to be charged any inhabitant of the Town of Marietta or Harmar, who may choose to be ferried by the year, shall not exceed the following rates: For any single person crossing on foot, not exceeding two dollars per year. For any family crossing on foot, no exceeding four dollars per year. For any family crossing on foot, and with horse or horses and carriages, not exceeding six dollars per year.

Sec. 4. That when any such inhabitants of the Town of Marietta or Harmar, and the lessee of said Ferry cannot agree as to the sum to be paid by the year, or when any person resident as aforesaid, may wish to contract to cross the Ferry with teams, and cannot agree as to the sum to be paid, the matter shall be referred to the Mayor and Recorder of the Town of Harmar, whose decision shall be final.

Sec. 5 That in fixing the amount to be paid for crossing the Ferry by the year, due regard shall be had to the amount of crossing, so as to preserve a proper and just proportion between different individuals.

Sec. 6. This ordinance shall be in force from and after the first day of August next. 

Passed July 20, 1841.

James Whitney, Mayor.

Attest, Douglas Putnam, Rec. pro tem.

Steam Ferry on the Ohio

The Marietta Intelligencer, October 20, 1858

We learn that Mr. A. L. Kinnaird of Williamsport [Williamstown, West Virginia], has leased the Ohio Ferry for five years from the 20th of December next, on condition that he put on a steam ferry boat. He has purchased the old Muskingum ferry boat, "The Two Sisters," and will put her on the Ohio until a new boat that he is building shall be finished.

A steam ferry on the Ohio has long been needed, and we are glad Mr. Kinnaird has taken hold of the matter. He will undoubtedly make it succeed.

A new steam ferry boat owned by Messrs. Bowen & Judd is to take the place of the "Two Sisters" on the Muskingum. Mr. Merrit Judd has the lease of the ferry for three years from the 1st of November. He will have personal charge of the new boat and make it a pleasure as well as convenience to ride on it.

Pleasant Trip to Newport

 The Daily Register, November 22, 1904

Enjoyed by the Register Man and His Friends - Thriving Village Destined to Grow and Flourish Steadily for Years.

One of the most thriving little towns of the county and, in fact, in this part of the Ohio valley, is Newport up the Ohio. The location is an admirable one, well adapted to a much larger town than now exists. Its people are a cultured class, enterprising, loyal to home, sociable to a large degree, and most of them descendants of pioneer families. 

While a good many of the homes and buildings are of recent erection, there still remain in the old town the buildings put up by the pioneers of that county, the Greens, Greenwoods and others. Those structures were well built. They are large in size, colonial in architecture, high ceilings, broad verandas and in every way comfortable and attractive to those who are cramped up in the modern house of the present. 

It was our pleasure and privilege on the last Sunday to drive up the beautiful valley from this city to Newport. The country is covered with the rust of autumn, and more burnt and dry by reason of lack of rain since July, except perhaps a light sprinkle. We drove because there was no trolley. There ought to be one built to and through Newport on to Matamoras. We know of no section better adapted to such an improvement, none more deserving of such and none to which a line would be more advantageous. We are told that the delay in building the line is due to the fact that quite a number of large owners between Marietta and Newport refuse to grant the right of way through their farms. They have not yet realized that they are standing in their own way, and it may be some time before they realize this to be true. While it may seem like considerable of a sacrifice to them to give up a strip of land, there is no doubting the statement that an electric line would be a great benefit to them in many ways and would also enhance the value of their farms. But they must live and learn as regards this. We believe with the proper encouragement on the part of land owners, a line would be constructed without delay. If not by one man or set of men by another. There are many people looking about for suitable routes for electric lines, and why not make it possible to have one to Newport?

We have gone our way, accompanied by neighbors, and at 11:30 we find ourselves in the yard of Junius Greenwood, and that gentleman is taking our horses to a good dinner. We approach the house where the estimable wife greets us and the odor of a well cooked country dinner meets the nostrils of a hungry four. The big house, remodeled to an extent, the old oven in the open fire place, the cheese cupboard and other things that we believe we would have left in, were gone, the rooms furnished with the tidy things and comfortable furniture, the old open fire place still there, but instead of the red oak logs the natural gas log has supplanted it and there is no more carrying of the cord wood. There is nothing more needed regarding the dinner to which we were invited to partake than that it was a regular Greenwood dinner. That's all; that's enough. There was nothing lacking.

The afternoon was spent about the village meeting old acquaintances and talking about Newport and her future. She has a bright future and oil is at the bottom of it. Aside from the fine farms that surround the town the oil development is the thing that will make the mare go. Newport is the center of a very important production. Recent developments have made it very attractive and it looks now like a second Belmont field, than which none more is important for a series of years existed, is to be opened just below the town. In fact, it is now up to the operators to define the direction the streak runs and see to what width it exists.

The Berea pool, which has been developing for a year or two, has now taken on new life and on the hill tops and in the valley may be seen the numerous new rigs, the wells drilling, pumping or flowing. The "find" of the field to date is the James Morrison & Co. well on the Friedel, which is about ten days old and still doing in the neighborhood of 300 barrels each twenty-four hours. This lease is attracting the fraternity far and wide, and there is promised during the coming weeks more wells of the like importance, the development of a great oil field and the enriching of many men, providing they get in line. 

The Snakards of this city are considerably interested in this Friedel lease. Joe takes his good fortune with the smile that is always his, whether in luck or disappointment, and we are glad to see the smile of good fortune on his countenance. Jimmie Morrison and D. C. Stewart are also interested. The former is a fixture in Newport. He found a fine wife there and is nicely settled in the village. Jimmie is one of those popular Democrats and is the only one of his political faith to hold office in the township and is the Treasurer. You wouldn't take him for a Democrat to look at him, neither would you take Dave Stewart for a Democrat. Davis is on the gold standard, all right. Look at his teeth for proof.

The people of Newport are to have the Marietta telephone line ere long. There are thirty-five subscribers to the new system and the poles are on the ground, ready to be set, after which the wire will be strung. This addition will give the people the advantage of having phones in their houses. As it is now, they have but the Central station, which is inconvenient at times, to say the least. The new system will hardly be ready for the people to be thankful for it on Thursday, but will certainly come as a welcome adjunct about Christmas time. It can't come too soon for the good people of Newport.

We are glad we went to Newport. We renewed some old acquaintances and saw many things of interest. Newport is a coming town. It will double in size in the next three years. Mark the prediction and if it gets the trolley, as it deserves to, it will just keep on growing. The visit to the town was a diversion from the every day life of Marietta. We shall not soon forget the ride, the oil fields, the scenery and the dinner and the hours spent in Newport and at the Greenwood home.

A. D. A.

   

Conestoga Wagon Found By Scouts

The Marietta Daily Times, April 7, 1937

A Conestoga wagon, first type of American wagon used after the old British army wagon, is in Campus Martius Museum. It is one of the early ones built in Pennsylvania where the name "Conestoga" was given this type of vehicle because it was first built at Conestoga, Pa.

Marietta Boy Scouts are responsible for uncovering the relic which is in the museum basement. It was found in the loft of an old dilapidated barn on the old Buck farm near Swift. The Buck farm is now the Boy Scout reservation.

The wagon was brought to the lower section of the Muskingum Valley in the early 1830s by John Buck, who settled on a farm of 300 acres that remained in the Buck family generations until the Boy Scout organization bought the farm. Buck was one of the contractors who built Luke Chute dam in the Muskingum when the state of Ohio made slack water improvements in building all the dams between Marietta and Zanesville. He brought his family to the lower Muskingum Valley in the wagon. For many decades it lay forgotten in the old barn, until it was discovered and restored by the Boy Scouts.

The wagon bed was in good condition when found by the scouts. It was necessary to put in new parts underneath, including wheel axles. It still has the genuine handwoven fabric top and the tar bucket hangs underneath.

Lower Muskingum Ferry

Marietta Gazette, July 24, 1841

Sealed proposals will be received at the Mayor's Office in Harmar until the 29th inst. for leasing for the term of two years, from the 1st day of August next, the Lower Muskingum Ferry; the lessee to be governed by the provisions of the Ordinance regulating the Lower Muskingum Ferry, passed July 20, 1841, and to give security for the payment of the rent semi-annually. The Council reserve the right to reject all offers, if not satisfactory.

James Whitney, Mayor

Harmar

An Ordinance Regulating the Lower Muskingum Ferry:

Section 1.  Be it ordained by the Mayor and Trustees of the Town of Harmar that the Town Council may lease the Ferry across the Muskingum River, below the dam, upon such conditions and for such length of time as the said Council shall prescribe.

Section 2.  That the lessee or lessees of said Ferry shall provide and keep in complete repair, good and sufficient boats for the safe and speedy conveyance of persons and property and shall, at all times, when the river is passable, give due attendance with a sufficient number of hands to work and manage said boats, from sunrise in the morning until nine o'clock in the evening; and for a failure or neglect to perform the duty herein enjoined, the said lessee or lessees shall forfeit and pay for every such offence, a sum not exceeding five dollars to be recovered on complaint before the Mayor, or in the name of the town, with cost of suit.

Section 3.  That the sum to be charged any inhabitant of the Town of Marietta or Harmar who may choose to be ferried by the year, shall not exceed the following rates: For any single person crossing on foot, not exceeding two dollars per year; for any family crossing on foot, not exceeding four dollars per year; for any family crossing on foot and with horse or horses and carriages, not exceeding six dollars per year.

Section 4.  That when any such inhabitants of the Town of Marietta or Harmar and the lessee of said Ferry cannot agree as to the sum to be paid by the year, or when any person resident as aforesaid may wish to contract to cross the Ferry with teams, and cannot agree as to the sum to be paid, the matter shall be referred to the Mayor and Recorder of the Town of Harmar, whose decision shall be final.

Section 5.  That in fixing the amount to be paid for crossing the Ferry by the year, due regard shall be had to the amount of crossing, so as to preserve a proper and just proportion between different individuals.

Section 6.  This ordinance shall be in force from and after the first day of August next.

Passed July 20, 1841.

James Whitney, Mayor.

Attest, Douglas Putnam, Rec. pro tem.

 

New Line of Stage Coaches

Marietta Intelligencer, September 26, 1839

Messrs. Lewis & Hildebrand have commenced running a new line of coaches from Marietta to Winchester, Virginia, a distance of 228 miles. This line passes over the Marietta and Newport Turnpike, and the Middle Island Turnpike, a distance of twenty nine miles, when it strikes the North Western Turnpike, which continues to Winchester. This line runs through in three days, with but little night traveling.

The proprietors have purchased good coaches and teams, and employ none but careful drivers. Some gentlemen of this place, who have just returned from Philadelphia, assure us that it is decidedly the best route they have ever traveled. The grade of the road is easy, the scenery beautiful, and the mountains are all crossed by daylight.

At Winchester, this line connects with rail roads to Baltimore and Washington.  Marietta being completely at the head of low water navigation, steam boats can reach this point when they can go no farther. This being the case, merchants and others from the south and west, who are traveling east, will find it for their advantage to take this route.

This line leaves Marietta every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, at 2 o'clock, A.M., and arrives in Winchester on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, at 8 o'clock P.M.  At Marietta, this line also connects with a tri-weekly line of stages to Zanesville.

    

A New Bridge

The Marietta Register, September 18, 1873

 Editor Register:

I find a good many of our people concur with me in the opinion that it is premature and unfortunate to submit the building of a bridge across the Muskingum to a vote at this fall election, and among others that might be given for the following reasons:

First.  It remains to be demonstrated whether there will be any necessity for a New Bridge.  The M. & C. R. R. Co. is now constructing, and, unless counteracted by this movement, will, in a few weeks more, have a new bridge completed, constructed not only for their own use, but also with special reference to its use by the public.  Of course tolls will have to be paid as heretofore, unless after trying it a sufficient time, our Commissioners should make it free to the public, by paying the toll yearly in a lump, in other words, rent the use of the bridge for the public travel, and thus relieve the Railway Company from the annoyance and expense of collecting toll, and give the people a free bridge at a cost of certainly not over four per cent of the interest on a new bridge, and also exempt us from the risk of ownership, expense of repairs, and services of men day and night to attend the draw of a new bridge.

A second reason is that with the establishment of a depot in Marietta, the crossing of teams which at present makes so large a show, will be very small, and, for foot-travel, the Railroad Bridge will unquestionably be as good as any that can be made, and as the Railroad men, who, of all others, have perhaps the most experience in bridge matters, are willing to invest their money in finishing this bridge for the public use, it would seem to be at least good presumptive evidence that their plan will do what they propose, to-wit, furnish the public a safe and commodious bridge.

Third, if the people now vote in favor a new bridge, it is not at all likely the Railway Company will carry out their plan and build a bridge to compete with a free bridge.  They will drop the finishing of this bridge for the public use, like a hot potato, and leave us to ferry privileges for a couple of years longer.  That there may be some drawbacks attending the use of the same bridge, for different purposes, is perhaps to be expected, but the Railroad bridge, by its superior strength, will undoubtedly furnish a quicker mode of transit.  It would seem that on a bridge capable of bearing railway trains, there will be no need of signs threatening us with ten dollars fine for driving faster than a walk, so that if we sometimes have to surrender the bridge to the trains, we may be fully compensated for it by making better time when it belongs to us.  I therefore hope the proposition may be voted down, at the coming election.

B.

___________________________________________________________

B. communicates an article in this paper, in which he opposes the building of a public bridge across the Muskingum.  He puts forth all we have heard against it, but it does not answer the question for the people.  No one doubts our ability to get along with a toll bridge (although a good many do doubt getting along comfortably with a railroad toll bridge), but the people have a right to own a bridge of their own.  Granting some sections of the county will not use it (and what bridge now built by the county accommodates more than a small portion of it), it is due the part west of the river that they have a bridge.  Marietta and the section west of the river pay over two thirds of all the tax, bridge and otherwise, that is paid.  But, says B., the Railroad bridge will answer, let us try it.  What an idea!  If the Railroad bridge was to be double, like the old one, and covered, we might get along with it.  But when the farmers learn that it is to be an open floor, perhaps 20 feet wide, with the railroad iron running through the center, and that by paying toll they can wait at one end, until the trains are not needing it, and then cross, what will they give for it?  Nothing at all.  Teams not familiar with the cars will be annoyed continually; and if not, why should the whole county, for 25,000 people are interested in this bridge, pay tribute to a railroad corporation, or any other?  Are not the people able to run their own bridge?

Marietta To Lose Street Cars After Nearly 35 Years' Service

The Marietta Sunday Times, March 29, 1931

When the bell in the court house tower tolls the hour of midnight next Tuesday, city street car services in Marietta will pass into history and finis will be written for an industry that has been a part of the Pioneer City for almost 35 years.  It won't be a happy occasion for a lot of Mariettans for, inevitable though it may be that local street car service is moving out of the picture in many cities, it won't seem the same to realize that it is one of the things of life that definitely is gone.

Car service came to Marietta in 1896 and the Marietta Electric Company brought it.  Local capitalists sponsored the undertaking and the company held a West Virginia charter.  Those men may not have been "capitalists" in the accepted sense of modern times, but they were of the go-getter type and what they may have lacked in capital they made up in energy and in ability to carry on in an undertaking that was epochal in the community life of the city.

$30,000 Capital

The Marietta Electric Company, organized in 1895, had an authorized capital of $30,000.  That wouldn't indicate much of an enterprise today, but it was sufficient then to meet the needs of the occasion, and the men who swung the deal and organized the company were A. L. Gracey, J. S. H. Torner, W. H. H. Jett, D. T. McEvoy, J. S. Simpson, I. O. Alcorn, John Kaiser, Nelson Moore, and H. W. Craig.  But three of them are living today.  They are Jett, Kaiser, and Moore.  The first two are residents of Marietta and the other survivor lives at Evanston, Illinois.

With the organization of the company and the granting of franchise rights on the part of the city, the men back of the movement purchased real estate on Second Street, now covered by buildings at Nos. 307, 309, and 311.  There they built their power house and car barns and there for a few years the new enterprise was centered.

Install Gas Engines

Gas engine generators were installed at the start and were given a thorough trial.  They proved inadequate and were replaced by a steam plant.

The first tracks built by the company extended from the corner of Front and Greene streets up Front and Putnam to Second, thence to Montgomery and on around by Montgomery and Fifth Streets to the corner of Fifth and Putnam Streets.

The second extension was along Putnam Street, completing what ever since has been known as the "hill loop."

Opposition Develops

At about the same time the first Greene Street extension was built and it carried out Greene and down Fourth past the old Catholic Church to the corner of Fourth and Hart streets.  Opposition developed on the part of some members of the Catholic Church.  They believed that the noise of street cars would interfere with church services.  D. T. McAvoy, however, was a member of the church and it was through him that the late Rev. Father F. M. Woesman became interested in the traction company and the protest was removed.

By the time that these extensions had been completed, the company was getting well organized.  It has earned its right to live and the company began branching out.  A franchise for the Norwood Loop was secured and the line was carried out Hart, Sixth, Wayne, and Pike streets, and up Acme Street to meet the projection being built out Greene Street through the center of Norwood.

$150,000 Bond Issue

A bond issue of $150,000 was authorized by the company and the bonds were issued in two lots of $75,000 each.  It is recalled that the first bonds sold outside of Marietta were placed by the late Henry C. Lord with a New England syndicate located in New Hampshire.  Gradually the stock and bonds of the enterprise found market and further financial troubles were avoided.

The early days of street car operation in Marietta were not without their trials and tribulations.  There were "knockers" against the enterprise and almost continually there was opposition in the City Council.  So outspoken was this feeling in those days that the original company was required to post a bond that it was sincere in its purpose and would carry out the provisions of its franchise.  Only rarely from that time has there been a council that has not been unfriendly at least in some degree.

Abandon Location

With the building of the Norwood loop the power plant and car barns in that section of the city were built.  The Second Street plant was sold, a business block front was added and it passed to other uses.

The West Side extension was built some years after the original company was organized.  The line was carried out Putnam Avenue from the bridge and down Franklin Street to Virginia Street.  It then was planned to circle down toward Mile Run and go to Harmar Hill by way of Pearl Street extension.  That plan was abandoned, however, and rails and other material that had been strung for the line were moved elsewhere.

Another extension undertaken at about that time carried the company into Duck Creek Valley toward the bridge east of Norwood.  That was designed to serve the steel mill center then being created there.  When the mill failed, however, car service was abandoned and later the track was removed.

Used By Inter-Urban

The Second Street spur leading from Montgomery Street to the county fair grounds was a later improvement and was the beginning of the inter-urban extension later built to Rathbone, Devol's Dam, Lowell and Beverly and finally abandoned in recent years.

During the early years of the company in Marietta, the car lines made money.  Dividends were paid promptly and each years aw an increase in earnings.  Strange as it now may seem, the lighting and power end of the business developed slowly and for a number of years the earnings from the street cars covered the deficit in the light and power branches.  In recent years the thing has been completely reversed and light and power earnings have been used to cover regular monthly deficits created by operation of the cars.

Effect Merger

In 1905 the Marietta Electric Company was merged with the Parkersburg company and the enterprise headed by the late C. H. Shattuck and his associates became the Parkersburg, Marietta & Interurban Company.  The Parkersburg group acquired three-fourths of the holdings in the Marietta company and the price paid for the stock gave local investors a nice return on their holdings.

That company built the interurban line between Marietta and Parkersburg, W. VA., and concluded the deal with Beman G. Dawes and his associates whereby they built the tracks on the Marietta-Williamstown bridge.

Changes Hands

After several years of operation under direction of Shattuck and associates, the property passed into the hands of the Kanawha Traction & Electric Company which acquired a number of West Virginia properties.  Later those holdings were taken over by the Monongahela Valley Traction Company and finally, some years later, the whole thing was absorbed by the West Penn interests centering in Pittsburgh and it continues to operate as the Monongahela-West Penn Public Service Company with headquarters at Fairmont, W. Va.

Many amusing incidents occurred during the early life of these electric enterprises in Marietta, and a number of older Marietta residents were among the early operators of the cars on Marietta streets.

The original company purchased its rolling stock from the Barney & Smith Car Company at Dayton.  They were unloaded on Second Street near the present B. & O. depot and were dragged up to Putnam and Second streets where they were placed in service.

Used Summer Cars

After the Shattuck group acquired the property a number of used cars of open or summer type were purchased in Brooklyn, N. Y.  They proved popular in Marietta and many persons now of middle-age will recall the days when they operated and young folks used them for pleasure riding.  Then it was possible to ride around both loops for a nickel and if one were so disposed, he could transfer to the West Side line and take in the sights over in the old Harmar section of the city.

During the first few years of car service in Marietta, when the property was purely a local enterprise, the management was genuinely accommodating, and it will be recalled that in that now distant period it engaged in what might be termed a "jitney business."  Any person desiring to go home late at night after the "owl" car had run had but to call up the car barns and for a fee of three dollars a special car would be sent out to deliver the belated traveler at his doorstep.

Car Parties Common

Not only did the socially-inclined young folks make a practice of riding the open or summer type cars, but "traction parties" were common and many an enterprising host or hostess would charter a street car and take the whole party, refreshments, decorations and all.  Charges were reasonable for such a service and many availed themselves of that novel medium of entertainment.

The advent of the automobile here as elsewhere spelled doom for the street car enterprise and each recurring year has seen the margin of profit for traction owners dwindle.  At last the deadline was passed and then the reports began showing red ink.  Losses continued to mount.  Operating costs were crowded down and down.  Modern methods were applied and a determined effort was made to "make ends meet."  It was a losing proposition, however, and now the inevitable has come. 

The last car will pass the court house next Tuesday just before the hour of midnight.

- L. N. Harness