Transportation
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.P54

P4
1835

Select Committee of the House of Representatives, on the Petition to free the Schuylkill Permanent Bridge; appointed

6th January, 1834.

MESSRS. KEATING,

MATHER,

HESTON,

City.

GOODMAN, County of Philadelphia.

SMITH, Chester,

STROHM, Lancaster.

ROBINSON, Pittsburg.

"April 8th, 1834.-Mr. Goodman, from the Committee to whom were referred the Memorials for and against making the bridges over the River Schuylkill at Philadelphia free bridges, made a Report, accompanied with the following Resolution, viz. "Resolved, That the Committee be discharged from the further consideration of the subject.

"And on motion, the said Resolution was read the second time, considered, and adopted.

"On motion of Mr. Allison (of Chester), Ordered, That ONE THOUSAND COPIES IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, and FIVE HUNDRED COPIES IN THE GERMAN LANGUAGE, of said Report, be

PRINTED FOR DISTRIBUTION."

Transport.

REPORT, &c.

Mr. Goodman from the committee to whom the petitions of citizens of this commonwealth were referred, praying that the Schuylkill Permanent Bridge should be made a free bridge, and the remonstrances thereto, REPORT:

That they have attentively considered the different memorials and remonstrances referred to them, relative to declaring the Schuylkill Permanent Bridge at Market street a free bridge, and would present the following as a brief view of the facts, connected with the proposed measure:

The president, directors and company for erecting a permanent bridge over the river Schuylkill, at or near the city of Philadelphia, were incorporated under an act of assembly, passed the 16th March, 1798.

On the 28th of March, 1800, the city of Philadelphia conveyed to the bridge company the present site of the permanent bridge, with all its appurtenances and privileges, for which they received the sum of forty thousand dollars.

The bridge erected on this site, consisted of two abutments, two piers, and three arches. The first stone of the eastern pier was laid September 5, 1801, that of the western pier, December 25,

1802.

The bridge was declared open for passengers and transportation, on the 1st day of January, 1805, and the cover was begun and finished in the same year.

This bridge cost, including the purchase of the site, $300,000. The coffer dams, foundations, and other subaqueous works, consumed a great proportion of the expenditures.

The capital stock of the company is

The difference between that, and the actual cost
of the bridge is

Whole cost,

$ 195,650

104,350 $300,000

This difference or debt was liquidated, by applying the whole of the income of the company for several years to its payment. The effect of this was, that from the commencement of the bridge until the year 1812, inclusive, only two dividends, amounting together to five and a half per cent., were declared and paid to the stockholders, who had so meritoriously contributed their funds towards the erection of this great and public work, and that during the whole period of twenty-nine years, from the opening of the bridge on the 1st of January, 1805, they have received but $5 56

per cent. on the capital stock of $195,650, and if the preceding years, from 1800 to 1805, when the expenditures were made, are added, it will decrease the rate of interest received still more.

There are two other bridges across the Schuylkill, below the Fairmount dam. The one commonly called the Upper Ferry bridge, consists of a single arch with two abutments, and leads into the district of Spring Garden. This bridge is owned by a company, incorporated under an act, passed the 28th March, 1811. The other, the Gray's Ferry bridge, is a floating bridge, and leads into the townships of Passyunk and Moyamensing, and is private property. These three bridges form the present direct modes of access from the country west of the Schuylkill into the city of Philadelphia, into the incorporated districts of Spring Garden, Northern Liberties, and Kensington on the north, and the incorporated townships of Moyamensing and Southwark on the south.

The memorials may be thus classed:

1. The memorial of the select and common councils of the city of Philadelphia, transmitting the following resolutions:

1. Resolved, by the select and common councils, that it is expedient the Schuylkill Permanent Bridge be a free bridge.

2. Resolved, by the authority aforesaid, that a memorial be transmitted to the Legislature of this State, requesting them to take the necessary measures for providing for the appointment of such number of disinterested persons as they may think proper, to appraise the said bridge, and determine the value thereof, agreeably to the provisions of an act, entitled: "An act to authorize the Governor of this commonwealth to incorporate a company, for erecting a permanent bridge over the river Schuylkill, at or near the city of Philadelphia, approved March 16, 1798.”

2. Memorials of citizens, which may be subdivided into three classes or sorts:

1. One praying for the appointment of commissioners to appraise the Market street Schuylkill Permanent Bridge, in strict accordance with the charter, in order that the parties who are interested may ascertain the sum to be paid, and adopt measures to make it as well as the Schuylkill Upper Bridge, free.

2. Another set concluding like the first, but leaving out the per bridge.

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3. Another set praying for the appointment of appraisers, in order that the friends of a free bridge may take means to raise funds for that purpose.

The remonstrances against the measure, consist of

1. The remonstrance of the commissioners of the incorporated township of Moyamensing.

2. The remonstrance of the commissioners of the district of Spring Garden.

3. The remonstrance of the commissioners of the district of the Northern Liberties.

4. The remonstrance of the president and directors of the Schuylkill Upper Bridge.

5. The remonstrance of the owners of the Gray's Ferry Bridge. And of the memorials of citizens of the city and county of Philadelphia, which are of two kinds, the one of citizens of the city of Philadelphia, remonstrating against this bridge being made free at the expense of the city of Philadelphia; the other of citizens of the city and county of Philadelphia, remonstrating against all or any of the three bridges being made free at the expense of the city, county, or districts, and accompanied by statements of the debts and taxation of the city, county, and districts, a synopsis of which is annexed to this report:

The joint committee of councils appointed to inquire into the expediency of making the Schuylkill Permanent Bridge at Market street a free bridge, in their report, made on the 6th March, 1832, use the following language:

"Your committee have selected that part of the report of the board of directors, with the view of showing what might be the probable expense of making the bridge free, from which it would appear, that if that mode of ascertaining the value of the bridge be adopted, which produces the smallest sum, [$264,127 50,] and if the city were empowered by the act of Assembly, under which the bridge company hold their charter, to make it a free bridge, the sum required for that purpose would be too large to be taken from the funds of the city, in the present state of the finances." "The ONLY MEANS which your committee are aware of for accomplishing this desirable object, is by a direct application to the State Legislature, requesting that body to take the necessary measures for making it a free bridge; and as the State has reserved this right, and there can be no doubt but the Legislature who passed the act incorporating the company, intended the right should be exercised at the time therein mentioned, your committee can see NO IMPROPRIETY in councils adopting the following resolutions, which they recommend to their consideration."

These resolutions are the same which, with a slight change of phraseology, accompany the memorial presented by councils to the Legislature, at the present session. It may, therefore, be safely assumed, that neither the city of Philadelphia, nor the county of Philadelphia, nor the districts of Spring Garden, Northern Liberties, Kensington and Southwark, nor the township of Moyamensing, can or will free, at their expense, the Permanent Bridge, the Upper Ferry, or Gray's Ferry Bridges.

The language of the memorials in favour of freeing the bridge, is certainly ambiguous in asking simply for a valuation and appraisement; but as the power of the Legislature depends on the

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words and meaning of the act of 16th March, 1798, it is necessary to consider what is the fair construction of that act, in order to see in what manner the prayer of the memorialists can be accomplished.

The 10th section of the act of the 16th March, 1798, provides "that when a good and complete bridge is erected over the said river Schuylkill, at or near the city of Philadelphia, at a place deemed most convenient, as hereinafter mentioned, the property of the said bridge shall be vested in the said president, directors and company, and their successors, during and unto the end of twenty-five years, to commence from the time when the bridge is completed." Then, after prescribing the rates of toll, which are exceedingly low, and "which are so regulated that no more than three-fourths of the toll demandable in other cases shall be taken for the transportation of the produce of the country, and for those laden with manure, half toll; empty carriages of burden to pass for half toll; and also prohibiting the erection of the bridge without the consent of the owners of the ground on each side of, and contiguous to the said river where the said bridge may be erected, the said section proceeds as follows:" And when the said tolls shall exceed 15 per cent. nett annual profit, the excess shall compose a fund for the redemption of the bridge so as to render it free, save that there shall always be a small toll or other revenue for keeping it in repair; this excess shall be laid out in bridge stock or productive funds, and the dividends of annual product shall be also added to this fund; and all private donations for freeing the bridge shall be received and invested in like manner; but if by the operation of the fund herein proposed, there shall be a sufficient sum to free the bridge at a period less than the said twenty-five years, then it shall be redeemed and become free on the stockholders being paid the appraised value thereof, and of the profits for the residue of the said term of twenty-five years, which may then be unexpired;"-" and if the said fund shall not be adequate to the purpose last mentioned, the Legislature may, at the expiration of the said twenty-five years, declare it a free bridge, (providing at the same time the means of keeping it in repair) and the company shall be obliged to take such sum of money therefor as shall be allowed on a fair appraisement by indifferent persons;"

"the like appraisement shall take place when the sinking fund is adequate to the redemption of the bridge, and the establishment of a revenue, if a toll be thought not more eligible for keeping the bridge in repair; but if the said bridge shall not be redeemed and paid for as a free bridge before or at the expiration of the said term of twenty-five years, the said corporation may and shall continue to hold the same on the terms of this act beyond the said term, and until the same shall be redeemed and paid for in manLer herein directed."