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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 11, 1959)
12 MAIL TRIBUNE, Mcdfortf, Oregon, Unity. January 11. 1939 L Trowbridge, Flynn Construct Power Lines at Project By PEG HUTCHINSON Mail Tribune Staff Writer A Medford firm is playing an important part in the S49, 000,000 project of the South ern Pacific Railroad on the Great Salt Lake in Utah. The firm, Trowbridge and Flynn Electric company, is the electrical contractor for the entire project. This includes the construction of a 44.000- primary-volt line as well as electrical distribution to the construction area. Although the Salt Lake project is mainly earth-mov ing, some 15,200,000 cubic yards in dredging and the add ing of 36,660,000 cubic yards of rock, sand and gravel in its place, the local firm had the task of getting electrical pow er into the salt flats near the lake. Earlh-Moving Job The earth-moving job, und ertaken by Morrison-Knudsen company, Boise, Idaho, is the construction of a 12.6 - mile-long-fill to replace the South ern Pacific's timber railroad trestle across this inland sea The trestle is the longest of its kind in the world. M-K started the project in March, 1956, by moving in $15,000,000 worth of special equipment, the same month the local firm started work. Trowbridge and Flynn did not bid on the project, they were contacted by Morrison-Knudsen and negotiated for the job. The million dollar contract awarded the local firm in cluded the construction of a 44,000 -primary -volt line to supply power for the entire project. Power Lin to Lake The plans called for ihe power line to the lake from the northeast near Tremon ton, Utah, Ben Trowbridge, president of the local firm, ex plained. From Tremonton the line would run down the east side of the Promontory moun tains to Promontory Point and up the west side to the con struction site, now called Little Valley, Utah. Since that route was more than 60 miles, Trowbridge said, it was recommended that the power source be in Ogden, a distance of only 34 miles, but of which 8Vi miles were across the lake. "We proposed that the pow er line be constructed along the railroad's 8 -mile -long Bagley fill which lies east of Promontory Point." "The power line had to have proper clearance from the railroad tracks," Trow bridge continued, "and once the Southern Pacific engi neers realized the saving by single-tracking that section of the line during construction, the route was approved." Set in Crib The 34 miles of line costing $150,000 was constructed in six weeks with crews working from 13 to 14 hours a day. Fir poles used were from Drain, Qre., and were set in cribs of cement and rock. The un treated poles, since the project is only temporary, had to be protected from icing as the northeast portion of Great Salt Lake is fresh water. Steel shearing bands had to be placed at the base of the poles to break up the ice which formed near them. The power line strung on the poles was double insulated to protect it from the salt water spray. Electrical workers on the project lived in Ogden and traveled by work train, furn ished by the railroad, which shuttled back and forth be tween the city and the work site. 9 While crews were busy stringing power lines to sup ply the construction site with electricity, other Trowbridge and Flynn workers rushed the electrical distribution wiring within the construction area. This area included Little Val ley, a construction camp, a broad harbor which had been dredged, docks and a sizable shipyard. At the peak of construction 120 men were hired by the local firm under Superinten dent Jack Henbest, Medford, who headed the job for the first year. Current superin tendent is Harry Gideon also of Medford. Trowbridge was in the area for the first two months that work was underway. He now makes an annual trip to the project. Of the millions of dollars worth of equipment needed by M-K for the project, much of it was too large to be shipped to the site intact. This equipment included dredges, barges, and tugboats which were shipped in sections and assembled at the construction J Fddto Ploys afa oke Work TREMONTON o 0&DEN o SALT LAKE CITY AERIAL MAP The outline map of Great Salt Lake shows the location of the S49.000, 000 project underway by Morrison-Knudsen company for the Southern Pacific railroad. Labeled are (1) Promontory Point; (2) Little' Valley, Utah; (3) 44,000-primary-volt line; (4) Bagley fill, and (5) present SP wooden railroad trestle. The multi-million dollar earth-moving project is to replace the wood- en trestle with an earth fill that is parallel to the trestle and 1,500 feet to the north. Electric power was brought into the con struction area, now known as Little Valley, over a line constructed by Trowbridge and Flynn Electric company, Medford, from Ogden, Utah. The line was built on the SP's Bagley fill as the shortest route to Little Valley. ? Jj, WW POWER LINE-The 44,000-primary-volt line constructed from Ogden to Little Valley, Utah (construction area), by Trowbridge and Flynn Electric company, Medford, elec trical contractors for the Great Salt Lake project of Southern Pacific railroad, may be seen on the right. The line was construct ed along the SP's Bagley fift, cutting the length of the line by 30 miles. Original plans had called for the line to be construct ed from Tremonton down the east side of the Promontory mountains to Promontory Point to reach Little Valley. During the project Southern Pacific has had to discon tinue travel on the tracks at right to give proper clearance to the line. The local firm installed and maintains all electrical dis tribution for the $49,000,000 project. site. All of the electrical wir ing done in the assembling of the equipment was com pleted by Trowbridge and Flynn. Major Equipment Major equipment included such items as two hydraulic dredges and 11 steel barges. Six of the barges, believed to be the largest such hauling units ever built, are 250 feet long, 55 feet wide and have seven separate compartments, each with hydraulically op erated dumping gates, which are capable of carrying 2,000 cubic yards. The tugboats, one for each barge, were built for M-K by Gunderson Brothers, Portland, and were shipped in sections on railroad flat cars. One of the unique jobs in which the local firm partici pated was the electrical work concerning the 2V2-mile-long conveyor systehi of 54-inch-width-belt which leads from a sand and gravel quarry to the harbor. The conveyor carries from 4,000 to 4,200 tons of material per hour and is re garded as the world's largest in terms of the tonnage it handles. The conveyor, which drops 400 feet in its 2V2 miles, cre ates energy which is convert ed into electricity by a special motor - generator combina tion. The electricity produced by the mechanism is used by the six electric shovels on 'the job, while the surplus is used to supplement the project's regular power supply. Maintaining Equipment Although the majority of the local firm's job was com pleted within six months, the maintenance of elec t r i c a 1 equipment and power supply keeps the electrical contrac tor busy. At the conclusion of the project the local firm will dis mantle the electrical system at the site. Construction is expected to be completed in March or April of this year. The con tract was originally scheduled for four years, but favorable weather conditions and im proved work procedures have put the project ahead of schedule. With the completion of the fill, Southern Pacific's trains on the Overland route from Chicago to San Francisco will cut about 30 minutes off the schedule. It will also elimi nate an annual expenditure of about one-quarter million dol lars which the Southern Pa cific has had to spend on maintenance of the wooden trestle which was completed in 1903. Electrical contracts of this size are not new to Trow bridge and Flynn. The com pany is completing a job at the Diamond Gardner com pany's new plant in Red Bluff, Calif. During World War II they completed projects at numerous military bases. Trowbridge and Flynn Elec tric company is large enough to tackle large electrical con tracts but, Trowbridge said, not too big to assist a home owner in the replacement of a blown out fuse. Malone Heads Up Realty Board John C. Malone was in stalled as president of the Medford realty board Thurs day night at joint ceremonies of the Medford and Ashland realty boards. W. P. Wright was installed as president of the Asliland board. Other Medford officers are Wright, vice president, and Chris Barker, secretary. 4 John E. Reed is the new vice president of the Ashland group ana Fred E. Whited, secretary. About 100 persons attended the dinner - dance. Marvin Warlick, Portland, assistant to the state real estate commis sioner, was installing officer and County Assessor Ray Schumacher was master of ceremonies. County Judge and Mrs. Earl Miller were special guests. - -vww. w vv ijfr- '".''" .'' " -4" f 4 NEW OFFICERS - New resident of the Medford Realty board, John C Malone, left, and president of the Ashland Realty board, W. P. Wright, who were installed at a joint meeting of the two groups Thursday evening, discuss plans above for coordinating the work of the two realty boards during the coming year. Wright is also the new vice-president of the Medford board, forming a link that will help the two groups work together. The recent meeting, at the Medford hotel, was one of the largest ever held in this area, a spokes man said. Furniture Store To Celebrate 67 Years in Business Starting Monday, Weeks and Orr Furniture store, 114 I West Main St., Medford, will celebrate 67 years of business here. In 1892, the firm first es tablished a small store on Front st. and, in the same year, opened a small furni ture manufacturing plant in Phoenix. At the turn of the century, the original concern moved to West Main st. in the same lo cation now occupied by the present store. In 1953, a rebuilding pro gram was undertaken and the firm expanded into the old Rialto theater area. Today two full floors and a large mezzanine area provide 23,000 square feet of display space for Weeks and Orr with 14,000 additional square feet of space in a separate warehouse. The Medtord store is associ ated with 65 other independ ent member stores in the "Westore" organization for combined volume purchasing. Eugene Orr, owner and gen eral manager, has been active in the local organization since 1932 with the exception of the World War II period when he served with the armed forces. : He has long been prominent in civic and veterans affairs, has served as chairman of the Medford Retail Merchants as sociation, is a past commander of Medford Post 15, American Legion, and past commander of Legion's district 13. Orr is now national rehabilitation officer for Oregon. FIRST STORE-Weeks and Orr Furniture store, 114 West Main st., will celebrate 67 years in business here this week. The firm first established a store on Front st., shown above, in 1892, and- opened a small furni ture manufacturing plant in Phoenix. Dr. Sly Lectures Legislature On History, Economy, Taxes Salem-UPD-Dr. John F. Sly, director of the Princeton Sur veys, gave an informal joint session of the Oregon Legis lature a lecture on history, economy and taxes yesterday. Dr. Sly explained his rec ent survey of Oregon's tax structure to legislators who meet here Monday to try to solve the state's fiscal prob lems for the next two years. Dr. Sly's main conclusion was that Oregon has gone p.bout as far as it can go with its present tax structure if it expects to maintain favorable position tax-wise with other states. ' Must Choose He said Oregon must choose from naw excise taxes, new fbases in its income taxes, a consumers sales tax or a com bination of these for possible new revenue for the 1959-61 biennium. Gov. Robert D. Holmes' budget vas published without reference to the Sly report ; . tj . ' "' - ' ' ' p because it came out too late for inclusion. One of his main proposals is a 1 per cent alternative gross income tax within the present personal income tax to raise some seven million dollars. "Every employed person in the state should pay taxec even in small amounts," Dr. Sly said of this proposal. Another major suggestion was a 2 per cent Washington type consumers sales tax, to De used if new expenditures of more than 50 million dol lars from the general fund are anticipated. State agencies have request ed about a 70 million dollar increase in expenditures, but these requests have been con sidrably cut down in Holmes' 298.6 million dollar budget whichi s within estimates of income made by the state tax commission. Dr. Sly talked to legislators most of the morning and re served the afternoon for ques tions about his report. Among listeners were Gov. Holmes and Gov.-Elect Mark Hatfield. Dr. Sly said there was "nothing critical" in Oregon's fiscal position by comparison with some eastern states, but that changes would have to be made nevertheless. He said Oregon was "push ing things to the limit" within its present tax structure, ad ding that there had been no new taxes in Oregon since the income tax was introduced in 1929. Labor Dispute About Glasses Idles 600 Men Oakland -(LTD- A labor dis pute had idled 600 worker! here and at Sutherlin as the workers refused to cross the picket line of the Lumber and Sawmill Workers local 2814. The union termed the dis pute a lockout and the two firms involved-Martin Bro thers, Container and Timber Products Co.-termed it a strike. The dispute arose Monday when employees without safe ty glasses were turned away from work. Those with safety glasses joined them in the work stoppage. A union spokesman said the companies required workers to buy the glasses from the firms at a price of S3 a set. Ray Martin, plant manager at both locations, denied this. Martin said the require ment was imposed because in 1957, 23.7 per cent of all in juries were eye injuries. Two meetings over the dis pute have been held under the auspices of the federal mediation and conciliation service, but no more meetings were scheduled. A distiller found that the lower his economic class, the more a drinker prefers his liquor straight. : even j the boss :: won't know I You're at your best in any sit uation with Sonotonc's latest a slim-trim eyeglass bearing aid. Only eyeglass hearing aid with exclusive AVC (Auto matic Volume Control) to soften sudden, loud noises. Fashion-thin temples for both men and women. Also latest "Tuck-A-Way" styles for those who don't wear glasses. - COME IN. SEE AND HEAR SONOTONE i C. R. ADAMSON, Mgr. 839 E. Jackson SP 2-5904 PLANT TREE - Not to be outdone by the adult residents of the neighborhood, this group of boys pitched in yesterday and planted a tree of their own as part of a tree planting project now underway along a three-street area in Medford. Some 80 fruit less Mulberry trees are being set out this week end along Ivy, Whitman and Jasper sts. in the vicinity of Jefferson elementary school. The project is a part of Medford's street tree planting program. The boys are, left to right, Tommy Peterson, Steven Mc Cully, Bill Compton and Larry McCully.. All except Larry McCully are Cub Scouts who are working for their Wolf badge. Bookmobile Will Complete Service, Librarian Says The one thing most needed to complete county library service in Jackson county is a bookmobile, according to Miss Helen Webster, Jackson coun ty librarian. "This would bring the county library within a few miles of every county resi dent," Miss Webster said. "It is estimated this would double the use now being made of the county library." Should Jackson county rur al residents show they want bookmobile service, federal and state funds could be used to start such a service in this county, the county librarian said. Additional library stations or "branches" also can be pro vided such population centers GIVES CLERGY WARNING Paris-dTD-Maurice Cardinal Feltin has warned the Roman Catholic clergy in France to keep out of politics. The archbishop of Paris spoke of political changes in France and said: "Each priest, like each citizen, can and should have his own opinion. But he is always representing the church in his social en vironment and he must not engage in the political struggle." STICKY SITUATION Greenfield, Iowa -(ITD- Lo cal street cleaning is slow as molasses in January due to a drum of the stuff which spilled and froze on Main street. in Jackson county as Evans Valley, Grififn Creek, White City, Prospect, Ruch and Trail, Miss Webster said. Take Responsibility All a community has to do is find a resident willing to take the responsibility for housing and maintaining such a service, she explained. A small monthly fee is given such a person, she added. Library stations now exist in Butte Falls, Central Point, Eagle Point, Gold Hill, Jack sonville, Phoenix,' Shady Cove, Table Rock and Talent. The county library is more than a federation of nine com munity branch libraries with the Medford library as head- Supervisors Not To Keep Road Open Yreka - The Siskiyou coun ty board of supervisors will not attempt to keep open Ev eritt Memorial highway to Mt. Shasta Ski Bowl during heavy snow storms, the board said last week. Heavy snows closed the road and the board directed Road Commissioner Al Pow ers to keep it closed until storms are over. Attempts to keep the passage open dur ing storms are a "waste of time and money," Supervisor Don Avery declared. Commissioner Powers said crews are continuing efforts to open the road, but that wind conditions at the bowl are bad.' r quarters, Miss Webster said. It is a unit of service avail able to all residents, urban, town and rural, of the Jack son county library district, Miss Webster concluded. S100 Cash S100 Cash if you can na TOP me KMED'S TUNES Tune 1440 MED NBC It's Fun to Listen To. Good Music on KMED Oft You rely on him for courage, inspiration, guid ance and help. Instinctively, you place your trust in him and your faith makes possible his equal devotion to all men. Count on iis too for that same desire to be truly helpful In ' every possible vay. 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