A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE MONONGAHELA BRIDGE, PITTSBURGH, PA.

BY HERBERT DU PUY.

As the original of the present structure spanning the Monongahela River at the foot of Smithfield Street was one of the earliest of Pittsburgh's monuments, it might be well to give some slight description of the conditions which surrounded its organization and something regarding its difficulties and troubles, together with a brief outline of its life from its construction, through three structures to the present time.

Pittsburgh in the early years of the last century was a small straggling center occupying principally the Eastern bank of the Monongahela River. The banks on both sides were covered with foliage, and forest trees found firm root in the soil where now busy teams haul laden wagons over well-paved streets. At that time the Southside, from the bridge site up the river for a mile or two, was extensive open meadow-land, with two or three orchards and a dozen or so dwellings. Where Mt. Washington now stands the hillsides were covered with woods where the youth of that day did their shooting, wild-pigeons being often found there in great numbers. On the Pittsburgh side of the river, near the site of the bridge-approach, where now stands the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad station, stood a monarch poplar tree, so prominent that for many years it was shown on the drop-curtain in the old Library Hall. Nearby, where now stands the Monongahela House, did the Hon. William Wilkins live, his grounds being beautifully laid out with flowers and shrubs. At that time all traffic passing from one side of the river to the other, was carried at the foot of Smithfield Street on a little ferry-boat owned by Enoch Wright of Westmoreland County and Andrew Herd of

Allegheny County, who leased the "buildings, ferry and improvements" to one Robert Shanhan. Where the ferry landed on the South side, stood Enoch Wright's stone house. Such was the appearance of the surroundings early in the Spring of 1810 when a few prominent members of the Borough of Pittsburgh met together for the purpose of seeing what might be done towards the construction of a bridge at this point. They were James O'Hara, Wm. McCandless, David Evans, Ephraim Pentland, Jacob Beltzhoover, Adamson Tannehill, Thomas Cromwell, Thomas Enochs, Dr. George Stevenson.

After thoroughly canvassing the situation, they decided to memorialize the Legislature of the State for a charter of incorporation for what they felt was a necessity and what they hoped would turn out to be a valuable and important franchise.

On the 19th of March, 1810, an Act was passed by the Legislature authorizing the Governor to incorporate a Company for erecting a Bridge over the River Monongahela at Pittsburgh in the County of Allegheny.

It provided that on or before the 1st of May, 1810, books for soliciting subscriptions should be opened; that notice should be given in "all the public newspapers in the Boro of Pittsburgh, and one printed in the town of Washington in Washington County, one printed in Uniontown in Fayette County, and one printed in the Boro of Greensburg in Westmoreland County, during one calendar month, of the time and place, when and where said subscription books shall be opened by the Commission, and they shall be kept open for six hours in each of six judicial days until 2000 shares shall be subscribed."

An advertisement was inserted under date of April 9th, 1810, in the "Pittsburgh Gazette" of April 27th, 1810, giving public notice that books for the purpose of receiving subscriptions to the capital stock for erecting said bridge would be opened at the time and in the following places: viz, "at the Court House in the Boro of Pittsburgh on Saturday the 5th day of May next, at 11 o'clock a. M.

"At Washington on Monday the 21st day of May next, at the house of Matthew Ocheltree.

"At Uniontown on Monday the 28th day of May next, at the house of Thomas Collins, at 11 o'clock A. M.

"At Greensburg, on Monday the 4th day of June next, at the house of Samuel Drum, at 11 o'clock A. M.

"At which times and places some one of the Commissioners will attend for the purpose of receiving subscriptions and the first payment thereon, agreeably to law."

The Commissioners then named were those who were active in bringing about the passage of this Act and who were named above as being instrumental in securing its passage.

These Commissioners met in accordance with the advertisement, and under the terms of the Act were to receive Letters of Incorporation when 1000 shares of stock were subscribed and duly certified to, under the style and title of "The President, Managers and Company for erecting a bridge over the River Monongahela in the Boro of Pittsburgh, County of Allegheny," with all the privileges incident to a corporation, which shall have perpetual succession and the power to increase the capital stock to $100,000 and the par value of each share being $25.00.

Every effort was made at this time to secure the necessary funds with which to organize the work, but ill-luck met all the efforts of those having the matter in hand, and the scheme lay dormant during several years afterward. However, early in 1816 renewed efforts were made to resuscitate the work, and to do so it required an amendment to the original charter, so that a new bill was prepared and sent to Harrisburg as supplemental to the original charter, and this was presented to the Legislature and first read Jan. 13th, 1816, and on the 17th it was passed as "An Act relative to building certain bridges over the Monongahela and Allegheny rivers opposite Pittsburgh."

After the failure to secure sufficient capital to do the work under the original charter of 1810, a new set of men took

In accordance with the Act of the Legislature, Simon Snyder, on the 22nd of July, 1816, being then Governor of the State, subscribed for and in behalf of the Commonwealth, for 1600 shares, so that the entire subscriptions at this time amounted to 3488 shares including the large subscription of the State. As the latter was not payable until the piers were finished, when the half of it would be due, the incorporators had to depend on the receipts of the first payment on the other 1888 shares, which at the subscription price of $5 per share in cash, gave the Company a little less than $10,000 with which to start its work. It may be said with pride that of all the shares subscribed, only 144 were forfeited on account of non-payment thereon. Owing to the success of this subscription, it was now decided to begin active work, so, on June 11, 1816, the following named persons were chosen Managers: President, Wm. Wilkins; Managers, James Ross, David Pride, Christian Latshaw, George Anshutz, Thomas Baird, Wm. McCandless, Philip Gileland, Benj. Page; Treasurer and Clerk, John Thaw.

In the Act of Feb. 17, 1816, which as above stated,

amended also the Charter of the Allegheny River Bridge Company, the method of voting is fully covered under a peculiar design whereby the minority stockholders had in proportion to their holdings, a much stronger representation and power than did the holders of the larger interest. This bill provided that "No stockholder shall have more than one vote for each share not exceeding five shares, one vote for every two shares above five and not exceeding ten, one vote for every four shares above ten and not exceeding twenty, and one vote for every six shares above twenty; provided that no person shall have more than twenty votes at any election or in determining any question arising at said meeting, whatever number of shares he may have subscribed." The result of this peculiar method of voting shows that a man with five shares had five votes while to get ten votes he must own twenty-six shares, and to get nineteen votes he must own eighty shares, while to secure the maximum number of twenty votes he must control eighty-six shares of stock. Seldom were there more than 125 votes cast at any one election, though the total capital amounted to 6440 shares at this time. This rule worked so curiously that in the election of 1882 when 5903 shares were used, they gave but 85 votes.

The Board of Directors just elected immediately set to work to accomplish some good, and in order to get rid of the ferry which then monopolized the traffic across the river and to secure its lands, on June 27, 1816, an application was made to the Court of Common Pleas to appoint three discreet and disinterested freeholders to decide upon the price to be paid for the properties at the South end of the proposed bridge, owned by Enoch Wright and Jacob Beltzhoover, together with the ferry opposite, owned by Enoch Wright and Andrew Herd, and the interest of Robert Shanhan as lessor. In compliance with this petition, two days later the Court appointed as Commissioners to assess these damages, Adamson Tannehill, Robert Simpson and David Evans. The proceedings dragged along VOL. XXX.-13