An Organization for Canal Advocates and Researchers
A Dredge Roll Call- Contract 20
Contract 20 was the longest of all the contracts let for the construction of the Barge Canal, and it was divided into 4 parts, each identified with a A,B,C or D. The contracts ran between Schenectady west to Little Falls. It was purely a dredging contract to canalize the Mohawk River. Oddly, the construction photos doesn’t have any images from 20A.
So far I have found six dredges used by the two contractors, the S. Pearson and Son, and the American Pipe and Construction companies. We also find an unusual hydraulic dredge at work on this section. The Canajoharie was called a “hydraulic disposal boat,” or a “floating screening plant,” and it was featured in the January, 1911 issue of the Barge Canal Bulletin. The dipper dredges would work alongside the Canajoharie and dump their spoil into hoppers located on the bow of the boat. The spoil was then run through a series of screen that would separate out the stones by size. The stones were deposited in a scow and the lighter material was pumped to the shore by floating pipes. It was written that a second of these boats was in use on Contract 30, but I have not found a photo of it.
The material being excavated was certainly different from the mud, sand and muck that was being removed along the Seneca River. The material in the bed of the river was stony and not totally suited for hydraulic dredges. However, when the spoils were sorted and separated, the larger stones were useful as bank armoring.
Contract 20B- The Canajoharie, the Fort Plain, the St. Johnsonsville, the Midenville, the Mohawk and the Amsterdam.