A new article has been added at Newspaper Abstracts > United States > Delaware > Sussex http://www.newspaperabstracts.com/index.php?action=displaycat&catid=642 Also visit our new sister sites: http://www.AncestorsOnTheWeb.com http://www.Genealogy101.com Direct link to article: http://www.newspaperabstracts.com/link.php?id=44337 Submitted by: Harrison H Howeth Article Title: Baltimore Patriot Article Date: November 15 1830 Article Description: The Delaware Breakwater Article Text: The Delaware Breakwater is situated at the entrance into the Bay of Delaware, near Cape Henlopen. The anchorage ground or roadsted, is formed by a cove in the southern shore, directly west of the pitch of the cape and the seaward end of an extensive shoal called the 'Shears', the tail of which makes out from the shore about five miles up the bay near the mouth of the Broadkill creek, from whence it extends eastward and terminates at a point about two miles to the northward of the shore at the cape. The Breakwater consists of an insulated dike or wall of stone, the transversal section of which is a trapezium, the base resting on the bottom, whilst the summit line forms the top of the works. The outer sides represent the inner and outer slopes of the work, that to the eastward being much greater than the other. THe inward slope is 45 degrees , the top is horizontal, 22 feet in breadth, and raised 5-1/2 feet above the highest spring tide. The outward, or sea slope, is 39 feet in latitude upon a base of 105-3/4 feet. Both of these dimensions being measured in relation to a horizontal plane passage by a point 27 feet below the lowes spring tide. The base bears to the altitude near the same ratio as similar lines in the profiles of the Cherbourg and Plymouth breakwaters. The opening or entrance from the ocean is 650 yards in width between the north point of the Cape and the east end of the Breakwater. At this entrance the harbor will be accessible during all winds coming fr! om the sea. The dike is formed in a straight line from the E.S.E. to W.N.W. , 1200 yards is the length of this portion of the work, which is designed to serve the purposes of a breakwater. At a distance of 350 yards from the upper or western end of the breakwater, which space forms the upper entrance, a similar dike of 500 yards in length is projected in a driect line. W. by S 1/2 S. forming an angle of 146 degree 15 min with the breakwater. This work is designed more particularly as an icebraker. The whole length of the two dikes above described , which are now partly commenced, will be 1700 yards. They will contain, when finished, 900,000 cubic yards of stone, composed of pieces of basaltic rock and granite, weighing from a quarter of a ton to three tons and upwards. The depth of water at low tide is from four to six fathoms throughtout the harbor which will be formed by these works and the cove of the southern shore. This is calculated to afford a perfect shelter over a! space of water surface of seven tenths of a square mile. The great ob ject to be gained by the construction of an artificial harbor in the roadstead are to shelter vessels from the action of waves caused by the winds blowing from the E. to the N.W. round by the N. and also to protect the agaunst injuries arising from floating ice descending the bay from the N.W. [This account taken from the 4th Volume of Carey and Lea's Encyclopedia Americana recently issued from the press] ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ DE-Old-News ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ NewspaperAbstracts.com - Finding our ancestors in the news! TM http://www.NewspaperAbstracts.com