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Go back to Second Charter Granted
Construction StartedThe purpose of the railroad was strictly one of convenience. Although the Kishacoquillas Valley was rich in agriculture, lumber and minerals, there was not enough of any of these to interest outside investors. Unlike many neighboring railroads, the KV was to be built by means of local stock subscriptions only. The directors divided the stock into 4,000 shares and sold it to local investors at $25 each.The directors first tried to solicit large funds from a previous benefactor - the steel plant in Burnham. This attempt failed, but within weeks the directors were able to net a total of $65,000 in subscriptions from local farmers and merchants. It was decided that a narrow-gauge railroad could be economically built for that amount of money. At that time, three-foot-gauge (0.9 meter) was a popular alternative to the 4-foot-8½-inch (1.4 meter) "standard" distance between the rails. In late June of 1892, the directors went over their plans with F.F. Whittekin, a civil engineer from Tionesta, Forest County. Whittekin agreed that the road could be built for $65,000; but claimed that he had built his last narrow-gauge road. He added, "If I did [build the KV as a narrow-gauge] you would curse me all the days of my life." Whittekin then said that for $10,000 more he would build them a standard-gauge railroad. Going "standard" was more than an appealing idea, for it would provide a direct connection with the standard of all railroads - the PRR. The directors returned home a sad party, for they thought that they had raised all the money that could be raised. But they decided to take one last swing at it. Within 10 days, only $5,000 was raised, and a total sum of $70,650 was reported. Whittekin met with the group, and after inspecting the topography, told them that the road could be built for that amount, but that it would be mighty crooked. On Monday morning, July 18, 1892, Whittekin started running the preliminary surveys out of Reedsville. Meanwhile the directors began securing the right-of-way - most of which was "given" to the KV for a dollar. Before the final survey was finished, the route was shown to a number of contractors. After several weeks of negotiation, the contract for construction was awarded to Edgar A. Tennis of Thompsontown, Juniata County, whose bid was somewhat less than $30,000. This bid included grading, furnishing ties, building three bridges and laying rails to be provided by the railroad. He started construction on Monday, October 24, 1892, hoping to finish it within three months. |
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