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    1. Earthmoving

    Building the Knox-Yellow Pine Road by Hand

    March 19, 2024
    Horse-drawn scraper eased some of the manual labor.
    Bureau of Public Roads Manuscript Collection, Idaho State Archives
    The project employed a horse-drawn Fresno scraper. Other than the dump carts, this was the only machine more sophisticated than hand tools that the collection of images for this project documents.
    The project employed a horse-drawn Fresno scraper. Other than the dump carts, this was the only machine more sophisticated than hand tools that the collection of images for this project documents.

    This one goes out to all the Operating Engineers who complain about comfort seats being too soft, electronic controls being mushy, or the climate control not working right.

    The Historical Construction Equipment Association preserves the history of the construction, dredging, and surface mining industries. But what about when equipment use was minimal, especially well after so much of the work was mechanized?

    Bureau of Public Roads Manuscript Collection, Idaho State Archives
    Braking a loaded flatbed dump cart downhill by hand, although difficult, beats wheelbarrows. Temporary railroads were widely used in material handling before the advent of trucks and were phased out entirely except in special circumstances by the 1930s. Even more anachronistically, the cart was also loaded by hand.
    Braking a loaded flatbed dump cart downhill by hand, although difficult, beats wheelbarrows. Temporary railroads were widely used in material handling before the advent of trucks and were phased out entirely except in special circumstances by the 1930s. Even more anachronistically, the cart was also loaded by hand.

    Yellow Pine is a settlement of 32 people (2010 Census) in eastern Valley County, central Idaho. It’s situated 4,765 feet above sea level on the East Fork of the South Fork of the Salmon River, about half a mile upstream from the mouth of Johnson Creek. Knox, 30 miles to the south-southwest, is now a ghost town; a mile north of Warm Lake, it once had a population of 200 and served as a supply station for area miners. 

    Read also: How earth was moved for the Golden Gate Bridge

    Bureau of Public Roads Manuscript Collection, Idaho State Archives
    Pushing a load of earth uphill.
    Pushing a load of earth uphill.

    These images show the construction of the Knox-Yellow Pine road. Now identified as two National Forest (NF) Development Roads, it is NF 413 up Johnson Creek to Trout Creek, thence NF 467 up Trout Creek, over a divide at 7,200 foot elevation and then down 2,000 feet through a pasture named Hard Knox to Knox.

    Bureau of Public Roads Manuscript Collection, Idaho State Archives
    By August, more modernization has taken hold, however slightly, as the dump cart is pulled by a horse. The rocky material, blasted after John Henrying the blastholes by hand, was typical for the job. Note too the section of track leaning against the cut face. A second cart is perched on the rocks to the right of the face.
    By August, more modernization has taken hold, however slightly, as the dump cart is pulled by a horse. The rocky material, blasted after John Henrying the blastholes by hand, was typical for the job. Note too the section of track leaning against the cut face. A second cart is perched on the rocks to the right of the face.

    It’s worth noting that these images were taken 101 years ago, in the summer of 1923. Other than the remoteness of the project, no explanation is available for the use of 100% manual labor and animal power this long after the advent of full-revolving shovels and mechanical haulage by truck or narrow-gauge train.

    Scan this QR Code for information on joining the Historical Construction Equipment Association.
    Scan this QR Code for information on joining the Historical Construction Equipment Association.

    About the HCEA

    The Historical Construction Equipment Association (HCEA) is a 501(c )3 nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving the history of the construction, dredging and surface mining equipment industries. With over 3,500 members in a dozen countries, our activities include operation of National Construction Equipment Museum and archives in Bowling Green, Ohio; publication of a quarterly magazine, Equipment Echoes, from which this text is adapted, and hosting an annual working exhibition of restored construction equipment. Individual annual memberships are $45 within the U.S. and Canada, and $65 elsewhere. Our next International Convention and Old Equipment Exposition will be August 7-10, 2024, in Canandaigua, New York. We seek to develop relationships in the equipment manufacturing industry, and we offer a college scholarship for engineering students. Information is available at www.hcea.net, or by calling 419.352.5616 or e-mailing [email protected].

    About the Author

    Tom Berry

    Tom Berry is archivist for the Historical Construction Equipment Association (HCEA). Information is available at www.hcea. net, or by calling 419.352.5616 or e-mailing [email protected].