On Sat, 05 Jun 2004 15:07:00 -0500, Dan Hartung
wrote:

indago wrote:
I was watching a program on the building of the Erie Canal a few years back
and one striking accomplishment I noticed was the method used for removing
tree stumps. They had two huge wheels, looked like about 4 horses high from
the drawing, with an axle between the two. The axle was placed over the
tree stump and a chain was fastened around the axle and then around the tree
stump. Chains were then placed around the wheels and then to a team of
horses and the wheels were pulled forward. The leverage was such that the
stump would easily be removed. It was said that this method was quite
effective for its time.

Mechanical advantage is the bomb.

But who can store a wheelset four horses high?

There's another device I've seen for pulling stumps. It's a homemade gadget made
from a metal tire rim and a piece of I-beam and a couple of pieces of chain.
It's basically a big lever to pry the stump out of the ground with the tire rim
acting as the fulcrum.