Laboratory Investigations of Soils at Flushing Meadow Park

Laboratory investigations made to determine the general suitability of the Flushing Meadow in New York, N. Y., for development as a permanent park and for supporting the temporary and permanent structures of the World's Fair, are described in this paper. The problems encountered in the reclamation and development of the site arise from the peculiar nature of the soils of the meadow, which are quite typical of such tidal marsh deposits. The tests included routine studies to determine the general physical character, and consolidation and shear tests to determine the behavior characteristics of the materials encountered. They were made primarily to furnish information on what could be done and how it should be done. The tests and their interpretation are discussed in relation to these problems, and certain suggestions are made as to the correlation of test results which permit the use of data obtained from the simpler tests as a basis for predicting the more general behavior of soils.