USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Worcester > Town annual reports of the several departments for the fiscal year ending December 31, 1862-1866 > Part 11
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64
CONSTABLES. Charles B. Pratt,
Charles M. Ruggles, John A. Dana,
John F. Murray, Jeremiah Kane, -
Levi Jackson.
SPECIAL POLICE.
Charles G. Parker, at Boston and Worcester R. R. Station
John Grover,
at Western R. R. Station.
Charles A. Lincoln,
at Junction R. R. Station.
William Knowles,
at Mechanics Hall.
Calvin W. Pierce,
at Mission Chapel.
Parker Holden, at Park Street Church.
Patrick E. Ratigan, Eist Worcester.
Patrick O'Rourke,
Temple street.
John Fallon, Ward's Island.
Homer Sawtell,
WATCHMEN AND DAY POLICE. John F. Murray, Captain of the Watch. Henry Cole, William B. Martin,
Ezra Combs. Frank Morrison,
Joseph H. Flint, George F. Newton,
Andrew Jackson, Patrick E. Ratigan,
(. A. Ramsey.
.
UNDERTAKERS.
George Sessions,
Thomas Magennis,
George G. Hildreth,
James W. Brooks.
·
173
PUBLIC WEIGHERE.
John H. Coes, New Worcester, Giles Williams, Lincoln square, Charles Marvin, near City Hall, C. H. Whiting, Washington square.
WEIGHERS OF COAL.
Franklin H. Knight, at Hacker's, Southbridge St. Samuel Fiske, at Wellington's. MEASURERS OF WOOD AND BARK.
Giles Williams, Lincoln square, John H. Coes, New Worcester, C. H. Whiting, Washington, Sq., Charles Marvin, City Hall, Sibley Putnam, Green street.
SURVEYOR OF LUMBER. Nahum R. Hapgood.
FENCE VIEWERS.
Benjamin Flagg, Jonas Hartshorn, Jonathan Lyon, Jr.
MILK INSPECTOR,-Henry Griffin, Pleasant street.
FIELD DRIVER,-
POUND KEEPER, -Henry Prentice.
SEALER OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES,
George Geer. Office, under Universalist church. MEASURER OF UPPER LEATHER. John Rice, 2nd. CITY PHYSICIAN. Rufus Woodward. Office, Elin street. KEEPER OF THE POOR FARM. John Farwell.
OVERSEERS OF THE POOR.
D. Waldo Lincoln, Mayor, Chairman. Nahum H. Andrews, Clerk.
Ward 1 .- Nahum H. Andrews. Ward 5 .- Vernon A. Ladd.
" 2 .- Oliver K. Earle. 6 .- Thomas Pierce.
3. - Lyman Brown, 7 .- George Geer.
" 4 .- John J. Brosnihan, " 8 .- George A. Chamberlain
ASSISTANT ASSESSORS.
Ward 1 .- Tyler C, Kirby, Ward 5 .- John Simmons,
2 .- W. A. S. Smyth, 6 .- Samuel Houghton,
'" 3 .- Walter Henry, 66 7 .- E. G. Partridge,
4 .- Walter R. Bigelow
8 .- Wm. A. Brigham.
23
174
WARD OFFICERS.
Ward 1 .- Warden, George A. Gates. Clerk, George F. Rice. Inspectors, Silas Dinsmore, Tyler C. Kirby, De Witt Fisher.
" 2 .- Warden, Luther Ross. Clerk, George W. Gale. Inspectors, E. L. Drury, Ephraim Tucker, Ahaz Bassett.
" 3 .- Warden, F. B. Norton. Clerk John Toomy.
Inspectors, Rolla N. Start, Patrick Nugent, G. H. Prentice. Inspectors, Jeremiah. Foley, Osgood Bradley, Jr., C. Moody.
" 4 .- Warden, Moses Taft. Clerk, Charles A. Tenney.
" 5 .- Warden, Silas W. Goddard. Clerk, John F. Murray. Inspectors, J. L. Murphy, Bernard Carroll, J. H. Mattoon.
" 6 .- Warden, Thomas Pierce. Clerk, Brigham Balcom.
Inspectors, L. Harrington, G. S. Hoppin, H. S. Whittemore.
" 7 .- Warden, S. Winslow. . Clerk, James H. Bancroft. Inspectors, Wm. H. Hathorne, C. G. Parker, J. N. Jacobs
" 8 .- Warden, Austin L. Rogers. Clerk, Wm. A. Brigham. Inspectors, Geo. E. Smith, Chas. F. Greene, C. A. Bowker.
BOARD OF ENGINEERS.
Alzirus Brown, Chief. Ransom M. Gould, Clerk.
Ransom M. Gould,
A. Beaman Lovell, Alonzo M. Barrows, Assistant Engineers. S Simon E. Combs.
Fred. W. Townsend, ) William A. Swallow.
Washington Engine Co. No. 1, 40 men, DeWitt Fisher, Foreman.
Rapid
2,40 Wm. A. Reynolds, 66
Niagara 66
.. 3.40 Tho. G. Learned,
Yankee - .. 5,40 John M. Wood,
Hook and Ladder, 66 1, 20 Joseph Rideout,
Hook and Ladder, City Hose, 66 1,10 Silas J. Brimhall,
2,25 Austin L. Culver,
Ocean Hose,
2,10 William Kickam, 66 Eagle Hose, .. 3, 10 Thomas Painter,
Steamer Gov. Lincoln, Co. No 1, 15
James D. Shaw,
Engineers, 7
257 men in all.
REPORT
OF A
COMMITTEE OF THE CITY COUNCIL
ON AN
Additional Supply of Water,
FOR THE
CITY OF WORCESTER.
WITH
REPORT, PLAN AND ESTIMATES, BY
PHINEHAS BALL,
CIVIL ENGINEER.
Printed by order of the City Council.
WORCESTER : EDWARD R. FISKE, PRINTER. 1863.
REPORT.
THE Committee to whom was referred the petition of Stephen Salisbury and others, asking that immediate measures be taken by the City Council " to procure an abundant supply of water for the use of the inhabitants, and for the protection of the city ' against fire," submit the following report :-
At the commencement of the year, the supply of water in Bell Pond was so small that it had become necessary to cut off most of the water- takers, and there was great and well-founded apprehensions for the safety of the city against a sweeping conflagration, to which it was at any time liable, and against which the Aqueduct, at that time, furnished no adequate protection. Fortunately, owing to the skill and good judgment of our water commissioner, Mr. Phinehas Ball, this immediate danger is now past. By the improvements in and about Bell Pond, the supply of water in the Acqueduct available for present and future use, has been more than doubled. Previous, however, to these improvements, the Committee had commenced the investigations with which they were charged, and they did not think it advisable, nor were they authorized, to abandon them.
In compliance with the vote of the City Council, they secured the services of Mr. Ball as a person whose scientific skill and practical ex- perience, and whose extensive knowledge of the topography of the country, best fitted him to obtain and impart such information upon the subject as would command the confidence of the community.
Starting with the assumption, that if an adequate supply of pure water could be obtained within a reasonable distance from the city, at an ele- vation sufficient to deliver it by gravitation to the highest part of the city, such a source of supply would have vast advantages over any scheme that depended upon pumping or artificial aid, the Committee instructed Mr. Ball to look, first, for such a supply. Of the probable sources that have, from time to time been considered, the one nearest the city first attracted our attention, because if that would furnish the required quantity of water, and of sufficient purity, of course its proximity to the city would decide the question in its favor.
4
The decided and unanimous opinion of all the mill owners, and of every unprejudiced person at all acquainted with the characteristics of East or Lynde Brook, has long pointed to that stream as the true source of supply for our city. In his report, made in 1854, Mr. Inches referred to it, and intimated, without having made any actual surveys, that it might be sufficient for the city for a few years' use. In 1860 and 1861, Committees of the City Council caused partial measurements and computations to be made of the water flowing through Lynde Brook, and of the means of storing it for use. The water shed was not sur- veyed, nor was the flow of the water gauged with much accuracy. Al- though the Committee was convinced that an ample supply of water could be obtained from this source, the surveys and estimates were so imper- fect and limited, that they did not receive the full coufidence of the public.
Mr. Ball was directed to examine carefully and thoroughly the water shed of Lynde Brook, ascertain its character, extent and peculiarities, compute the flow of water through its channel, determine the practica- bility of making a reservoir capable of storing the water, estimate the cost of bringing it into the city, and the probable consumption and rev- enue to be derived from it. His able and full report, with the accompanying plans, is herewith submitted. By his very carefully con- ducted surveys, certain facts relating to the stream are now well estab- lished which before were merely conjectural. Mr. Inches supposed its water shed to be 2,000, and the Committees of 1860 and '61 estimated it 2,500 acres. It is now ascertained to be 1870 acres. The amount of water in a river valley available for use, and which is not soaked into the ground nor evaporated in the air, is estimated, under ordinary cir- cumstances, at about one-half the aggregate rain fall. It is sometimes placed as low as four-tenths. We now learn what we should expect from the rocky and mountainous character of the country forming this water shed, that 48 per cent. of the rain falling upon it during the summer months passes into the stream, while during the winter, when the ground is frozen, 90 per cent. can be saved.
It is asserted by Professor Silliman as a basis of calculation, beyond question reliable, that the springs and streams of a limited district like this, represent, in their aggregate, only the annual rain fall-less the amount lost in soakage and evaporation. Adopting and following his calculations and method of reasoning, we arrive at these results. On each superficial acre of ground are 43,560 square feet, upon which a rain fall of 48 inches (the aggregate annual rain fall in Worcester for the last twenty years) will precipitate an aggregate of 173,907 cubic feet of water. A cubic foot weighing 62.5 pounds, this is equal to 10,869,187 pounds. As the imperial gallon holds 10 pounds of water, this weight corresponds to 1,086,918 gallons. It having been estab- lished by Mr. Ball that 65 per cent. of this quantity will flow into the stream and can be stored, we have an amount of water from each acre available for use of 706,496 gallons, and on 1,870 acres, which is the extent of the water shed of Lynde Brook, 1,321,147,520 gallons, or
5
3,619,956 imperial gallons a day, which is equal to about 4,223,000 wine gallons for the 365 days of the year.
This, it will be said, is mere theory that will not be sustained by facts, and cannot be reduced to practice. To test its accuracy, and to ascer- tain the amount of water that flowed through the channel of Lynde Brook, a wier was constructed in May last, near the outlet of the stream, and a person has been employed during the season to take daily obser- vations of the height of the water upon it.
Lynde Brook, like all other streams in a hilly and rocky country, is liable, after sudden and heavy rains, to swell rapidly, and to subside almost as soon. Observations and measurements made at certain hours in the day would therefore be less reliable to determine the actual flow of water through the channel, than in streams less susceptible to such sudden changes. Aware of this peculiarity of the brook, and to avoid all possibility of careless and willful errors in the measurement, an in- genious self-registering gauge, regulated by clock work, so arranged as to be entirely secure from being tampered with, was contrived by Mr. Ball and applied to the weir. By means of the measurements thus sep- arately and independently taken, compared with each other and verified, the amount of water that flows through this brook has been positively determined. The result is from May 9 to November 1 of this year, an average flow of 3,111,800 gallons per day. During this time only 24,11 inches of rain fell, being about five-tenths of the average rain fall of the year. Although these experiments were made at a season when the evaporation and soakage were the greatest, they show that 48 per cent, of the rain fall upon the water shed flowed into the channel of the brook.
Can this large amount of water be stored so as to be available for use as wanted? Without going over the calculations of the engineer, it is sufficient to state his conclusions : That a Reservoir can be built in a valley at the outlet of the stream, a place formed as by nature for the purpose, by constructing a dam 38 feet in height and only 400 feet long, and by raising the road as stated by the engineer, which will flow an area of 132 acres, much of which will be covered to the depth of 38 feet. This basin will contain 710,000,000 gallons of water, or about 2,000,000 per day for one year.
There can be no doubt that a much less amount of water, per capita, will be required in Worcester than in our large commercial cities. We have a large population sparsely settled, which will never need any other supply that can be more easily and cheaply obtained from the wells and springs with which our city, particularly in the suburban dis- tricts, is so abundantly supplied, and we have no shipping which con- sumes so much in all seaport towns. These facts and figures would seem to settle the question of the capacity of Lynde Brook to supply the present and prospective wants of the city, and when to these con- siderations we add the further one, that the wastage from Kettle Brook, ascertained to average 2,000,000 gallons per day, can, with a trifling expense, be turned if necessary into Lynde Brook, thus swelling the
6
supply to over 6,000,000 gallons per day, there cannot remain a doubt upon the subject in any reasonable mind.
By reference to the analysis of the water of Lynde Brook, made by Professor Jackson in 1860, it will be seen that it is of very pure quality, containing but little more than half as much foreign matter as the Co- chituate. With proper precautions in preparing the bottom and sides of the Reservoir, and in preventing rank vegetation at the water line, there can be no doubt that the water of such great depth will remain pure.
The city of Hartford has, until now, been supplied with water pumped from the Connecticut. Its water works have been in operation since 1856. The quantity of water consumed in that city since 1861, was 1,098,850 per day, the income from which was sufficient to pay the in- terest upon the cost of the works and the expense of operating and maintaining them. Finding it necessary to increase the supply, partic- ularly for the higher portion of the city, Professor Silliman and other able engineers, advised as the most reliable, economical and best plan for obtaining such supply, to bring it by gravitation a distance of five miles, from a small rivulet, rather than to enlarge their works and in- crease the machinery to force it from the river flowing directly by the city. The height necessary to force the water was 175 feet. To force the water from Lake Quinsigamond into Bell Pond, it is necessary to overcome an elevation of 309 feet. The annual cost of pumping in Hartford was estimated at $8,869, representing a capital of $147,816. The cost of pumping from Lake Quinsigamond was estimated by Mr. Inches at $13,945, representing a capital of $232,000, or, adding 25 per cent. according to Mr. Ball's estimate for present prices, $17,430, representing a capital of. $290.000.
The experience of other cities, the great saving in the first cost of construction, and the far greater economy in the annual expense of maintaining an Aqueduct conveying water by gravitation from Lynde Brook over the expensive works necessary to force water from Lake Quinsigamond, compel your Committee to give the decided preference to the former scheme.
The well established facts that Henshaw Pond will furnish but about one-third as much water as Lynde Brook; that it is 3,850 feet more distant from the city, and that every mill owner between Leicester and Norwich may and probably will claim damages for the diversion of its water, furnish equally strong reasons for preferring Lynde Brook to Henshaw Pond as a source of supply for our city.
The objection most often urged against Lynde Brook, and in fact the only objection that does not apply with still greater force to every other scheme that has been proposed,is that in some seasons during the summer months, for days and even weeks together, it is entirely dry. The fact is undoubtedly true. During the last summer, for ten days, not enough water ran in the channel of the brook to be measured, and yet during the dryest month, June, it furnished a daily average of 546,528 gallons. With such a supply, and with a Reservoir capable of storing
7
700,000,000 gallons, filled full as it will be every spring, this does not seem to be a very serious objection. The country adjacent to and sup- plying Lynde Brook is so hilly and rocky that the rain passes rapidly into the stream. There are few or no swamps and little level land to soak it up and retain it. The water, instead of being held in the ground and furnished by a slow and steady supply, is poured at once into the Reservoir and made ready for use. We do not rely the less upon our rain-water Cisterns because they are not daily supplied by fresh showers. It is only necessary to make them of sufficient capacity to furnish a con- stant supply. Had the present City Council been governed by this consideration, the recent improvements upon Bell Pond, which are of such acknowledged value, would not have been made. The little run of water, whichhas more than doubled the supply in the present Aqueduct, improving its quality almost as much as the quantity, for two entire months this very year did not furnish a gallon.
If the people shall be satisfied with the result of the present investi- gation, and shall demand " that immediate measures be taken to introduce a further supply of water " from this source, the Committee would re- commend, that for the present, and until the growth and development of the city and its increasing wants shall require a greater supply, the dam for the Reservoir be raised only to the height of 24 feet, which will flow an. area of 45 acres, and hold 230,000,000 gallons of water. The city will have acquired all necessary rights, and can, at any time when it becomes necessary, raise the dam to any desired height. The plan is for a main pipe 16 inches in diameter, which will be ample for all time. It is recommended to carry it as far as Thomas Street, where it will intersect with the main pipe of the present Aqueduct, com- ing direct from Bell Pond. By placing the distributing Reservoir as proposed near the school house at Parkhurst's, which is on a level with Bell Pond, by which arrangement the Bell Pond Reservoir will be always sure of a full supply, it is believed that the city will have a system of water works for the daily supply of its inhabitants, and espe- cially for its protection against fire, that will scarcely admit of improve- ment.
There are questions of damages to the mill owners that will require serious consideration if the work shall be undertaken, but which cannot, in this case, and probably can never be calculated or adjusted in advance, whatever scheme may be adopted. From whatever source the water is taken these claims must be met. They will undoubtedly be less here than if either of the other projects which have been considered shall be adopted, and it is thought and hoped that the protection which Hydrants would furnish to some of the mills situated upon the route, would be full compensation for any real or supposed damage caused by the diversion of the water.
The estimates have been made with great care by the engineer, based upon present prices of labor and materials, with the usual allowance for contingencies. They contemplate everything necessary for the intro- duction of the water into the city to connect with the present system of
-
8
distribution. As this shall hereafter prove insufficient, and new streets and new sections of the city shall require the water for consumption or protection, the pipes can be extended when the necessity arises, in the same manner and by the same rules as gas or sewerage are now supplied.
The Committee have not thought it necessary or proper for them to recommend to the Council any specific action. In furnishing the facts and estimates contained in their report and in that of the engineer, they have discharged their duty. They have endeavored to obtain the fullest and most reliable information possible, which, with that already in pos- session of the public in previous reports, will enable every citizen to form an intelligent opinion upon the comparative merits of the various schemes that have from time to time been proposed. Of the urgency of the demand for more water, of the probable revenue to be derived from it, and of the effect of an ample supply of it upon the health and growth and prosperity of the city, the public can judge as well as the Committee.
One other consideration deserves attention. The quantity of water furnished by Lynde Brook, and the means of storing it, will hereafter be known. In its present natural state it is of little value to the mill owners below, because in times of high water when the streams are full, they have enough without it, and when they are low, this, from its peculiar character, is lowest of all, and does them little good. Stored away in a large Reservoir as proposed for the city, it would furnish a large, permanent and valuable supply. Profiting by the information furnished by this investigation, it is probable they will before long take measures to secure it for their own use, if it shall not be expedient to take it for the use of the city.
D. WALDO LINCOLN, HARRISON BLISS, CHARLES A. WHEELER, PHILIP L. MOEN, GEORGE S. BARTON, RUSSELL R. SHEPPARD,
COMMITTEE.
0
REPORT OF PHINEHAS BALL, CIVIL ENGINEER.
TO THE JOINT SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON WATER FOR THE CITY OF WORCESTER, APPOINTED BY THE CITY COUNCIL, FEB. 9TH, 1863.
GENTLEMEN,-By your solicitation the following Report is present- ed upon the subject of fully supplying the city with water, illustrated by the accompanying maps, profiles and plans.
The first question that engages the attention is, whether the demand for an increased and permanent supply of pure water for all purposes ·for which a city like Worcester needs water, is of that public and gen- eral character to make the necessary outlay therefor, one of prudence for the city in its corporate capacity, as it would be, for that of any individual moved by the same motives and for the same purposes. If the demand be limited to a small number of parties, localities and individuals, and if the amount needed be small in quantity, then the demand is of such a private nature as to relieve the public of any duty in making any further outlays to supply such want. The water ques- tion here is one which is complicated by many side questions, arising from a great variety of causes.
Some of these complications arise from personal and private motives, but most come from the very general feeling, especially among our rural population, that the income derived from the sale of water, will not be near proportioned to the interest upon the necessary outlay, and hence must impose a heavy additional burden upon the great mass of tax payers for the more direct benefit of a few individuals, business firms and corporations.
That the demand is confined to a small area of our city, or to that which has been familiarly known as the " Center District," is apparent. In population the demand covers about two-thirds of the entire inhabi- tants, or about 15,000.
But that it exists to a large extent, that it is a want deeper than that of a few individuals, is shown by the repeated efforts made during the past ten years, by men of all parties, to increase the supply to such an extent as to meet all the varied wants of the city. This effort being the fifth or sixth which has engaged, in some form, the consideration of the municipal government of the city, during that period of time.
2
10
For some portions of the " Center District" private parties have from time to time attempted by small aqueducts to do on a limited scale, what the city has been asked several times to do for all. There are three separate private aqueducts, partaking somewhat of a public character, in that they supply water to various takers, under certain restrictions, along those portions of the city which they reach ; besides several others of a more private nature which merely supply a single corporation, block or dwelling.
First, the Allen, or Spring Water, as the proprietors now call it, supplying some thirty-seven different parties, almost wholly on Main street. This aqueduct has not far from two miles of pipe, its source being near Adams' Square, and about one hundred and twenty feet above Lincoln Square. The water is of an entirely unexceptionable character for drinking and other purposes.
Y Second, the Paine Spring Aqueduct, the source of which lies at the foot of Laurel Hill, on the east side of Hanover street, and some twenty-five feet above Union street, at Wm. A. Wheeler's foundry. This supplies parties on School, Union, Main, Thomas, and Summer streets. The late Agent states that some forty-one different proprie- tors are furnished either partially or wholly, and that it is used by some one hundred and twenty-five to one hundred and thirty different fam- ilies, shops, &c. The amount of pipe laid is about one mile. The water was once quite soft and pure, but now much complaint is made of its hardness.
Third, that of the Rice Aqueduct, supplying parties in the neighbor- hood of Grafton and Franklin streets, to the number of sixty-one fam- iles, including two steam engines, which are estimated equal to twenty- four families.
The State Lunatic Hospital has one of its own, which was originally laid with a two-inch cast iron pipe, in 1845 or 1846. The pipes at present are so corroded and filled with concretions as to limit, at times, their supply, to very stinted measures. They have this year rebuilt the dam at the Hermitage, on the Green brook in a most substantial manner, with a view of laying a four inch cement and iron pipe early next year, and when the work is all completed, as is now contemplated by the Board of Trustees, the institution will be amply supplied, and independent of all other parties. The amount used at the institution is from fifteen to eighteen thousand gallons per day.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.