The history of Detroit and Michigan; or, The metropolis illustrated; a chronological cyclopedia of the past and present, Vol I, Part 20

Author: Farmer, Silas, 1839-1902
Publication date: 1889
Publisher: Detroit, S. Farmer & co
Number of Pages: 1096

USA > Michigan > Wayne County > Detroit > The history of Detroit and Michigan; or, The metropolis illustrated; a chronological cyclopedia of the past and present, Vol I > Part 20

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).

In 1831 an additional reservoir was constructed, adjoining the old one; it was built of oak plank, was forty feet square, ten feet deep, and held 119,680 gallons. The reservoir first built remained in use until 1839, when it was sold and taken down. The other one was used occasionally up to 1842, during which year the logs were relaid, many of them having been impaired by frost in the winters of 1830 and 1831. At the same time a twenty-horse- power engine was built, and located in a building erected for it on the north side of Woodbridge Street, between Wayne and Cass Streets.

The company supplied water until 1836, losing money each year, and hearing constant and well- grounded complaints that the water was neither clear, pure, nor wholesome, and very uncertain as to quantity. Finally a Committee of the Council was

appointed to examine the matter. They reported that the company had failed to fulfill their contract, and that their charter was null and void. After much discussion, it was decided that the city would buy the works, and on May 18, 1836, a Committee of the Council reported that they had purchased all the real and personal estate of the Hydraulic Com- pany for $20,500, the property to be surrendered June 1, 1836, and to be paid for in city bonds bear- ing six per cent interest, due on June 1, 1856. A special session of the council was next held on June 9, when it was

Resolved, that Noah Sutton be, and he is hereby appointed, as agent for this Board, to proceed to the cities of Pittsburg, Phila- delphia, New York, to examine the water-works in those cities, and obtain all needful information in regard to the construction and operation thereof ; and the said agent to be authorized and empowered to contract in the behalf of the corporation of this city for cast and wrought iron pipes for conducting the water into the city.

Resolved, that the sum of $150 be appropriated for the defraying the expenses of the agent of the corporation, and that a warrant for that amount be issued on the Treasury.

A committee was also appointed to purchase a water lot above the city, upon which to erect works. On June 15, 1836, the recorder reported that they had "purchased from Major Antoine Dequindre three water lots in front of the Dequindre Farm, with a front of 350 feet on the river, for $5,500." The work of building was begun at once, and on June 30, 1836, John Farrar was appointed to superintend and inspect the erection of the wharf. It is evident that there were some misgivings as to the success or desirability of the plan for obtaining water from the river, for on the same day the council proceedings show the passage of the following resolution :

Resolved, that David French and H. Wilmarth be appointed a committee to examine the several springs in Northville and Southfield, also others in the vicinity, to ascertain if a sufficient quantity of pure water can be obtained from them to supply this city, and the probable cost of conveying it hither.

On August 3 Mr. French reported that by a con- centration of several springs in the town of Farming- ton an abundant supply of pure water could be obtained. Nothing further came of this report, and, in the light of later experiences, one cannot help wondering whether the members of the council had not been drinking something besides water when they adopted the resolution.

Meantime the newly purchased works continued to be used, and in 1836 an ordinance was passed "that, on application, water may be conveyed 50 feet from front line of lots to be kept flowing at least twelve hours out of the twenty-four, provided the corporation does not have to make more than 100 feet of new pipe to supply any one applicant."

In 1837 work was begun on the reservoir at the foot of Orleans Street. In 1838 iron pipes, the first

WATER AND WATER-WORKS.

in the city, were laid on Jefferson Avenue, from Ran- dolph Street to Woodward Avenue. In 1840 a contract was made with Charles Jackson and Noah Sutton to build an engine-house, lay nine miles of tamarack logs, four and one half of iron pipes, furnish a forty-five-horse-power engine, erect the iron reser- voir, and finish its tower. The plan of the reservoir, or round-house, was copied by Noah Sutton from the old Manhattan Works of New York City. William Burnell was the contractor for the brick- work, which was completed in 1838. John Scott superintended the construction. The brick part was fifty feet high, surrounded by a wooden top twenty feet in height. The iron tank, twenty feet high and sixty feet in diameter, was located in the upper por- tion of the building, resting on numerous brick piers and arches. A narrow, crooked, and winding stairway, with a rough, wooden platform extending out over the reservoir, led to the top of the building, from which a fine view could be obtained; in the olden time a visit to this reservoir was one of the things to be enjoyed by all visitors.

OLD ROUND HOUSE, FOOT OF ORLEANS STREET.

The reservoir had a capacity of 422,979 United States standard gallons, and weighed one hundred and forty tons. It was in constant use until 1857 and in partial use until 1860. In 1866 the round- house was torn down. The work was begun on March 27, and the old land mark soon disappeared. Meanwhile the rapid growth of the city made it apparent that more extensive works were needed, and in anticipation of the erection of reservoirs out- side of the city, a charter amendment of March 16, 1847, gave control over any works that should be established.

In 1850 an additional pumping engine of one- hundred-and-fifty-horse-power was set up. Even

with these additional facilities, the supply of water was uncertain, and in 1851 four acres of land on the Mullett Farm were purchased as a site for a new reservoir. This investment gave rise to much dis- cussion, and in the winter of 1851 and 1852 the papers were filled with arguments and communica- tions for and against proposals to sell the water- works to a private corporation. Finally, by ordi- ance passed February 24, 1852, the management of the works was vested in a board of five trustees, and a year later, on February 14, the same trustees, by Act of the Legislature, were constituted a Board of Water Commissioners. From this time the board had control of all the property of the water- works, which, on December 30, 1862, was conveyed to them by deed of the council.

The continued increase of the city and its pro- spective wants led the commissioners to dispose of the four acres on the Mullett Farm; and in 1854 they purchased ten acres on the Dequindre Farm, a mile and a half from the river, at a cost of $7,363. This ground, the highest in the city available for the purpose, is twenty feet higher than the level at the corner of Jefferson and Woodward Avenues.

A new reservoir was begun upon this site in 1854. It was first used in November, 1857, but was not fully completed until 1860. It is bounded by Wil- kins, Calhoun, Riopelle, and Dequindre Streets, and consists of two basins enclosed by a sloping em- bankment thirty feet high, composed principally of clay. The embankment is one hundred and three feet thick at the base and fifteen feet wide at the top. The outside is handsomely sodded. The basins were originally lined with brick. After a few months' use, heavier and more durable material was deemed necessary, and stone, with brick for a few feet at the top, was substituted. Steps lead from the northwest corner to the top of the embankment. upon which there is a gravel walk 1,003 feet long. The two basins are surrounded by a neat fence, and a flight of steps from top to bottom of the interior of each affords easy access for cleaning or repairs. The dividing wall between the basins contains a stairway leading to the shut-offs, so that water can be let on or shut off from either basin without inter- fering with the other. Each basin is two hundred feet square at the top, one hundred and fourteen feet square at the bottom, and twenty-eight and one half feet deep; and together they cover an area of 530x 320 feet, or nearly four acres. The capacity of the two is 9,000,000 gallons. The water is forced in and distributed through pipes two feet in diameter. The total cost of the reservoir, aside from the ground, was $116,287.58. A keeper resides on the grounds, and on week-days from April I to Decem- ber I, from 9 A. M. till sunset, and on Sundays from 2 P. M. to sunset, the grounds are open to visitors.

WATER AND WATER-WORKS.

As the top is seventy-seven and one half feet above the river, it commands an extensive view of the northeastern portion of the city.

The various extensions and enlargements de- manded increased expenditures, and the commis- sioners were authorized by Act of February 6, 1855, to borrow $250,000, and an Act of February 10, 1857, gave power to borrow an additional $250,000. In July, 1858, a new pipe was sunk in the river, the inlet end being one hundred and seventy-five feet from the wharf-line, and the quality of the water ob- tained was greatly improved.

In 1856 a new engine was contracted for, to be built in New York. It was completed and deliv- ered, but failed to do the work agreed upon, and was rejected by the commissioners, who refused to pay for it. A suit was instituted against them, and a decision rendered under which the contractors recovered $26,500. In 1862 a new engine was pro- cured, which cost $25,000. Again it became neces- sary to enlarge the capacity of the works, and on February 17, 1869, the Legislature authorized the

board to borrow $250,000. A further Act of April 5 gave power to levy a tax of three cents a foot frontage on all vacant lots passed by the supply pipes, with power to sell the lots after a certain time if the taxes were not paid. Comparatively few per- sons paid the tax, and in June, 1876, the law was decided to be illegal, and all moneys collected under it have been, or are liable to be, refunded.

During 1870 many persons who lived adjoining the city petitioned to be served from the water- works, and in October the pipes, for the first time, were extended outside the corporation. In this same year the ever-recurring consideration of enlargement was again a prominent theme, and the question of an entirely new location occasioned much research and investigation. Various plans and locations were discussed by city officers, private citizens, and the Water Board. The Legislature, on March 8, 1873, gave the board power to borrow $1,000,000 for the purpose of erecting new works, and the Act pro- vided for the raising of $75,000 yearly by direct tax, the surplus over the necessities of the board to be

RESERVOIR AND EMBANKMENT BETWEEN RIOPELLE AND DEQUINDRE STREETS.

WATER AND WATER-WORKS.

set apart as a sinking fund. A further Act of April 12, 1873, defined with much detail the powers of the board, provided for condemning private property for their use, and gave them power to erect and control works outside the city. In furtherance of plans for enlargement, the board, in January, 1874, bought seventy acres for $35,000 of Robert P. Toms as a site for the new works. The land has a frontage on the Grosse Pointe Road of 967 feet and extends to the river, a distance of 2,715 feet ; it covers parts of Private Claims Nos. 337 and 257 in Hamtramck, about four miles from the City Hall. The wisdom of the location was called in question, and Generals G. W. Greene and G. Weitzel were appointed by the mayor and the Board of Public Works to inves- tigate the subject of location and of the proposed works. Their report was presented in August, 1874. They approved of the location purchased, and advised the erection of works substantially as recommended by D. Farrand Henry, the engineer of the board. The bill of General Greene for his services on this occation was $1, 1 34 and that of Gen- eral Weitzel, $1,074.35. These bills were presented August 18, and ordered paid on August 24, 1874. The reasons given in favor of the new location were that the works would be beyond the reach of fire from adjoining premises, and would be accessible at all seasons of the year ; the water would be obtained from a river channel seldom or never contaminated. and, by means of settling basins, could be freed from impurities. Proposals for constructing the settling basin, docks, and a short slip or canal were invited, and the contract was let to Messrs. Lacey, Walton, & Walker for $106,130. Work was begun in December, 1874, the works were completed in three years, and on December, 15, 1877, water for the first time was supplied therefrom.

The first inlet pipe was laid in about twenty- seven feet of water, and at' right angles with the current ; it is of wrought iron, one fourth of an inch thick, five feet in diameter, made in lengths of twenty-five feet, and extends eleven hundred feet into the river, where it is enclosed by a crib in twenty-two feet of water. The strainer boxes are of plate iron, six feet high, five feet wide and thirty feet long. They are fastened to oak timbers laid on the bed of the river.

The opening for the admission of the water is on the westerly side, and is two feet above the bed of the river, the water being admitted between slats of hard wood. A second inlet pipe was laid in 1884.

The water is forced by gravity through the strainer, influent pipe, and gate-well into the settling basin, thence, intercepted by submerged bulkhead, into effluent gate-well, effluent pipe, and strainer wells to the pump wells, whence it is pumped into the forty-two-inch mains; these are so connected

STAND PIPE

W-

ENGINE HOUSE

WASTE

[365 FEET WIDE

800 FTE

SETTLING

750 F.T.

CANAL

AVERAGE DEPTH 17FT)

BASIN

SUBMERGED BULK HEAD

DRAW

BRIDGE

FARMCINE

1005 FT. INLET PIE

1100 FT. INLET.PIPE

DETROIT RIVER

PLAN OF DETROIT WATER-WORKS.

WELL!

WATER AND WATER-WORKS.

that either or both can be used ; they run by differ- ent routes, one 16,000 feet in length, the other 28,000 feet, to the supplying mains.

The settling basin is three hundred and sixty-five feet wide and the two sides measure seven hundred and fifty and eight hundred feet respectively. It varies in depth from thirteen feet at the channel or south bank to seventeen feet on the north or engine side at low-water mark; it is separated from the river by a natural bank of solid earth two hundred feet in width ; on the other three sides there are plank walls supported by piles driven seven feet in blue clay ; outside of the plank walls there are solid embankments of blue clay, puddled in by hand, from eleven to fourteen feet wide. On the west side the embankment, which is covered with plank, connects with and leads to the dock, which is nine- teen hundred feet long and twenty-five feet wide. West of the embankment is a canal forty-five feet wide and seventeen feet deep. About seventy-five feet from the north bank of the settling basin is a submerged breakwater, which prevents a direct cur- rent from the inlet to the outlet pipe, and facili- tates the deposit of any sedimentary matter. The basin has an area of something over six acres, and the pipe conveying the water from it to the well in the engine-house, like the inlet pipe, is six feet above the bed of the basin, thus allow-

ing all sediment to fall below the mouth of the pipe.

The upper portion of the grounds is occupied by coal-house, settling basin, and canal; the lower por- tion is reserved for the site of an additional basin, should it be required. The grounds adjacent to the street are graded, seeded, and ornamented with shrubbery and two small lakes; driveways lead to the engine-house.

The engine-house, of brick, stands nearly in the centre of the upper half of the grounds, eight hun- dred feet from the front line. The height of the building to the top of the main walls is forty feet, to the peak of the roof seventy-five feet, and to the top of the tower one hundred and fourteen feet. The engine-room proper is 140x69 feet, and is open to the roof. Two boiler-houses join the rear, and are each fifty-three and six tenths by forty-seven and four tenths feet inside measurement, with a height of forty feet. A space of thirty-seven feet between them is used as store-room, wash-room, and work- shop. The brick chimneys on the outer wall of each boiler-room are five feet in diameter inside, and one hundred and twenty feet high. There are three compound-beam pumping engines, all designed by John E. Edwards, and each of them capable of pumping 24,000,000 gallons daily. All of them are models of strength and beauty.

THE NEW WATER-WORKS ENGINE HOUSE, AND TOWER OF STAND PIPE.

WATER AND WATER-WORKS.

One of the engines was first used in 1877, and was . of boiler iron and has a diameter of five feet at built by the Detroit Locomotive Works ; another was completed in 1881 by S. F. Hodge, at the Riverside Iron Works, and in 1885 they finished a third.

The engine built by the Detroit Locomotive Works has a high steam cylinder, forty-two inches in diameter, and a low steam cylinder, eighty-four inches in diameter, with six-foot stroke. The beam is composed of six half- inch steel plates, twenty- five feet long by five feet six inches wide. The centre column, which supports the beam and forms the air vessel, is forty-four feet high, ten feet in diameter at the base, and seven feet five inches at the top. The total height from base plate to top of beam is fifty feet three inches. The fly-wheel is twenty- four feet in diameter, and weighs about thirty tons ; the crank shaft is fifteen inches in diameter.

The engine built by the Riverside Iron Works differs slightly from that built by the Detroit Lo- comotive Works. The high steam cylinder has four inches more, and the pump three fourths of an inch more diameter. The beam of this engine is composed of four three- fourth-inch steel plates, twenty - five feet four inches long by five feet six inches wide, weighing 3,350 pounds each. The fly-wheel is twenty-four feet four inches in diam- eter and weighs nearly forty tons. The pump- ing wells are forty-one feet long, twenty-one feet wide, and twenty-two feet deep, with walls about four feet thick. Each engine with its air-pumps weighs nearly five hundred tons. There are eight boilers, usually called marine boilers, each of them eight feet in diameter by nineteen feet six inches long; height from bottom of furnace to top of shell, eight feet eight and one half inches; weight of each boiler, seventeen and one half tons; heating surface, 1,364 square feet. The stand-pipe is made

the base and thirty inches at the top. It has a height of one hundred and thirty-two feet from the founda- tion upon which it rests. Since November 7, 1886, the pumping has been done by its aid alone, and water is delivered one hundred and ten feet above the level of the river. The tower which encircles it is built of the best quality of pressed

ONE OF THE ENGINES.

brick; the base or lower section is extended out- ward from the main shaft to allow of a passageway or vestibule to the winding stairway one hundred and twenty-four feet high, which leads to an ob- servatory at the top. There are two hundred and four steps.

An analysis of the water by Professor Douglass in 1854 showed the contents of 1,000 grammes to be: sulphate of potassia, .00283 grammes; sulphate of soda, .0075; carbonate of lime, .033 ; phosphate of

WATER AND WATER-WORKS.

lime, .0311 ; alumina, .0105; silica, .005 ; and car- bonate of iron, .00814 ; or a total of .09807 grammes of solid matter in 1,000; in other words, a gallon of water contained only 5.722 grains of solid matter, and this of such minerals, in such proportions, as to be of no real detriment. The iron pipe from which the water for analysis was taken extended only twenty-five feet beyond the wharf-line. An analysis of a gallon of water by Professor A. B. Lyons in September, 1879, from water obtained at the new works gave the following result : potassium, trace; sodium chloride, .229; sodium carbonate, .394; cal- cium sulphate, 1.043; calcium carbonate, 3.353; magnesium carbonate, 1.209; alumina, .241 ; ferrous carbonate, trace ; silica, .306. Total, 6.775 grains.

The cost of the new works, including the grounds, up to January, 1887, was $1,448, 053.

All general distribution pipes are laid at the ex- pense of the city as fast as the commissioners deem necessary; and all applications for extensions made at the office are carefully considered. Service pipes are required to be put in by a licensed plumber, at the expense of the individual. Plumbers pay five dollars a year to the board as a license fee. A con- trast between the methods and facilities of the past and the present is suggested in the following item from a daily paper of July, 1850 :

Plumber .- Why is it that in a city of 25,000 inhabitants, with one Hydraulic Works, and the very extensive improvements every- where going forward, that we have no professional plumber among us?

Petitions to make connections with the water- pipes must be made at the office, on blank forms there furnished, and a charge of $1.75 to $3.00 for service cock and for connecting must be paid when the permit is granted. Between the first day of December and the first day of March no connections are allowed to be made without special permit.

Up to January 1, 1887, there were 23,297 service connections in the iron pipes, and 7,265 in the wooden logs; there was a total of two hundred and thirty-six miles of iron pipe, and sixty-four miles of wooden logs. The iron pipe varies in size from three to forty-two inches in diameter, and the bore of the wooden logs from two and one quarter to four inches. The winter of 1874-1875 being remarkably cold, the water-pipes were more generally affected than ever before, and many of the street mains froze and burst, causing serious incon- venience.

In 1827 the force mains, or main pipes, delivering to the supply pipes consisted of tamarac logs of four-and-one-half-inch bore. In 1830 three-inch iron pipes were used, in 1840 ten-inch pipes, in 1854 twenty-four-inch pipes, and in 1875 pipes of three feet six inches in diameter were first employed.

The following table gives a good idea of the growth and extent of the water-works :

Value of Works.

Amount of Debt.

Interest paid.

Cost of operating.

1853

$ 355,240

$ 252,77I

$13,356

1860

689,783

650,000

$43,837

14,543

I870

1, 176,076

850,000

54,757

35,109

1880

2,750,700

1,503,000

99,610

45,732

1886

3,885,240

1,447,000

91,862

71,176

Water Rates.

No. of Families.

Gallons pumped.

Miles of Pipeage.

1853

$ 25,482

4,283

303,531,743

1860

49,434

6,950

870,036,451

1870

127,143

14,717

1,866,060,068

129

1880

227,452

22,733

5,552,965,310

209

1886

314,952

33,904

10, 576,571, 254

301

The office was at one time located in the old City Hall. In 1852 it was removed to the old Firemen's Hall, on the corner of Bates and Larned Streets. In July, 1862, it was moved to a store in the Biddle House Block, and in May, 1872, to the north side of Jefferson Avenue, between Bates and Randolph Streets. In 1877 the office was moved to Griswold Street, between Michigan Avenue and State Street, and in 1887 it was permanently located in the build- ing formerly known as Fireman's Hall, which was purchased at a cost of $40,000.

Under ordinance of 1836 the water rates were as follows : Each common dwelling-house, $10 yearly ; each dwelling "larger than common," with one horse or cow, $12; each family in house with several families, $8; each livery with four horses, $10; each store, $6; each office, $5. The tax was to be paid six months in advance, and no water supplied for less than six months. As at present managed, in May and June of each year personal inspection and inquiry is instituted throughout the city ; and from facts thus obtained a list of consumers is made. On the last business day in June the rolls are confirmed, and are final and conclusive except as additional assessments may become necessary by increased use of water. Any reduction claimed by reason of diminished use of water can apply only to the succeeding quarter. The present rates for each house range from five dollars upwards, with special rates for varying circumstances and particular kinds of business. If not paid within the first month of the quarter, five per cent is added; if not paid before the expiration of the quarter, ten per cent is added ; and if not then paid, the supply of water is shut off, and before it is let on again, not only the water tax but an extra charge of fifty cents for turning on the water must be paid.

A law of 1873 required the board to charge for the pipes, and double rates for water supplied to persons living outside of the corporation. After ten years, trial, in 1883, discretionary power was given to the board as to the amount to be charged.

WATER AND WATER-WORKS.

Water meters were tested in 1854, but can hardly be said to have been in use until 1874, and in 1883 there were but thirty-two meters and twelve water- indicators in the city. The rate in 1875 was two cents, in 1883 one cent for each one hundred gallons registered.

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.

The history of Detroit and Michigan; or, The metropolis illustrated; a chronological cyclopedia of the past and present, Vol I, Part 20

Author: Farmer, Silas, 1839-1902 Publication date: 1889 Publisher: Detroit, S. Farmer & co Number of Pages: 1096

Author: Farmer, Silas, 1839-1902
Publication date: 1889
Publisher: Detroit, S. Farmer & co
Number of Pages: 1096