Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1842-10-21

| I'm, at
hem m amount al their vauabe and elegant ieoi'c,
hat cave them immsise consequence IN the eyes o!
the fair o3kefson ,;, e,h;s
ob Cotton herself, the very end and ohecl OF tn's
rrand Gala, was eSceIenliy well feP1eseheu ,, o
licers contractors and workmen connected WIN Tue
rs,, COX made up respectable, most imposing
md mas, ,,recfical exhibit Of the Importance OF Tue
went which called tins vast body OF citizens iosetnef
| rb.y were accompanied with specimens oil the pipe
nsed :, the agnednc the largest TO the SMALLEST
size TOGETHER with various other portions OF tue aPpu
tins nsed in the construction OF the water "ofhs, VIII"
the wo.kmcn busily employed about them.
The Naval apprentices under the charge oil Gu
tenant and Mid>hpman, made hne appear ~,
CIiara Sccieties The Mercantile Library Society," the
Mechanics Societies. and great number OF other pup
Ic hndes were also out, and added materially 10 Tue
s,leodor and tftGt If the occasion
| 'Norou,ht we 10 omit the imposing appearance OF
the British and French Consus, VINO f"de '"se.lei ~
a,endd barouchc, dressed in their iu!l consular UNI
tfnr,ns-cct;anly about the most magnificent that we
Las, No, least the various Temperance Societies
were on the ground, IN great numbers WIN le't osau
,iful banners With all the numerous emoienis ni 'hen
nobl. cause and ,cith the best wishes oil all VINO saw
them. .aoo,d
ed f,o,n the Castle Garden in balloon, without acci-
dent and WAS for some time seen floating over the city
He had not returned when we sent u Tile oaiue' '
night. p, r,,.,uo ,o,s
brilliantly illuminated and beautifully decorated as
indeed ,bev had been throu ghou the day, and all the
other hotels and public buildings The Shipping IN
The harbor Foreign and American, with all their ags
dsp,yed 10 the breeze, presented very gay appear
ance. a., 80,
At morning, noon and night, the bells IN the ci'y
| were all runI for an hour each time.
As appropriate TO the OCCASION, the Crolon wafer
| was seen gushing forth in numerous places most
prominent amongs, these was Of course the great oun'
lain in the Park, and rex, that IN the Union Place
N. fatnn Try
one had been erected, constructed Of shells aud ina
res with great taste. But besides these, most oi the
hydrants had, by ingenious confirhnce been mace
to throw during The procession large Jets OF water
II must not be supposed that we have gwen or even
attempted give any thing like full description oil
this nrard gaa for we have not We only wished to
hint Of its general and more prominent lea
tnres such we could maze out consistently with the
Little opportunity have 20 do 1t, without deprving
ourselves and those connected with the Office, OF the
urv epp of participating the festival; and we have
oniy 10 add that the whole affair has passed oil IN
manner highly honorable TO the character OF me CITY,
and TO those who have supernendcd the celebration.
Not an accident outrage OF sort has occurred
to mar the moral beauty OF the occasion, or 10 leave
SINGLE regret that the celebration has taken place
On the procession reaching at the Park, Samuel
Stevens ESQ President If the Board OF Water Com.
,ussioners addressed the Mayor ami Common Council
~ follows from stand erected for that purpose:
Mr. usyor and Genaesnen Of tie Common CounctE
4 In delivering over the Cro.on Water and the works
on this Island, have been requested by your Com
mtlee to make such remarks as the occasion may sus
gest ~ ,
From the earliest perod OF the history OF our City the
attainment, of pure and Wholesome water has been
subject Of the highest interest.
\ The Tea Eaisr Pump, situated near the corner oil
Peo,l md Chatham Streets was for long period oil
lime the grand source of all drakabe water for the
lower part o! the city
The necessity of !. greater and copious supply
for The extnguishment OF fires, appears also TO have
IL Nlant,
beer early admitted by our whole community many
If the presen generation rccolcct the long lines OF
beth men and omen formed 10 pass pals and buckets
from hand to hand on the coolest eh OF Winter, with
bu, faint hope of staying the conflagraton OF some
neighbours dwelling. c,,.
In 177l the Corporation adopted the plan of Chris
,onhrr COLES Of making Reservoir in Broadway, be-
tween Pearl and Whte Streets 10 supply The city, ana
contacted for G00D feet of pitch pine logs on erfd
and ISSUED their bOads to Augustus Van Cortland ana
John Jay 10 pay for tie same. The Revolution slayeo
thus work.
In 1899, William Weston, Civil Engineer was
emnoyed By the Corporation 10 examine the Bronx, and
reported tina, i, would furnish supply
The first innovation on The pail aud bucket system
appears to have been made in l7l, when two engines
"a. the cxtinrushnent al fires were imported ~ tue
Common Council from London.
This was great STRIDE in The arts, and the sa,slac'
ton with winch the carriers O! buckets locked upon
t:s the working these mncEines was OF The most asto'
rishiGg kind.
These Gre engines and others which added
to them performed the duty Of extingushng fires,
being supplied from The rivers and pumps, until l|99
when the Manhattan Company was chartered, tor the
ayowcd purpose Of introducing "pure and wholesome
water" and as an additional nducement for the intro
duction Of water banking privileges were bestowed by
It's charter THIS company mainly satisfied 'tseii ny
puG,pinr water with n steam engine from near the old
Collect, Their pipes, though they furnished not pure
and wholesome wafer have nevertheless, IN cases OF
fire, been frequently highly beneficial to the city
In 1852 TIE Sharon Canal Company was chartered
BY the State and among lis duties that Of supply
ing the CITY Of New York with pure and wholesome
water The aoik was not undertaken, and IT'S charter
expired ,
. In Isa.. another company, called 1.-THE New York
Water Works, for The supply of pure and wholesome
water" was established. bu; 1t Of short existence,
ano produced valnanie results, except to prove iha
am pie supply Of good wafer could DC ioohd on ''s
island
The Corporation in addition 10 the River, alanhat'
tan ard Pump supply of water, found 1t necessary To
pabc ciserns these were generally IN The streets
IN frcrt Of churches This practice oibuildlng public
c:stcrus couunueG until Ic:1; when the COMMITTEE on
the Fire Department. consisting OF Isaac Brown, james
Paluer Samuel Stevens, Benjamin, Brown and T.
~ Encs reported in favor ofoboshng public cisterns
ana building TAM. Reservoir in 18th street.
Fifteen hundred dollars wes appropriated to the
Tank which TO be filed by horse power, and the
Corporation the 10th Of Mafco adopted the report
and agreed to .ay down two lines Of IL inch IRON pipes,
one ia Broadway and the other in the Bowery
The Committee avoUed their object 10 be TO fill that
tank and those pipes nj no distant date, with water TO
be introduced ircm Westminster.
The adoption OF this report hy this Cooperation may
be consido red the commencement Of the plan for INTRO
ducing wattr into the CITY. The report declared the
subject too important to be entrusted to any private
company, alleging, "1'hl; sach companies had been
more occupied making money out oil their banking
privileges than introducing water hio Tie city
The tan. in 18th street that year constructed,
and the two nsa of pipes laid down. The Plan soon
found many ironds, tELt The horse was exchanged
Tor a steam engine
From lc22 his small tank establishment has caused
the city great saving, and exiirgusled many fire
which oterw Sc would have destroyed much additional
property. And highly hes il been valued that few
years si:cr, and after lie Csoon Water Works was
ccu,mcnced the Corporation erected along side OF II
another Tank, and each succeeding year tic Corpora.