St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-10-14
The Fire Alarm Wires All Laid in
DOrSett ConduitS.

"Where's that box?" yelled an excited
individual. as he dashed out of a store
and made bee line for the post where
the fire alarm box had h ing for the last
seven OF eight years. 1t was not there.
''Where is it?" he screamed again.
"Right across the street, on that post"
said byStanuer, pointing to where the
little red box sat perched up on an iron
p ost.
The cause for the slight change in
location of some of the fire alarm
boxes is that they have been
wires in the conduits. Every foot
of fire alarm telegraph wire inside of
Fifteenth avenue south and Ninth street
has been buried and instead OF the boxes
being attached to the telephone posts,
which have long been their abiding
places, they Surmount IRON posts about
four feet high standing on the corner of
the Sidewalk, The final work of plac-
ing the wires underground and connect
ing them up was completed last week.
Wires are now laid in conduitS from the
headquarters at Third avenue north and
Second street to Washington avenue;
down Washington avenue to Fifteenth
avenue south; from Fifteenth avenue
south to Fourth street; on Nicollet
and Hennepin avenues, from Ninth
street to the bridge; on Ninth
street, between NicOllet and
Hennepin avenues and on Fourth street,
from Nicollet to Fourth avenue south.
Besides this there are one or two little
spurs, such as the connection between
the engine house on Third street and
Nicollet avenue, from Third street and
Fourth avenue south to Washington,
and from No. engine house to Wash
ington avenue There are about forty
miles of single wire cables, or nearly
seven miles of standard SiX-Wire cables,
laid in the conduits. The wires used
are all insulated copper wires of the
size known as No. IA, and are encased
in lead covering weighing about a
pound to the foot. At every manhole
the cables are spliced, and g plumbers
joint made. The work of laying
the wires has in the main been
done by the fremen, the amount of
money expended for outside help not
exceeding 500. All alarms now come
into headquarters through the under
ground wires, and the system, after
thorough testing. appears to be lust
the thing" if the words of '.Zack'' Nor
risun, superintendent of fire alarm tele-
| graph, mean anything. At each street
corner where box is located an iron
post is set, and the box is placed on top
| OF it, the wires being brought up into
the box inside the post. Altogether
| there are seventeen boxes thus con-
nected. Under the sidewalk at the cor
ner OF Washington and Nicollet avenues
| there is located distribution"
box, as it is called. Every cable in the
city runs into this box, and is then con-
| nected again. This permits the chang
,f aoINl In <0a II, l.
| some accident occur to any line, and at
| the same time affords good point for
! testing. Another point which must be
| taken into consideration when speaking
of this box is, that, should the present
| headquarters be changed, as they will
| be in time, it will not be necessary TO
| tear up the entire system and relay the
| cables. All that will be necessary will
| be to lay cables from the site of the new
| headquarters to this box. and then con-
| meet them up, which can be done with
but little trouble and expense.
The police wires are also under the
| control of the fire department and were
| laid at the same time. They will be
connected some time this week. and
| then, as far as the city is concerned. all
| the wires inside the conduit district will
be under ground. The telephone COM
| pany is now removing its overhead
| wires. and when the North American
and Western Union telegraph COM
| panies can be induced to do the gopher
| act with their wires, the much con-
| demned nuisance OF network of over
| head wires will be at an end. Conduits
ale also laid on Central avenue as far as
| far as Fifth street, but no cables have
as vet been laid. When it is under
| stood that these wires have been laid at
no expense to the city other than the
| cost of the cables and little hired
| work, the public can easily see that the
firemen have something else TO do than
to pose and look pretty.