Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1905-01-28
DROVE LAST SPIKE
Big DAM AT TURKEY ISLAND HAS
BEEN REPAIRED AND RE-
BUILT.

Frame Work Is Entirely Completed
and Only Some Filling In Vet Re-
mains to be Done - Pumping Sta
tlon Almost compIete-cabIes Up.
The last spike which marked the
completion Of the big dam which dur
ing the past summer, fall and winter
has been erected ca the west side OF
Turkey island by the public Water
company, was driven last Monday at
ternoon at 2:30 O'Clock by Superin-
tendent James Winans. No official Ger.
emony marked the occasion and the
spike was not a silver or a goldone but
a silver dime was placed at the head
Of the spike and sacrificed in honor Of
the event.
The break in this dam occurred dur
ing the big floods In the spring of 1908
and continued to get worse until the
middle of that summer when the
breach became so large that the sup
ply of water for the city was entirely
lost. During the fall the construction
of the Golfer dam about s%eventy-five
yards above the broken dam was be-
gun and after several months and the
expenditure of several thousand dol
lars, vas completed. This was built
out of willows, stones, sand and dirt.
The Golfer dam was built considera-
bly, higher than 1t was intended to
build the main dam. After its com
pletion during the early part of last
e. II ~ ~vo,1, 80 vo~otr;-r &Lo 1,NooL
in the main dam, a break Of about
ninety feet, was taken up and has
been rapidly pushed. Not only has
but the whole frame work of the dam
is entirely new from one bank to the
other.
Filling Yet to Be Done.
There still remains considerable fill
ing in to be done on the up stream
side Of the dam before the work will
be considered entirely finished. A
track has been laid from the shore
down upon The dam and two small
fiat cars are used by the laborers to
haul the stone which is to serve as
the ballast and give weight and sta.
bility to the structure. Many hundred
loads of gravel, taken from a bar be.
low the dam are yet to be hauled and
dumped on the up stream side.
Other Work Being Done.
The. extent of the work being done
and contemplated by the public Water
company at Turkey island Is becom-
ing o evident each day. The>well
which was sunk in a search for a sup
ply of pure water has been completed
and walled up. A long filter, gallery
leads out from it for perhaps $50 feet.
The pumping station Is almost COM
pleted. A few days more work will
put the structure under roof. This is
a brick structure about twenty-four
, feet square. In il, is a heavy steel
water tight tank eighteen fet square,
and fourteen feet deep, sunk SO that
the bottom is below the level of the
surface OF the river in low water.
In this water tight tank the two
pumps which are to be located at the
station are to be erected. They are
to be placed in this tank and on the
low level SO that in case the dam
ever breaks again water can be
pumped from the river level and the
city not suffer a water famine.
Beside the pumping station is a high
water tower, used to equalize the pres.
sure and to form a storage place.
: When the water rises to a certain
, height in this the current is automati.
: cally shut off from the dynamo that
: runs the pumps and the pumping
!. ceases.
: A Sedimentation Basin.
To form an additional supply of
. water a s~edimentation basin is to be
built, probably below the dixie which
runs across the island. This will be
> aboute150 feet by so feet and so built
= that the water will enter the end
away from the pumping station and
be drawn from the end nearest the
pumps. The purpose of this is to al
low the dirt to settle in the waite, be
fore it is pumped into the pipes lead
. ing down town.
Cables Are Up.
y The cables which are to carry the
current from the down town pumping
station to the Turkey island station
, have been swung on the poles and are
: ready for use. Wires for a telephone
are also on the poles and telephone
= communication is to be established a
~ once.
s Mil Build House.
y A small residence is to be built fol
the Turkey island station guard. L
will be erected near the pumping sta
q ton. All the Improvements at the sta
d ton have been placed above the higl
water mark and a large space abou
the improvements is to be filled il
X and a grass plat established. Mr.. Wi
mans also suggests that he is goins
q to make an effort to secure the pro
posed summer Chautauqua location
near the pumping station.
A Death Blow to Malaria. .
FJactric Ritters hill and hvno1 mo