The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1909-08-12
BIG PUMPS
POUR WATER
INTO GARY
Last Detail on Magic City
Water Works System Is
Completed Yesterday; Art
Institute in Chicago
Shows Plant as Ideal.

Gary's 100000 water works is COM
pleted and the great system stands
monument to modern hydraulics.
Yesterday the last detail of the big
plant, with its miles upon miles of
mains and service pipes. it's hundreds
of fire hydrants. its colossal pumps, |
was finished, and every section of the
Magic city is now supplied with the
best quality of water 1t is possible for
Lake Michigan in all this region around
to produce.
$4,000 900 Gallon Capacity.
The great tunnel three miles in
length. one half Of which is on land
leading from the Like shore to the
pumping station, while the remainder
of the hie bore stretches a mile and a
half into Taks Michigan. IS built with
a view Of G4ry's future greatness. Its
capacity il 100000 gallons every
twentv-foar hours, which is many
times thu quantity that can be used by
the Inhabitants OF the Magic City for
many years, even according to the
widest dreams of the most sanguine of
tae loyal sons of Gary. While the ca
pacity of the pumps now installed, is
not equal to taking care OF all the wa
ter tunnel can handle, they are far in
excess of any possibility of present de-
, mands, being four in number and each
having a capacity OFFS, 10000 gallons a
day.
: Pinnt Is Ideal.
A picture of the magnificent struc-
~ =, which houses these pumps, has
:, zen honored with place in the Chi
ago Art institute. as representing all
that is most artistic and at the same
ime practical, in an architectural way
or a building of its character. Ex-
ierts who have come to inspect the
york in all its branches. declare that
compares favorably with anything OF
IS kind in the country, and have been
ose extravaganza in their praise of
J erything pertaining to 1t. The build
: itself is of concrete block, the in
srf rior being of white enamel brick.
hrsAlvord & Burdick of Chicago were
L. Re designers of the water works plant,
4me well as of the unparalleled sewer
Il stem of Gary. Green & Sons had
I sse contract for the distribution work
lss the first subdivision, which con-
II sted Of twenty three miles Of mains,
Hanging from six to thirty in diameter,
Ard distributed within an area of two
kafes square. This part of the system
W d
s located in the alleys in which the
ms are laid. But the original plans.
they applied to this area, do not
CHI sent the water system as it now
"a 8. by any means. The Water com
FGr-1as made a number Of extensions.
2hsrn add greatly to the magnitude
err whole. The original two miles
goxs i or which the first plans were
~sas I'd. embraces that territory
ID bS. the South Shore Interur-
IN railway on the north, the wabash
On the south, Tennessee street on the
east and Fillmore on the west. The
company's extensions take in territory
from the Wabash railroad to the Gary
2Western, and from Broadway to Mad
lson. There is also pipe line In the
lley west of Broadway from the Wa
,ash to Twenty Fourth avenue Will
lydrants connecting Herewith and al
ernatingyon Broadway and Washington
,treets. In the not very distant future
[ is intended to construct another ex.
ansion in the alley lying east o.
broadway. from Fifteenth to Nineteen.
h avenues. In connection with tn,
ntixe gigantic system, there are nu
serous> valves whose purpose it is Il
o way with the necessity of sputtins
ut Of commission any great length.
fspipe at one time, in case of q breal
r othe. difficulty which would cali fol
epairs and the consequent shutting of
the water.
The tunnel which serves as the mai1
rtery for this network of mains. larg,
nd small, has an interior Of six fee
or it's entire three miles of length I
built horseshoe shape, its walls be
lg OF concrete, reinforced and on
lch in thickness. The top Of the crib
ne and one half miles from the shor
ne. is forty-f1ve feet under water, an
lie intake runs down to depth Of a,
iditional forty five feet. making tn
lnnel ninety feet below the surface o
le water. The intake is located eigh
Ties from any possible source Of pol
ton and this fact causes the au
critics to hope for a pure water sup
" for Gary, a thing that no othe
rwn in Lake county. which Is de
sndent upon the lake for its water
enjoys.
The work on the tunnel was starte
in June of 1907 by the Great Lake
tDredge & Dock company Of Chicago
The company had much difficulty I
reaching the desired depth at the be
shafts in the operation. The sinkIn
OF the third shaft proved successful an
vscrk on the tunnel was completed Jul
]. 1909.
While the plant was in process o
construction. the company operate
from wells sunk near the Kirk hotel
OF the four pumps with which tn
present pumping station is equipped
two are for domestic purposes. while tn
other two are for fire purposes TIL
normal pressure is sixty pounds to tn
inch, which equal to that usually EN-
ployed in other towns OF the size o
Gary, in extreme emergencies. In tn
Gary system. however. the limit of III
pressure for fire purposes IS Just double
or 12o pounds to the inch.
The Camden Iron works supplied tn