Richmond daily register. (Richmond, Madison County, Ky.) 1917-1978, 1921-03-16
This CITY BUILT
while YOU WATT
Fourth Largest Town in alabama
Full Grown in One Year.
HAD A MODEL GOVERNMENT
Permanent Settlement Arounl
u. S. Nitrate Plant Presented
Unusual Problems.
BY GhRRET SMITH.

The fourth largest city in Alabama
pcopIed with $4,000 souls Of divers.
races and religions, uprcoted from Il,
scattered communities III ever pal
Of tie United States and Cana,!:
Sprang into being aIm0st ovcrni@i:
around the great new government an.
mOnium nitrate plant Down on III.
open cotton and corn fields 1T Muse
Shoals on the Tennessee River d;lriI.
1e last year of the World War. IL:
was Il problem in city building, in,:nie
ipal government and community w".
fare that has seldom been eqHailp
and the success of its solution IL.
never been eXcelled.
The Job was in the hands Of the :
Nitrates Corporation which had bee:
organized under the direction OF IT.
Ordnance Department To build plan
and city at Muscle Shoals. EARLY !
January, 1913, this new town ilad
few temporary buildings and Il pop
lation of SEQ. This had jumped by Il;
middle of August to more than 1876,
a population multiplied by 20 in
months.
in the management of the ne'
towns and army environments ta:
spraGg up during the war The Ole
time evils that attended the growth T.
mushroom cities have been aV0ide,
Gy the applica ton OF modern welfar
systems. But nowhere were c0nd.
lions more difficult than at AiuscI,
Shoals. Here was a malarial rc@io,
threatened at the same time witt
other deadly disease epidemicS. Trans
pOrtation was lacking. No nearb
tabor was available and the genera
tabor shortage was at its most acut
stage. Costs of labor and supple
were leaping over night. Furthermore
Muscle Shoals differed from all III,
other new war towns inasmuch as !.
was to be permanent.
New Government Devised.
The mana gers. besides city govern
ment, had 10 handle the entire retail
business of the town. A camp super
SisOr'S department was put iii charg1
Of the maintenance of all buildings
fire protection and sanitation. Thu
camp supervisor looked after every
ding from the mending of a lock t.
the remodeling of groups OF building:
or laying sewers or steam mains. Fo
the bachelor contingent comInissar..
department. was necessary.
The business departmet managed,
the stores. canteenS, motion picture
theaters, pool parlors, tailor shops
dry cleaning establishments, barbeI
shops, newsstands, q hotel, Il vegetable
farm and hog farm where 1000 hogf
we're raised on the wastes from eat
ing places. 1t maintained a slaughter
house where these hogs were put
through the regular packing house
course. 1t operated a laundry which
cleaned 7,493 pieces a day. Then
there was a real estate department
that rented and managed the family
quarters and a housing department
which assigned to quarters everybody
excepting the families.
Under separate jurisdiction from its
community director were the police.
The health department, in charge Of
4 physician from New York city,
started with a small Office in one Of
the temporary buildings. and was
coon full grown and splendidly
equipped. Conditions were favorable
70 disease. The winter was the
severest on record In northern Ala
baIna. The men were compelled to
work either in deep snow or mud above
their knees. AS a result pneumonia
epidemic developed among the Negroes
that spring. Later In the xeey 8