AN IMPROVED METHOD OF SUPPLYING SEA WATER TO TOWNS
Year: 1885

page_text: I HERBERT FRANCIS WILCOX of 30, Percy St., Newcastle-on-Tyne Secretary to a
Company do hereby declare the nature of my invention for AN IMPROVED METHOD
OF SUPPLYING SEA WATER TO TOWNS, to be as follows:-
There are in the United Kingdom, as well as in many foreign Countries, many
Towns and Cities lying at a considerable distance from the Sea Coast, but upon
Navigable Rivers, where the use of sea water for bathing, or other purposes, is
practically unknown, in consequence of the prohibitive cost of supplying the water
in the only manner heretofore known, or adopted, namely by laying pipes to the
Sea Coast, and pumping the water therefrom.
The object of the present invention is to supply such Towns, Cities, and other
places, with sea water, by means of iron tanked Steam Vessels, provided with screw
engines, which shall be capable of being converted into pumping engines, or with
separate pumping engines, whereby the water may be pumped through pipes, laid
to the River side, to any Reservoir, or other place where it may be required.
The Vessel is to be provided with sluice intake pipes, large enough to allow her
to fill rapidly at sea, and pumps made applicable for pumping her full after the
water level is reached through the sluice pipes.
The foregoing idea is also intended to include similar operations by means of
towing Vessels, intended to be pumped out by stationary engines on shore.
The Vessels may be built of any suitable design, and of such size as may meet
the requirements in each case.

page_text: I, HERBERT FRANCIS WILCOx of No. 2 St. James Street, Newcastle on Tyne
Secretary to a Public Company do hereby declare the nature of my invention
for SUPPLYING SEA WATER TO TOWNS and in what manner the same is. to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:
The object of my improvement is to supply Sea Water to Towns and Cities at a
distance from the Sea but situated upon Navigable Rivers in a manner vastly
cheaper than any other that has heretofore been adopted or attempted to be adopted
and of a purer quality than can be obtained by any other means without resort to
filtration.
I propose to accomplish this by means of vessels (navigable) built of iron or steel
' provided with suitable tanks for carrying the water in or fitted with water tight
lower decks in such manner that the outer skin of the vessel and the said water
tight deck shall form the necessary tank. The vessels shall be provided with
Engines and Boilers for self propulsion and shall further be provided with Steam
Pumps fitted on board in suitable positions for pumping the Sea Water through
pipes laid to the Waters edge, to any Reservoir, Swimming Bath or other destination
where it may be required.
In the bottom or sides of the Vessel will be sluices or apertures, which can be
opened and closed at will by slides worked from the upper deck, by means of which
the Vessel may fill herself with Sea Water up to the Sea level, after which the
pumps which will be made available for this purpose also, will be employed to fill
her up to the extent of her carrying capacity.
In suitable positions Air tubes will be fitted into the top of the Tank through
which Air may pass during the processes of filling and emptying the Tank or
Tanks, the same acting also as a guage to indicate when the Tank is full.
The connection between the discharging pipes and the pipes on Shore will be
effected by means of flexible tubes, or by iron or other pipes in lengths with two or
more joints in such manner that the Vessel may rise and fall with the tides without
injury to the connection.
The pumping Engines may either be separate and distinct from the propelling
Engines or the latter may be made convertible into pumping Engines by dis-
connecting the Propeller.
Under certain conditions I may prefer to use Vessels which are not self
propelling and which have not pumps fitted on board in which case the vessels will
be towed and the sea water pumped out of them by an Engine fitted on shore or on
board a vessel other than the water carrying vessel.
•
In order that my invention may be properly understood I hereunto append one
sheet of explanatory drawings to be hereinafter referred to, similar letters of
reference indicating similar parts:-
Fig. 1 represents a longitudinal sectional elevation of a vessel showing the
compartments a, a a in which the sea water is carried.
Fig. 2 represents the plan of the same vessel.
Fig. 3 represents the midship cross section of the same vessel,

page_text: b, b, are sluices, in the vessels sides, which may be large enough to allow the
vessel to fill herself at sea rapidly, these sluices are worked by rods & wheels from
the deck. bb¹ are sluices between the tanks, c is an overflow and escape pipe for
indicating the level of the water in the tanks. After the tanks are full up to sea
level they can be further filled up by the pumps p. p. through the suction pipes 8. 8.
and the discharge pipes ď ď.
The tanks are emptied by the pumps p. p. before mentioned through the suction
pipes and the discharge pipes d. d. proper valves being arranged on the pumps
and pipes so that the pumps may draw either from the sea or tanks and discharge
either on deck or into the tanks.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention of "an Improved Method of Supplying Sea Water to Towns" and in
what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I claim is
The use and construction of Navigable Vessels fitted with water tanks or com-
partments by means of which pure sea water may be obtained and supplied for the
use of the inhabitants of Towns situated at a distance from the sea but upon
navigable rivers substantially as is herein before described.
L 3
1000