Category Archives: HISTORY

One Thing Leads to Another

12 Friday Jan 2018

Posted by in Baltimore, HISTORY, Sewage History

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Sometimes the requests I receive for historical information have nothing to do with Water and Sewage. A friend from the Pratt Library and then one from the Baltimore City Archives both sent me request for information on a 1990 article in the Maryland Historical Society Magazine. The article concerned rye whiskey made in Maryland. Accompanying the article was this photograph.

The caption underneath states:  “At Wolfe and Aliceanna streets, about 1910 (Actual 1907), a Phillip Lobe Co. vehicle speeds barrels of Ram’s Horn whiskey to saloons. Photograph courtesy Baltimore Public Works Museum.” The person seeking the information wrote me this: I am a relative of Phillip Lobe and am writing an article about his business for a national bottle collector’s magazine. I would love to use this photo in my article as well as getting a nice, clean version of the photo if possible.
Could you help me with that pursuit?
Sincerely,
Susan Adler Davis
Since the photo came from the DPW Museum, of which I have been documenting, I was able to find a much clearer photograph. On the side of the wagon to the right, Rams Horn, it has written; Lobe and Son W. Pratt Street. The caption in my notes states: SWC 2. Wolf and Aliceanna Sts. showing gutter plates and openings.

While searching for the above, I came across some other photographs that I forgot about. And this is how my mind wanders, from one thing to another!

From the same time period, you can see the obstacles that the water department faced in the installation of mains and drains. Caption in notes for the above: SWC 3. Charles and Saratoga Sts. Obstructions in trench. (Storm Water Contract #3)

Another concern while installing mains was trolleys zipping by: SWC 1. Showing excavation at North and Madison Aves. 

Of course there was always a crowd watching: SWC 3. Saratoga St above Gay showing obstructing pipes and conduit.

More pipes: SWC 2. South St at Pratt showing nest of pipes encountered in SW trench.

There was always the possibility of adjacent homes crashing down on the workers: SW87. Belair Rd extension, N of Hamilton, showing rock condition.

And you also had the placing of wood pipe connections to concrete ones: SWC 2. 62” wooden stave pipe at outlet of Light St drain. (Other marking: Showing barrel construction of outlet).

But one of the bigger problems was when you had to go through someone’s house or business: Reinforced concrete sewers through D.E. Foote Canning Factory, Woolford’s Dock, foot of Castle St.

More pipes to work around: SWC 3. Double 50”x69” storm water drain in Market Place at Baltimore, looking towards outlet.

So my mind wanders more times than not, but it is always fun and a pleasure to research these sort of things! I look forward to reading Ms Davis’ article.

Montebello and the Panama-Pacific Exposition 1915

22 Friday Dec 2017

Posted by in Baltimore, Dams, HISTORY, water history

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Finishing up documenting a Water Board Minutes of Meetings Journal, I came across a couple of interesting tidbits concerning the connection between Baltimore and San Francisco. In 2015 we both celebrated a 100 year anniversary. Them celebrating the 1915 World’s Fair and us the building and opening of the Montebello Filtration Plant. The connection being this – February 11, 1915 It was resolved by the Water Board to send the Filtration and Dam models to the Panama-Pacific Exposition. According to the model itself, it was completed in December, 1914.

Here is a lantern slide copy of the model. If you visited Montebello during our 100th anniversary and took a tour, you would have saw the actual model.

The lighting in the hallway is terrible with all the reflections. It was too dark with the lights out and too reflective with a flash.

Here is the nameplate data on the model.

Along with this one. I did a search for information on this company but could not find much. And something else I could not find is – where is the model of Loch Raven?

Howell’s did a pretty good job replicating the filtration plant.

The plant as it looked in the 1920s.

I don’t know about anybody else, but I’d like to put little people in here…and maybe Godzilla!!

Showing what the waste lake looked like.

And the detail of the outfall structure.

The waste lake dam and outfall structure being built. Notice the date – October 1914. This means that the model was built conceptually, like an artist’s rendition of something before it is there.

Of course, one research item always leads to more.

In 1884 models of the substructures were built and placed in each gatehouse, Loch Raven and Lake Montebello, to give visitors a better understanding as to how each works. (What happened to them?)
February 6, 1893 the Water Board resolved to send a display to the Columbian Exposition. This was 21 years before the Howell Microcosms were built. so what did they send?
November 18, 1935 letter from M.P. McNulty, he has just completed creating a model of the Loch Raven dams and inquires as to the dates the real dams were built. Small replies that the lower dam was built between 1875 and 1881 by Fenton and Jones, Contractor. The upper dam was constructed by King-Ganey starting in 1912 and finished in 1914 and then raised between 1920 to 1922 by Whiting-Turner. Attached to the letter was a newspaper clipping which shows a picture of the model. (This clipping is at the City Archives)
December 31, 1952 letter from William Eichbaum Scale Models informing Hopkins that they will build a new, Montebello Plant model in the existing case for $1,000.00. This was not done.
And for what appears to be a wonderful book – San Francisco’s Jewel City: The Panama-Pacific International Exposition of 1915 by Laura Ackley

 

 

Mathew Brady Photo Help

08 Friday Dec 2017

Posted by in HISTORY, Photography

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While going through some old books in Kathy’s basement, I came across this card. Can anyone help me identify who this is? 

I cannot read the name on the left, but underneath it appears to say “Major General”. On the right side it may say “3rd Army ? and underneath possibly Army of (the) Potomac. 

Here is the reverse side of the card. I searched as much as I could using key words at different Official Brady sites but came up empty. Thanks.

Druid Lake a.k.a Lake Chapman

17 Friday Nov 2017

Posted by in engineering, HISTORY, water history

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From the Water Engineer’s office – drawings and history of Druid Lake. A Google search will give various histories of the lake. This history comes from the actual Water Engineer’s reports to the Mayor at that time:

1863 Druid Lake (Lake Chapman): City authorized construction of lake and reservoirs in Druid Hill Park and the land adjoining. Also authorized to lay pipe from Hampden Reservoir or from the conduit to a reservoir or reservoirs within the park. Heavy rains had caused the Jones Falls water to be muddy, hence the need to construct Druid Lake. Work started on March 7, 1864

Although the writing on this drawing is hard to read, from what I could read it states: 1869, Cross section through [pipes?]. Effluent and Influent [?] Lake Chapman ^ Druid Lake December 2[?] 1869[?] What I like about this is that it is the first drawing that I have seen where Druid Lake was called Lake Chapman.

1867 Druid Lake (Lake Chapman): Completed Lake Chapman, 429,000,000 gallons, capable of holding a supply of water equal to 40 days of consumption. Lake has nominally the same elevation as Hampden Reservoir, but is usually about 5 feet lower.

1868 Druid Lake (Lake Chapman): March 30, Res. No. 111, changed name of Lake Chapman to Druid Lake.

Another hard to decipher drawing: W. Bollman(?). Balto. Jule(?) 1870. Grating, Gate Stands, Stems and Screen for screen well at Druid Lake Reservoir.

1870 Druid Lake: The inside portion of the Druid Lake dam was completed in 1868 except for the remaining top 30 feet of the required elevation, and had remained unfinished during the year 1869. Work on Druid Lake resumed on May 2, 1870. The Druid Lake Park Reservoir is completed and water is first let. Druid Lake has a storage capacity of 493 million gallons, but only 429 million gallons to be available for City use. This equates to 40 days of water consumption which would allow ample time for Lake Roland to settle after the heaviest rains. The extreme water depth at the foot of the dam is to be 65 feet. The extreme water depth at the upper end of the dam is to be 20 feet.

Druid, Mt. royal and Hampden Reservoir were all connected through various series of pipes. In 1898 (for year ending 1897) it is reported that the water conduit from Lake Roland to Hampden Reservoir is a brick conduit, and the water is then delivered from Hampden Reservoir to Druid Lake by means of four 30-inch cast-iron pipes.

Photo of valve vault at embankment.

From the Water Engineer’s report to the Mayor – Hoen lithograph.

Another drawing of the lake. Looking close to the upper left I believe that was the keeper’s cottage. To the right is the High Service Reservoir Pump Station.

The cottage at Druid. 1873. Philip Walsh, contractor.

The stable for the cottage.

Not sure of this drawing from 1902. It is saying that the lake is 118′ deep?? An earlier report puts it at 65′.

Another 1902 drawing.

Looking across Druid Lake in 1925.

Building Montebello Filters and Loch Raven Dam

12 Thursday Oct 2017

Posted by in Archives, HISTORY, water history

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I am now in the process of documenting Water Board minutes from 1912-1919, Baltimore City. Over the course of blogging water history, some readers had asked information concerning relatives that may have worked on the New Dam at Loch Raven and/or constructing the Filtration Plant at Montebello. These ledgers have list of employees and their addresses and in some cases, their titles and pay rates. If you think this may be you, send me their names and I will try to look up that info. Keep in mind this is for the above dates. Once I am finished documenting, these books are going into the archives…

Drawing Loch Raven Dam

17 Thursday Aug 2017

Posted by in Baltimore, HISTORY, water history

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It seems that everytime someone asks me to find something for them, I find a lot more undocumented stuff. While researching information concerning the properties at Ashland, which is Northwest of the Loch Raven Dam, Baltimore, Md., I came upon a full scale drawing of the dam. I had posted a few years ago, one of my favorite photographs:

This is the photographer’s studio showing the artist’s rendition of what the dam would look like when construction is completed in 1922. All the supplies for developing the film/glass plates are on the shelves.

Later I would find a lantern slide of just the drawing.

Yesterday I found a colorized drawing. It is fairly beat up. So glad I was able to scan it.

Electrical Survey

20 Thursday Jul 2017

Posted by in Baltimore, engineering, HISTORY

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This afternoon I will be giving a tour to a group of electrical consultants. They want to come up with new ways to save the City money by cutting back on our electrical use. Every time there is a new administration, new “Offices” and Bureaus are created. To prove their worth for their new job and new title, they come up with these new major plans for the City. Actually, there is nothing new about it. This will be the fourth or fifth time this has happened. Once in the 80s it was decided to turn 1/2 the lights out in the hallways and filter areas. Personnel complained that they couldn’t see, so they turned the lights back on, which in turn, maintenance then removed the bulbs. Just a few years ago they (paid consultants) came up with the idea to switch out all lights with LED bulbs. That definitely was not going to be cost saving.

I started looking through some old files and came across these Electrical Commission photographs from the 1920s:

Electrical Commission office for operations, maintenance and construction. 

On the wall to the left of the first photo was this photograph. It was in bad shape when it was removed from the wall and placed in storage.

The commission’s garage and work area was destroyed by fire. Looking thru the building on the left you can see the burnt autos.

 

More damage from fire.

Work still continues despite the damage.

Clay duct banks. These were used to rebuild the garages…

…as can be seen here.

A new fleet of vehicles while the rebuilding continues in the background.

Swimming Bathing Drowning

06 Thursday Jul 2017

Posted by in Baltimore, HISTORY, water history

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For your summer reading pleasure:

1916: A 16,000 gallon swimming pool was being built next to Lake Roland. July 19, 1917 letter from Water Engineer Walter Lee to the Baltimore County Commissioners asking that they police the area around Lake Roland as it has been reported that 10-15 persons bathe there every day. They reply that the city should get their own men to do it. June 9, 1923 letter requesting permission for the L’Hirondelle Club to be allowed to swim in Lake Roland. March 1924 newspaper clipping on drowning of boy, thirteen, in Lake Roland. The city investigation tried to place blame on the Pennsylvania Rail Road, who they say had some timbers floating about, which the boy fell off of as he used them as a raft. The PRR said it was a contractors fault, who used the timbers for some work they were doing. They also note that the boys were trespassing at the time of the incident. October 10, 1917 letter from Walter Lee to Mayor Preston notifying him of the intent of two ladies from Hampden, asking that a swimming pool be constructed on the property of the Hampden reservoir. They were also soliciting for his honor to pass a city ordinance in which they were to propose. Lee asks that if this happens, would the mayor turn the property over to Park Board? June 20, 1922 letter from Megraw to Christhilf Construction and other contractors, asking that they put in a modest bid (For charities sake) for the construction of a swimming pool at West Park (New name of Hampden Reservoir area) March 22, 1923 memo concerning the creation of a swimming pool between the upper and lower dams complete with toilet, shower facilities and a snack shack. June 20, 1924 letter from Armstrong to Siems concerning the swimming in the waters between the dams. He says it is prohibited. June 20, 1926 letter from the Baltimore Federation of Labor to Bernard Siems concerning the city using non-union workers to build the Druid Park Swimming Pool. On the bottom of this memo is a union logo: Specify UNION LABOR, have the job done Right!

Druid Park Swimming Pool

July 11, 1927 letter from Wolman to Wieghardt, “…when the pool was inspected by us a couple years ago we were informed that the Hampden Reservoir contained filtered water…the Hampden reservoir obtains all its water from the Jones Falls. In other words, the pool has been obtaining a completely untreated water from a relatively dangerous source, which has been abandoned for all municipal purposes for over 10 years…” July 14, 1927 letter refers to the Hampden Reservoir area as Roosevelt Park instead of West Park. June 24, 1930 memo from Rost to the Police Commissioner asking that the police stop the boys from climbing over the fence and swimming in the Montebello Plant II filtered water reservoir. 1932 Pools listed are: Druid Hill Colored Pool, Druid Hill White Pool, Gwynns Falls Park Pool, Carroll Park Wading Pool, Riverside Park Pool, Patterson Park Pool, and Clifton Park Pool.

Clifton Park Pool

June 10, 1933 police report on a ten year old who went swimming with three other youths and he drowned. The others left him and told no one. July 18, 1935 request from the National Guard for a shooting range at Loch Raven. Small does not want this. August 15, 1935 Brigadier General Washington Bowie writes Small back stating, “I note what you state in regard to the interference with the recreational purposes. If you had been with me last Sunday…when I saw three negroes in bathing suits swimming back and forth near where I wish to locate the range, or on a previous occasion when I found a half-dozen white boys swimming…I think you would find a rifle range more desirable than such recreational use…the portion outlined on your print is constantly used by both negroes and whites for swimming. The rifle range would at least make this unpopular.”  Bowie then goes over Small’s head to Crozier. Crozier agrees with Small. A few months later, the Mayor agrees with Small and Crozier. June 14, 1938 list of names of swimmers at Loch Raven. Officer Goetz is to arrest these people and take them to Towson jail if they are caught again swimming in the reservoir. June 14, 1945 memo from A. Bailey to L. Small concerning kids swimming in the waste lake, “The boys in the Northwood neighborhood…are using it as a swimming pool…groups up to about thirty…during the daylight and night hours, sometimes as late as 12pm. They have been warned a number of times by various employees of this division only to be cursed for their troubles…radio police have been summoned but made no attempt to stop this practice…I talked with two patrolmen while eight to ten boys were in the lake and asked that they talk to the boys…they promised they would but walked to the opposite side of the lake and blew their whistles instead. Yesterday, June 13, there were even a greater number of swimmers than any time previous, so I contacted these boys personally and told them that it was my orders to have them arrested…they paid little attention to what I said…placed twelve ‘No Trespassing’ signs up. By 9pm all signs but one were removed and destroyed. At 10pm, a great commotion was heard, a group of three boys were in swimming and one had gotten into trouble and was so far gone when they rescued him, that it was necessary to apply artificial respiration…police called and all three were taken to Sydenham Hospital. The police, at least the patrolmen, do not seem to want to cooperate with us and make no attempt to put a stop to the practice of swimming. (We) could drain the lake and keep it drained in the summer months…parents may then be willing to stop their kids, but judging from what I have seen of these people, I do not believe they have enough control over their children to prevent them from doing anything that they wish to do. Child delinquency for this section is bad, if not worse than the average for Baltimore City. August 23, 1945 memo from Bailey to Strohmeyer about unwanted visitors to the plant. Young men swimming in the waste lake, one almost drowned. Two, three year olds, alone, swimming in waste lake. One threw a fit and refused to leave. The police were called. Two teenagers running through Plant II and when told to leave, went and got their father who dared anyone to stop them from coming into the plant. An undated memorandum: “Yesterday afternoon … three young men found swimming in the Balancing Reservoir at Loch Raven in their birthday clothes.”

Gwynn’s Falls Pool – the overflow goes right into the stream, adding more pollution.

The largest of the pools back then.

Saving History, One Piece at a Time

16 Friday Jun 2017

Posted by in Baltimore, HISTORY, water history

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Anyone that has been following my blog will remember my writing about a few construction projects that are water related. Such as the new buildings at Loch Raven, the contractor busting a hole in the ten foot conduit that supplies water to Baltimore, another contractor digging up the foundation to an old pumping station, the attempts to save the Clifton Gate House, the Roland Tower, the residence at Montebello, etc.

When I first wrote about the work along Loch Raven, I wrote about the house and buildings they were tearing down. After being notified of this project, I went to investigate and saw a bunch of metal signs. Not necessarily ultra historic, but a part of Baltimore’s Water Supply History nonetheless. I was able to retrieve from the contractor, 2 of the 8 that were there. The other six were taken by a company the reuses old building materials.

Here is one of the eight signs. This all happened a few months ago. The other day I received an email. One of those courtesy type ones from the big bosses downtown, trying to keep me in the history loop. Well, I was dumbfounded when I read the email. It just said FYI and had the attached photo along with two other attachments.

I couldn’t believe what I was seeing! This photo is of the marble plaque that was in the original 1881 gate house to the first Loch Raven Dam!!! i always wondered what happened to this thing.

The third attachment is a quote, only partially shown to protect the parties involved. Two marble plaques? The quote went on to say that the other one was dated 1887!! Holy crap! Only one water works related to Loch Raven was built at that time and that was the Clifton Gate House!! My eyes were playing tricks on me!! This couldn’t be!

But wait! How did this company get these things and were they really trying to sell them back to the City? City property??!! I don’t think I ever cussed in an email to one of the bosses downtown but I just couldn’t contain myself “What the hell! This is City property. How can they charge us for something that is ours?!” I suggested he gets the Environmental Police involved to check this out. If not, tell them I will give them $500 and we won’t press charges. He said he turned it over to the EP. And he did. Today I received a copy of the investigative report stating that these items were picked up by accident and would be returned to the City. And they were this afternoon!!

More on this later so stay tuned! (I want to go into a lengthy bit of comment on what we should learn from this…)

Loch Raven Property Part 2

14 Wednesday Jun 2017

Posted by in Baltimore, Dams, HISTORY, water history

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Back in December I posted information about a house that was being torn down to make way for a new Loch Raven Reservoir Maintenance building(s). Some questions came up as to who owned the house originally and how long had it been there. Just recently my blog had been read and I have been in communication with two brothers that lived there. Their grandfather was the superintendent of the property from the fifties to the eighties.

I found this photo and the accompanying info sheet on the property.

Back in 1932 a handyman lived there named William Butcher. The brother’s names are Joe and Jim Greenwood. Their grandfather’s name was William Farrell. They are going to try and find some photographs of when they lived there.

In my records is this house, occupied by Howard Finnerty.

As can be seen, this house was 1500 feet south of the dam, which puts it just north of the Butcher property.

Enlarging this photo from about 1914, you can see both houses to the left.

Another interesting house adjacent to the property was occupied by John Chenowith.

According to this record, the house was 2200 feet from the dam which kind of puts it just south of Shanghai Run, on the hill. I did find a photo that LOOKS like this house from 1914 but I am not sure.

Here is some of what the brothers said about growing up on Loch Raven:

• Jim Greenwood said: June 12, 2017 at 4:15 pm
According to family history, the home was built in stages sometime before the Civil War. The kitchen section was built first, then the center section, then finally the large section up front, including the porch. It was later bought by the city.
The house was always occupied by the Superintendent up until 1980 when my grandfather retired. Legend has it that General Harry Gilmor spent time in the house during his adventures in the area.
Many, many stories. I remember evacuating the house during Agnes, and ice skating below the lower dam in the winter, and hearing about Chuck Thompson at the fishing center (a celebrity!) In the 60s we’d get trapped in the house as the road became gridlocked with folks cruising in their cars and flat lands below the dam became a big parking lot/beach party every weekend. In the mid-seventies they planted trees below the lower damn and closed the road on the weekends and the hippies were replaced by bicyclists.
Despite the beautiful photos, the area between the dams was usually a mud pit with a stream of water trickling down the middle.
My grandfather kept a close eye on the place, and we always enjoyed him shouting from the front porch at people getting into things they shouldn’t get into.

• Joe Greenwood said: June 13, 2017
I think Chuck Thompson came to one of the crab feasts. Several barrels of steamed crabs from Hale’s for the then crazy sum of $100 each.
Winter was always fun for us with the salt trucks going in and out and never understood why our grandfather hated snow. Greatest sled hill in the world up behind the pumps and the old foundation up on the hill. We somewhat had the run of the place since all the workers knew us and we would despoil Uncle Bill’s penny jar and walk to Sanders’ at the juncture of Cromwell Valley. If nothing else, we could check on the dead cat along the way and occasionally didn’t catch fish off the little dam while the hippies jumped off it. It was always fascinating to talk to Clarence, who tended to come on duty in the evening to patrol and was missing a finger and was always happy to show us his pistol.
We did get in a little trouble like accidentally throwing kerosene on the workers’ wood stove.

So now the question comes up! Should this house have been torn down before doing a thorough investigation? Gilmor??

This is a historic marker up off of Mountain Road, not too far from Loch Raven. Which brings up another question – since a lot of people are so hell bent on erasing history, by removing Confederate statues – should all the Highway Markers also be removed?

Thanks to Joe and Jim Greenwood for your stories. This is what makes my job so interesting.