Tag Archives: water history

Research, Photos and Copyrights part 2

03 Friday Mar 2017

Posted by in Baltimore, Photography, water history

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Over the past two weeks I have been asked to research information for a couple of projects going on in the water department. Not really my job but I love doing it. Mostly it is looking up contract drawings and old photos, such as this one:

This was sent to me by an architect that is going to rebuild this old pumping station and she wanted some background information. The building no longer looks like this – the roof is missing. By the caption on it, this photo belongs to the Maryland Historical Society, but how is it that I have the original photograph?

Below is an example of a photo that is in another collection, copyrighted to them, but I have the original Glass Plate Negative

I found this one in the Hughes Collection at the University of Baltimore. Interesting about this is the original writing is missing, as will be seen later.

Another Hughes Collection

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And then there are the photographs that people have in their private collection/scrapbooks. The writing on these match the handwriting of the photographer who took the photo and marked it. It is different than those in the Hughes collection.

All this is to say that history is history and should be shared. I just get pissed when people try to charge for these photos. I recently talked with someone who mentioned he has Baltimore Sun photos. I also have quite a few, but was curious about their continued sales on both Ebay and various websites. The Sun sold their collection to the Tribune who sold it to another company who apparently sold to a place called Digital Fortress. I went on their site and saw that they had photos of ones that I had, that the Tribune told me, mine were originals and would never be reproduced again?? I wrote them and asked and this new company says they sure enough sell reproductions that I could even buy on canvas all the way up to 20″ x 30″ !!! WTF – I might as well just take mine and go to Walmart!

Who really owns these pics??!!

Lewis M Keizer Farm

24 Friday Feb 2017

Posted by in HISTORY, water history

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I was called up to Loch Raven today because the contractor punched a hole through the ten foot water supply conduit, but that is a another story for another time. A lot of finger pointing going on so I should stay quiet for now…

Anyway, while up there one of the laborers approached me and asked if I was the history guy and did I want to see something? Ok. He showed me the below stone:

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This is a nice sized marker (I hope it’s not part of a grave marker!) I recognized the name from some research I had done. So I did a quick look to see what I could find. I asked two of the workers there to load it onto my truck for me. Below are 2 photos of the old farm in 1921.

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This was when the city was buying up all the property around the Gunpowder Falls for the watershed, to raise the dam.

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It was a nice farm and the city didn’t tear it down, instead they used it as can be seen in the below excerpts:

1880 record of land acquisition and plat.
October 19, 1922 letter from assistant engineer Browne to Loch Raven resident engineer Allen, “…Megraw here today…you were to appoint a watchman for the Keiser property…a man who is now employed by Keiser known as Arc [Tracry]. Please permit me to tell you that this man has a (?) rep in this vicinity…he is a common thief. He has also deserted his wife and is living openly here in a city house with another woman…” October 23, 1922 letter, marked at top “Confidential Department Business” from assistant engineer Browne to Loch Raven Resident Engineer Allen, “I wish to advise you that [darkey] on Keiser property is about to move some property from such place during next day or so.”
November 6, 1922 memo from assistant Engineer Brown to Resident Engineer Allen, “The negro Henderson, former farm hand for Mr. Keiser, has visited this property and endeavored to start a row here. All due to his not moving his things…he comes and takes what he wants…need some direction from you as to what to do.”
January 23, 1928 letter to Armstrong from Rost, “Kindly permit Doctor Stuart Cassard to inspect the Keiser property (Near Phoenix, Loch Raven watershed). April 21, 1928 request from Girls Vocational School for tours of both Loch Raven and Montebello. July 3, 1928 letter, “To Whom It May Concern, This letter gives authority to bearer, Mr. G.S. Koller…and party to use the grounds of the Keiser property…for an outing. The request for this permission was endorsed by Mr. McKeldin, secretary to Mayor Broening.” October 10, 1928 another letter giving permission to inspect Keiser property, including the mansion house.
A different Keizer farm but a head scratcher never the less: May 17, 1948 letter from Fenwick Keyser to Small: Becoming involved with such people is a profitless occupation. They would only retaliate by harming my cattle, my dogs, or setting fire to farm buildings. All of the neighbors who own their homes around me are sober, industrious people. We are all on the best of terms. We do not shoot each other’s dogs or heap abuse on each other. I have tried to get along with your tenants. A few months ago I rounded up the escaped goats owned by the renter in the old Kiser place. He replied by killing our pet cat a few weeks later.

Nice history! But as can be seen in the 1928 note, the property was at Phoenix so what was this marker doing where the laborer found it? Eight miles away as the crow flies? A Google search also shows that Lewis Keizer had 3 patents for engine carburetors.

Hiking and History

21 Tuesday Feb 2017

Posted by in Baltimore, Hiking, HISTORY

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Kathy just loves it when we go on hikes and I fill her head with a bunch of useless information! Went to Loch Raven Saturday since it was so nice out – looking for eagles.

Before the eagles, we saw this guy trying to hide from us.

I guess we saw about 4-5 different eagles. This one was trying to hide too.

Kathy has known that I always wanted to go to the other side of the dams (in all my years hiking, I’ve never been there), so she grabs up Molly and starts heading across the rocks.

Looking for more eagles.

Top of the east side of the old dam. Across the way are the gate house valves.

Next we headed towards the newer dam, which actually underneath is a 100 year old dam.

Look! An Eagle! Damn – too slow on the shutter!

Here is the same dam in the 1970s – it was falling apart really bad. Looking close you can see a circular cap on the lower face.

When they refinished the face of the dam, the round hole became square. It was locked.

Besides the face lift the dam gets, they also built a Zebra Mussel station – tall white building in background. They never used it and now more construction is going on behind it – an admin building of some sort.

How Loch Raven dam looked in 1922. Notice on the lower portion across the water. The land is at the same elevation as this side, but…

Now it is elevated by the placement of this pipe. This pipe is covered in dirt. I’m still not sure why they installed this pipe into the face of the dam??? I have the drawings and project photos, but nothing to say why?

So all this is to say that the original dam, under this one was built in 1914. It was at an elevation of 188′. The newer dam was placed on top of it in 1922 – elevation 240′. Then in the 70s and again in 2005 it received various face lifts and this is why it will never get a historic designation..

Holy Bat Cave Batman

16 Thursday Feb 2017

Posted by in Baltimore, Dams, engineering, water history

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The other day I received an email with the following photograph. It asked if I knew what this ‘tunnel’ was for? It was holding up progress on the construction of some new buildings. In the email there was an attached drawing of the building site with the location of the tunnel circled in red. Holy crap! The drawing, to scale, would mean that this tunnel was about 30′ wide! After researching drawings from 1873 onwards, not finding it in any, I went up to look.

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What I found was an opening of about 18″ x 24″. Talk about a let down! Below is the contractor’s foot, for size reference.

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So, since I was there I stuck my camera into the hole to get some pics – glad I didn’t climb in there. Do you see what I see on the left, dangling from a crevice in the rocks??

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Well so much for finding part of the Underground Railroad or an Indian Burial Ground or a secret cache of moonshine (yes, that was suggested). After about 2 hours of meetings and investigations, I took a walk.

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Looking across the construction site to the upper dam.

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The lower, older dam is my favorite. The inspector told me that since it is marble, someone should pressure spray it clean. Ok, I’ll get right on that!

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First, get someone to remove that log, which has been on there since the storm of 2010!

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This dam has held up pretty good since 1880

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The valves which were inside the old gate house.

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Sorry Batman – the only bat cave I could find…

Love – Hate Relationships

14 Tuesday Feb 2017

Posted by in engineering, HISTORY

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Sorry, this is not a Valentines Blog! This is in regards to my job. Co-workers know I do the archiving, so when they think it’s time to clear out some filing cabinets, they bring all their junk drawers to me. I hate it! So I sort and document and throw out a bunch of stuff…but then, hidden between the pages of some obscure files, I find a folder of photographs! I love it! This particular group of photos are from the 1913-1915 building of the Loch Raven dam. They are the actual prints from the glass plate negatives. Some of which I’ve never seen or ones that I have, scanned from plates that were cracked or silvering. Poor quality. These are near perfect prints.

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 I have a very poor quality of this one with no real description. On the back it says – “Crushing Plant at Department Quarry near Bridge #1”

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Building Bridge #1 which is the first bridge up Loch Raven Drive from the dam. One thing I don’t understand about engineering is…

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…how do they take the upside down bridge and turn it right side up??

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I’m not sure what this one is, which is ok. I will look thru the old records and see if I can match it up some how. I thought it was of the construction of bridge #1 but the date wouldn’t be right.

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No description on this one either, but I like the guy in the back with a hatchet, wearing Frye Boots!

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This one is of the building of the bridge. Look close and you can see a typical City worker, sitting down on the job to the right!

1881 Tunnel Inspection, Again?

27 Friday Jan 2017

Posted by in Baltimore, engineering, water history

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Last year in another post I wrote about my excitement to go on an inspection of the old Loch Raven – Montebello Tunnel, which was built between 1875 and 1881. This tunnel, being 7 miles long was built mostly through solid rock. A lot of which is collapsing. Which is bad because potable water has been flowing thru it since the late 1950s, from Montebello to Towson. When it was built, the raw water from Loch Raven flowed to Montebello Lake. The inspection for last year was cancelled, saying it was unsafe? (Last inspected in 1984). Last night I get an email telling me that the consultants want to see where the exit point will be if the inspection does happen…

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This is where we would exit. At the waste lake, Montebello Filters. If you look back at my post from a few months ago on the waste lake dredging, you can see that it no longer looks like this. It is grown over with phragmites. This photo from 1948 shows them dewatering the tunnel so a new surge shaft could be built.

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The new surge shaft is connected to the 1938 Loch Raven Tunnel (steel, not rock) which is connected to the old rock tunnel, soon to be connected to the just being built Patapsco Tunnel. (Confused yet? You should work here!)

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As with most construction projects with the city, there are always problems. This one being a storm washing away some of the work already completed.

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The almost finished surge shaft. Wrap it in brick and put a Spanish tile roof on and you are done. I hope we can actually do an inspection of the tunnel.

Major Payne (Not Damon Wayans)

23 Monday Jan 2017

Posted by in Baltimore, Health, HISTORY

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Folded letter of 1832 found in the archives. Benjamin was the son of John Eager Howard. Major Payne commanding the fort during the cholera epidemic?

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Front of folded letter:

Postmark, Jun 14 City of Washington
Free (postage)
Benj. C. Howard
To: William Steuart, Esq.
Mayor of Baltimore

“Letter from B.C. Howard Esq., on the subject of Quarantine Laws
June 14th, 1832”

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The letter:

House of Representatives
June 14, 1832

Dr. Sir,
I received this morning your letter of yesterday enclosing a correspondence between the Health officer and Major Payne which I laid before the proper Department; and am informed that an order will be transmitted immediately to produce the result which you desire, of obtaining the aid of troops in Fort McHenry –

I am Respectfully Yours,
Benj. C. Howard (Benjamin Chew Howard)

William Steuart Esq.
Mayor

Last Hike – First Hike

02 Monday Jan 2017

Posted by in Hiking, HISTORY, Photography

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The state parks around Maryland promote the First Hike of the year. The way Kathy and I look at it – any day is a good day to hike! And the weather couldn’t have been better! Last day of the year and the first day of the year hikes.

On Saturday we did a small hike at a park we never hiked before. Kathy came up with the idea to hike somewhere we never have for the last hike of the year and somewhere we have hiked for the first hike of the new year. Louis Krause Memorial Park was the last of 2016

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When trees hunt no hunting signs

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Small park wit a couple roundabout paths

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After a complete circuit, leaving the woods we came upon these steps.

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The top of a lime kiln

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A kissing bench. (If you have been paying attention to my post, most hikes have benches)

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An old kiln. This one is a lot smaller than the ones at Cromwell Valley Park.

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Some history on the kiln

The next day, New Year’s, we took a hike at our favorite place to hike – Cromwell Valley Park. Lots of first day hikers there – it was crowded.

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First stop – the big sycamore tree.

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Kathy told me to lie down on the picnic table and take one straight up – ok, I’m easy!

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Another type of view of the tree, using a filter.

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A smaller kiln at CVP. A lot of people don’t even know this one is here. Can’t find any history on it.

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Marble Spring. I’ve always called it bubbling brook. Usually there is some movement in here from the lime stone underneath meeting up with the spring. Watercress floating on top.

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Almost done rebuilding the lime kilns. Just 6 years ago these were covered in vines and trees, crumbling apart. Amazing job these guys are doing.

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New observation deck up on top.

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The old log cabin

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Simulated limestone in the top of the kiln. Across Mine Bank Run is the old Long Island Farm. Almost bought up by the City for Watershed property.

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Steve Jobs first garage where he came up with the idea of a computer – I think? Maybe not!

The Gunpowder Falls and Battle Monument

21 Wednesday Dec 2016

Posted by in Baltimore, water history

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When the permanent water supply from the Gunpowder Falls was built, it included a dam at Loch Raven, a 12′ tunnel approximately 7 miles long, an impounding reservoir at Montebello, another conduit from there to Lake Clifton and then it was distributed to the public as unfiltered, yet wholesome drinking water.

Photo from the 1920s showing the original 1881 gate house at Loch Raven

How the gate house area looked in 2011.

When they eventually removed the gate house, they kept some of the original stone and built this somewhat mini-monument to the Permanent Supply, across the street.

The supply is finished and the valves are opened. This is downtown Baltimore at the Battle Monument. Caption reads: Fountain and Cataract – Monument Square – The Introduction of the Gunpowder Water Supply – Oct. 10th 1881

From the Water Archives

19 Monday Dec 2016

Posted by in Baltimore, water history

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From the City Council Records: It says –

Resolved by the first and second branches of the City Council of Baltimore, that the Mayor be, and he is hereby authorized and requested, to give public notice, that proposals will be received at his office, until the first day of June next, for introducing a copious and permanent supply of wholesome water, into the City of Baltimore, or into any part thereof, by any individual or Company; and that whenever such proposals have been received, as in the opinion of the Mayor are worthy of consideration, he convene the City Council to deliberate thereupon.
Baltimore Feb. 23, 1804 In 1st Branch read and agreed upon.
The concurrence of the Second Branch is requested
Feb 23, 1804 In the 2nd Branch read and agreed to.

Noted from Early Water History, Annual Reports:

1804 Baltimore Water Company: On April 30, Samuel Smith, W. Cooke, E. Ellicott, Robert G. Harper, Thomas McElderry, Alex Mckim, and John E. Howard agreed to form The Baltimore Water Company. The Baltimore Water Company, a private company, furnishes water to a portion of Baltimore City. Company purchased parcels of land above and below the Belvedere Bridge, which crossed the Jones’ Falls, and built a dam and bought a lot at the southeast corner of Center Street and Calvert Street for the purpose of constructing a reservoir at that site. Water to this reservoir was supplied from the water at the dam by means of an open channel. The open channel ran between Calvert Street and the street known today as Guilford Avenue.

1805 Baltimore Water Company: The Baltimore Water Company receives an act of Incorporation.