How St. Louis Paid for First Water Works Pump

How St. Louis Paid for First Water Works Pump

According to a history of the machinery business, prepared by the National Acme Company of Windsor, Vt., the first water works pump in use in St. Louis, Mo., was paid for with a white horse instead of by cash. The company’s story of the transaction is as follows: “In 1828, Asahel Hubbard of Windsor, Vt., made and patented a rotary gear pump, called by him a revolving hydraulic engine, and founded the National Hydraulic Co. in this town for its manufacture. This was the first manufacturing machine shop here, so, at the same time, he laid the foundations of the very large industries of today in Windsor and Springfield, Vt., which trace their descent in a direct line back to this old pump concern. The Hubbard pumps soon became well known and were sold very widely, men being sent out from Windsor to demonstrate and to install them. In 1830 an order was received from the city of St. Louis for one of these pumps, to be fitted with a 20-horsepower steam engine, to pump water out of the Mississippi River, to force it 1300 feet through an iron pipe, and to discharge it into a reservoir 104 feet above the level of the river, from which reservoir it would run by gravity into the city. The big pump was immediately built, and, when finished, was loaded into an ox cart and thus carried from Windsor to Albany, N. Y., Asahel Hubbard going along with it to superintend its installation. At Albany it was placed upon a canal boat and carried to Buffalo, where it was placed upon a lake boat and carried to Chicago. Here it was again placed upon a wagon and hauled across the prairies to St. Louis. Hubbard installed his pump, started it, and everything worked satisfactorily. When it came to settling the bill, however, it was found that the city treasury was so low that there was not enough money to pay for the pump. The Chamber of Commerce then stepped in and took up a collection from the citizens and business houses. Still there was not enough. Finally the chamber located the best saddle horse to be found —it was a pure white one—and presented it to Asahel Hubbard. He called it payment in full. Taking his money in a belt, he set out from St. Louis on horseback, and rode the white horse across the prairies to Chicago, where he and his horse took a boat to Buffalo, then a canal boat to Albany. He completed his journey by riding over the Green Mountains to Windsor. This white horse was a familiar animal in this town for years afterwards, and was known as 'the St. Louis horse.’ Old inhabitants up to a few years ago remembered it well.”

The water department of Cleveland, Ohio, of which J. T. Martin is superintendent, is now completely metered, the number of services being 112,000. The approximate daily per capita consumption is 140 gallons and the average daily consumption, 135,000,000 gallons. No charge is made for water supplied to municipal departments and public institutions.