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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Illustrated Signal-Star, 1889-03-25, Page 5GODERICH ILLUSTRATED SIGNAL -STAR. How G>derich Town Has Helped itself, The Finest Waterworks and Most Per- fect Electric Light System—The Great Northwestern Fair --The Government Buildings. ?'HE past year has witnessed the com- pletion of several important public improvements in Goderich which are prob- ably not equalled in any other town in Canada. From the inception of these works the municipal authorities have had the hearty support of . the ratepayers in carrying them out, and economy of,;con- struction has been made a secondary con- sideration to that of securing the best pos- sible service. First amongst thes3 improve- ments is to be named THE WATERWORKS SYSTEM. In 1886 an artesian well, to test the quality of the water obtainable, was bored to a depth of 275 feet on a lot on East street, the highest available site in the town. The qual- ity of the water was found to be unexceptional, " almost absolutely pure," was the analyist's report, but the sufficiency of the supply being in doubt, it was decided to sink the wells on the harbor flats, where the lake would be available incase the wells pr o v ed insufficient. Four -11 ells were bored to a depth of about, 240 feet, reaching the same water as in the up -town well, and after tests of the givality and quantity of the water, the erection of the pumping station and the construc- tion of the works was begun, Mr. Willis Chipman, C.E., of Toronto, being engaged to prepare the plans and specifications, and superintend the work. The following is a syn- opsis of the Government Analyist's report on the quality of the water : " In 1,000,000 grains of water evaporated to find the amount of solid matter dissolved, there were found to be when dried at a tem- perature of 100° C. only 552 grains of solids, and of this only 148 grains were lost by ignition (the remaining solids not darkening), thus showing the water to be re- markably free from organic matter. In the same quantity of water only 4/75 of a grain of nitrogen was found. Without nitrogen, nitrites, nitrates and ammonia, which are substances so deleterious to water, could not exist.. Only 10 grains of chlorine were • found, not a remarkable showing for a salt region. The oxygen absorbed from the per- manganate test at 60° Fab. in 15 minutes was only 4/25 of a grain, and in 4 hours only 1.45 grains, which is another proof of the remarkable absence of deleterious matter. The water is clear, colorless, and sufficiently soft for artesian well water, being softer than the water supplies of Lon- don; Eng., Bath, Cambridge, Maidstone, or Shrewsbury ; and it is all that can be de- sired for;domestic purposes, being of great organic purity and excellent quality." The water is pumped directly into the mains bya magnificent pair of pumps, manu- factured to order by the •Gordon &Maxwell Company, of Hamilton, Ohio. Each pump has a capacity of 1,250 gallons per minute, an amount far in excess of any possiHe re- quirement for years to come. The mam- moth steel boilers used are the product of our townsmen, Messrs. Chrystal & Black, and expert judges pronounce them of the finest workmanship and most improved de- sign. At present the town has over six miles of mains, which will be added to as the demand warrants. Four handsome fountains have been erected on the Court House Square and one •on the Harbor Park: Two of the four are for drinking purposes, the funds for their construction being col- lectedby a committee of ladies, who selected designs which allow both man and beast to quench their thirst. The other fountains are of ornamental design and the effect of the whole is to add much to the beauty and attractiveness of the Square. The total cost of the Waterworks has been about $54,000. 1C\ 1-1 • • ,r. _ . _ , __,',. ,iiv, , ),,litAi 1 1 , • , z , ly. //, - -`. f:,,,. sj-----)/ !II�r • ss = 5 is reduced to a minimum, the rate being only 16 cents per night for arc lamps. • THE AGRICULTURAL PARK. Goderich being the County Town of Huron—a distinction given it by the Im- perial Government in 1826, when the con- veyance of the Huron Tract was made to the Canada Company—it has always been a leading centre for Agricultural and In- dustrial Exhibitions. Of late Sears the grounds and buildings in use proved entire- ly too small, and in 1887 sixteen acres of land were purchased, and spacious build- ings erected thereon, the buildings alone costing about $7,000. The buildings include the main Exhibition Hall, a spacious octagon, two storeys high, with two wings ; a machinery hall, a poultry house, cattle and sheep sheds, and excellent stalls for about 150 horses. A. first-class half mile track is on the ground, and in all its ap- pointments this is one of the most complete and convenient Fair Grounds in the coun- try. The annual fairs are held under the title of " The Great Northwestern Exhibi- tion," and the officers and directors for the present year are : Presi- dent, Robert. McLean, Goderich ; First Vice-Pr3sident, John Aiken - head, V. S., Goderich ; Second Vice - President, D. A, Purvis, Goderich Township ; Secretary, R. C. Hays, Goderich ; Treasurer, Alex. Watson, Goderich. Directors—Alex. McD. Allan, John T. Dickson,Wm. Clarke, Isaac Fisher, James Connolly, Rob- ert Medd, Anthony Allen, Geo. Cur- rell, and John Gorier. The prize list of the Society ag- gregates over $2,000 annually, and •in all departments the exhibits • stand equal to those at the great Provincial Fairs. 'THE GOVERNMENT BUILDING. Goderich is the distributing cen- tre for Some thirteen other post offices in the Western part of the County, and in the amount of its revenue from sale of stamps, etc., it stands in the front rank of Ontario towns. The Government blue book gives the returns for the fiscal year,. nding June 30th, as follows : 1885 $5,148.72. 1886. 5,117.43. 1887 5,371 71. Customs and Ir.lan 1 Revenue WLTERWORKS AND ELECTRIC LIGHT ENGINE HOUSE. Offices are also located here, and THE ELECTRIC LIGHT SYSTEM. The Electric Light system is another im- portant addition to the beauty_ and advan- tages of the town. It is operated in con- nection with the Waterworks, the plant hav- ing been furnished by the Reliance Electric Light Co., of Waterford, Ontario. There are two dynamos, each of 35.arc lamp capacity, driven by a Wheelock Engine of 60 horse power, manufactured by Goldie & McCulloch, of Galt. At present the town is supplied with 26 street lights, and the pecul- iar plan of the town enables each lamp to throw light on 4 to 5 streets, making the service most effective. Indeed, itis univers- ally admitted that Goderich is perhaps the best lighted town in Ontario, the effect on the Square at night being extremely pretty. A private circuit supplies light to the great majority of the stores, hotels and other business places, and the light is being in- troduced into the churches also. The cost the business transacted annually reaches very respectable figures. The customs re- turns for 1887 may be quoted here as a fair average : IMPORTS. EXPORTS. QUARTER ENDING. VALUE. DUTY. VALUE. Mch 31, Dutiable $ 3,443 $ 628 20 Free 7,060 $ 16,557 June 30, Dutiable 18,686 4,130 84 Free 3,937 19,677 Sep. 30, Dutiable 2,649 784 80 Free 33,046 34,553 Dec. 31, Dutiable . 9,599 2,064 81 Free 3,371 75,297 Total, $81,791 $7,608 65 $146,084 Recognizing the importance of our town in these departments of the public service, the Government has now under construction a handsome and spacious public building. The building will cost in the neighborhood of $20,000, and will be completed in 1890.