Clinton News-Record, 1974-03-28, Page 30CHEVY PICKUP FOR 1974
Built tough to work hard
day in, day out, and day off
C/10 Cheyenne Super Pickup
OUR SINCERE CONGRATULATIONS
TO THE
CLINTON PUC ON TNEIRiOth ANNIVERSARY
WO at Lorne Brown Motors are pleased to have been part of the business community in
Clinton since 1936. Over the years since 1948 when we became the Chevrolet-
Oldsmobile dealer in Clinton, we are proud to have been chosen to supply the PUC
with trucks bearing the GM mark of excellence.
SEE THE NEW '74 CHEVY
PICKUPS TODAY
AT
LORNE ft
DROWN
MOTORS LTD.
YOUR FRIENDLY
CHEVROLET and OLDSMOBILE DEALER
30 Ontario St. 482 9321
All of Clinton's water mains are burled beneath the
ground, and the PUC is constanily 'repairing them or in,
stalling new ones, Mere Royce Frernlin, Don Ellwood and
Lyle Montgomery Millet' a new line along the Saylield road
last year (News-Record photo) ,
CLINTON NEWS,RECORD, THURSDAY, MARCH 28, 1974,15A
to back first Clinton waterworks system
. (continued from pig. 14A)
people voted on this-by-law, to
raise $53,000 for a waterworks
system for 'Clinton. '
On October 7th, 1907, the
clerk gave the report on the by-
law. For the By-Law, 209 votes,
against the by-law, 130 votes,
Majority for by-law, 79 votes,
Well at long last the Couticil
had a .waterworks by-law
passed by the citizens of Clin-
ton but weren't sure they could
use it.
On November 4th 1907, a
notice was served on the Cor-
poration by Dickenson and
Garrow, Goderich, solicitors for
Oliver Johnson, Thomas
Jackson, Wm. Graham and
Alex McKenzie that an ap-
plication had been made to the
High Court to quash the water-
works (By-Law No.10 for 1907)
for illegality.
The applicants' statement of
claim, together with Mr. W.
Brydone's opinion relative to
the merits of same, were read.
A special meeting was called to
decide on the course to pursue.
After a discussion it was
moved by Reeve Cantelon,
seconded by councillor Cooper,
that the mayor be instructed to
enter the necessary defence to
defend by-law No.10 for 1907
which was being protested in
the High. Court and that Clin-
ton's solicitor be instructed to
secure additional council if
necessary.
This seemed to stop this
notice for nothing seemed to
Come up again about it.
WELLS DRILLED
In May of 1908, tenders were
called for putting down eight
inch test wells: . These wells
were put in the property where
the waterworks pumping plant
is now. They were drilled by a
Mr. Peat and Son from
Petrolia. After they were
drilled they were tested and
found to be alright.
In January of 1909, the
Council procured the services
of Willis Chipman, an engineer
from Toronto and he, also had
the wells tested and found
them to be satisfactory. These
two wells supplied all the water
for the town until 1922.
The engineer was instructed
to make up plans and
specifications and call for ten-
ders right away for the dif-
ferent parts of the waterworks
system.
The tenders were opened on
June 29th and found to be very
satisfactory so the contracts
were let on all of the different
parts of the waterworks system,
and a secondhand Downie deep
well pump head was ordered
from the town of Aylmer and
installed at the No. 1 Well.
This pumping plant was run
by a large 50 horsepower
single cylinder gas engine
which operated on gas
produced from coal by two gas
producer furnaces in the pum-
phouse.
Some time early in the spring
of 1910, the water system was
filled with water by the W.
Doherty & Company's steam
pump in their boiler room. The
system was tested for leaks and
then filled with water by the
waterworks pumping equip-
ment as soon as it was ready.
By November of 1910 there
were 165 water services connec-
ted to the system and the new
waterworks system was
working satisfactorily.
In later part of this year the
Council brought it up about
having a Waterworks Com-
mission, but nothing was done
about it,
In 1911 the Council bought
another . second hand well
pump head and fittings and in-
stalled it at the no. 2 well, and
ran this pump with electricity
from the Clinton Electric Light
Plant.
During 1911, the Council had
the cement building construc-
ted at the east side of the pump
house to hold two cars of coal
to be used in the gas producer
furnaces.
COMMISSION FORMED
In September of the same
year, the Council drew up a by-
law for a waterworks com-
mission and on November 11th
1911, the people voted on this
by-law with the following
results:
For the by-law, 242 votes;
Against .the by-law, 111 votes;
majority for by-law, 125 votes.
On January 1st 1912, Dr.
J.W. Shaw and Mr. J.B.
Hoover became the waterworks
Commissioners by, acclamation
and Mayor B.J, Gibbirigs. Up
to this. date, it was run, by a
committee of the Council.
When Council contracted
with Ontario Hydro for electric
power for Clinton in 1913, they
also drew up' a By-Law and on
January 1st 1914, the people of
Clinton 'voted in favour of the
by-law to put the waterworks
and electric systems under a
Public Utilities CoMmission.
So the first Clinton Ptiblic
Utilities Commissioners were
Dr. J.W. Shaw, Dr. C.W. Thom-
pson and Mayor Fred Jackson.
On' February 19th 1914, the
waterworks became one of the
first hydro power customers in
Clinton when it started to
operate its no. 1 deep well
pump with a 10 hor-
sepower motor and on March
18th, they added a 35 hor-
sepower motor to operate the
pressure pumps,
For the next few years the
waterworks went along with
the general run of repairs and
maintenance and the addition
of new water services and some
new water mains.
In 1921 it was decided to
have a new well drilled and a
well driller was hired and a
well put down, but when they
went to put in the new pump, it
would not go all the way to the
bottom. They then had to 'get
another well driller and have
him drill the well out to the
proper size so the pump would
go in properly. This was done
-and the new well was in
operation by 1922, pumping
about 40 gallons per minute.
In 1932 a new turbine style
well pump was put in this well
and it pumped about 150 to 170
gallons of water a minute. This
pump is still working.
SUPPLIED AIR FORCE
The waterworks did not
change much until 1941 when
they had just started to supply
CFB Clinton with water, and it
was decided to put down
another deep well, This well
was drilled near the Com-
munity Park gate. The pump
installed was large enough to
pump 550 gallons a minute
which made a great difference.
In 1944, one of the old
Smart-Turner Piston pressure
pumps was replaced with a cen-
trifugal pump that would
pump about 400 gallons a
minute as compared to 250
gallons with the old style.
In 1951 the whole system
was changed from 25 to 60
cycle so a new 60 cycle motor
and centrifugal pump were in-
stalled in place of the second
old piston style pump.
Also in that year, another
well was diilled and a new
pump installed in it, that pum-
ped 625 gallons per minute.
This is the well beside the
present PUC Office.
During this time considerably
more new water main was in-
stalled and the system in
general made more efficient.
In 1967 the waterworks in-
stalled a stand-by power plant
that can supply enough electric
power to operate the water-
works pumping plant if the
hydro should be off for some
time. The pumping equipment
in the plant has been gradually
changed to operate
automatically.
There are still main exten-
sions being made and im-
provements to the system every
year. The two original wells
that were drilled in 1908 were
taken out of service and
plugged in the 1940's,