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An Ordinance to Provide for the Care and Management
of the Augusta Water Works,
Passed February 1st, 1861:

Electronic Edition.

Augusta (Ga.). City Council.


Funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services
supported the electronic publication of this title.


Text scanned (OCR) by Yin Tang
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First edition, 2000
ca. 40K
Academic Affairs Library, UNC-CH
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,
2000.

No copyright in the United States

Source Description:
(title page) An ordinance to provide for the care and management of the Augusta Water Works, passed February 1st, 1861.
11 p.
Augusta, GA.
Office of the Constitutionalist
1861

Call number 1607.1 Conf. (Rare Book Collection, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)


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Library of Congress Subject Headings, 21st edition, 1998

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Title Page


AN
ORDINANCE
TO PROVIDE FOR
THE CARE AND MANAGEMENT
OF THE
AUGUSTA WATER WORKS,
PASSED FEBRUARY 1st, 1861.

AUGUSTA, GA.:
PRINTED AT THE OFFICE OF THE CONSTITUTIONALIST.
1861.


Page 1

AN ORDINANCE
TO PROVIDE FOR THE
CARE AND MANAGEMENT
OF THE
AUGUSTA WATER WORKS

        1. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF AUGUSTA, That from and after the date of the passage of this Ordinance, it shall be unlawful for any person or persons to bathe in any part of the first Level of the Augusta Canal, including the whole line from the Lock to the west end of the Basin in the City; and it shall be unlawful for any person to wash any clothes, horse, dog, or any other thing therein, or to bail any boat, or deposit any offensive matter, or any sticks, trimmings of trees, refuse of gardens, or to make any rafts of wood or timber on the banks thereof. And it shall be unlawful for any person to make any cut in the banks, or disturb any portion thereof, or to do any other thing by which the water thereof shall be rendered offensive and impure. And it shall be unlawful for any person to use the banks of said Canal for the pasturage of horses, or cattle, or hogs, or as a road or passage for them, or for any other purpose than as a tow-path for towing boats on said Canal. Every violation of this section shall be punished by a fine of not less than five and not exceeding one hundred dollars, if committed by a white person; and if committed by a slave or free person of color, the punishment Shall be whipping, at the discretion of the Recorder.

        2. AND BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED, That it shall be unlawful for any person or persons to bathe in any of the Basins or Reservoirs of the Augusta Water Works, or to deposit any thing whatever therein, or to wash any dog, clothes, or any other thing in the waters thereof. Any person violating this section shall be fined in accordance with the magnitude of the offence, but no fine shall be less than five, or more than five hundred dollars. Every violation of this section shall be punished by a fine of not less than five and not exceeding one hundred dollars, if committed by a white person; and if committed by a slave or free person of coler, the punishment shall be whipping, at the discretion of the Recorder.

        3. AND BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED, That it shall be unlawful for any person to deface or injure any house, wall, bank, fence, bridge, pipe, stop-cock, fire-plug, or other fixtures pertaining to said water works, or to obstruct the passage to, or in any way prevent the proper use thereof. Any person violating this section shall pay a fine of not lot less than five, or more than one hundred, dollars.


Page 2

        4. AND BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED, That it shall be unlawful for any person, not duly authorised as hereinafter provided, to tap or take water from any of the street mains or service pipes, or to lay down any service pipe, or fix any cock, hydrant, or other work, by which water may be taken from said mains or service pipes. Any person violating this section shall be fined in a sum of not less than twenty, or more than one hundred, dollars.

        5. AND BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED, That it shall be unlawful for any person, except in case of an alarm of fire, to uncover or open any fire-plug; and in case of fire, none other than the plug nearest to the fire is to be opened, except by the firemen attached to the fire engines; and on the arrival of a fire engine at the plug which may have been opened; said plug shall be given up at once to the use of the firemen, if they require it. Any person violating this section shall be fined not exceeding twenty-five dollars.

        6. AND BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED, That it shall be unlawful for any person to open any fire-plug, or shut down any stop-cock, in any part of the city, or to interfere in any way whatever with the supply of water required for the extinguishment of fires. Any person violating this section shall be fined not exceeding one hundred dollars.

        7. AND BE IT ORDAINED, ALSO, That the care and management of the Augusta Water Works shall, for the present, be entrusted to a Special Committee on Water Works, as now organized under a Resolution passed by the Council on the 6th of May, 1859; and beside the duties involved in the construction of said Works, they are hereby required, as said Works are completed and require the application of the preceding and following sections of this Ordinance, to see that they are properly enforced.

        8. AND BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED, That the City Council shall appoint and remove, at any time during their official term, the following officers and employees, and prescribe their duties, and fix their salaries:

        9. AND BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED, That the Superintendent and Engineer, subject at all times to the control of the Committee, shall have a general charge of the Basins, Pump House, Elevated Reservoir, and all the Buildings, Fire-plugs, Fixtures and Pipes constructed or laid down for the Water Works, and of the Lands on which said Basins, Reservoir, Pump House, and Buildings are. He shall carefully inspect all parts of the Works, and have the same kept in good order and in proper operation, and the water furnished as pure and


Page 3

clear as practicable, with promptness and regularity, to all persons entitled to its use under the provisions hereinafter contained--subject to the control of the Committee as aforesaid. The Superintendent may employ in and about the Works such workmen and laborers as he may deem suitable and necessary. He shall keep an account of their names, the kind of work done by them, the days of the week or month they work, and their wages. He shall quarterly present to the Committee a statement of the materials, tools, and other articles on hand, and at the same time present an estimate of such as may be required for the execution of any work which may be required to be done during the succeeding quarter, and he shall see that proper care is taken of said tools and materials, and that all bills for the same shall be examined and laid before the Committee monthly, or at such other regular times as may be required by said Committee. It shall be the duty of the Superintendent to make and preserve for the use of the Committee a map or plan of the location of the street mains, showing the course, distance, and size of each of them, and on said map, or plan, he is to lay down every extension of said mains as soon as such extensions are made, and on the said map the location of every stop-cock and hydrant shall be properly designated. And in a book, to be kept for the purpose, said Superintendent shall enter from time to time the quantity, description, and cost of materials and labor used and employed in extending the street mains, and quarterly, at the usual time of quarterly reports, he shall make an abstract from said book, and submit the same to the Committee. It shall be the duty of said Superintendent to enter in a book, to be kept by him for the purpose, all service or branch pipes leading from the street mains, designating the material and size, and the place of junction with the street mains; and also the number and size of the cocks, hydrants, or other fixtures attached to said service pipes, which said book shall be retained in his office, subject at any time to the inspection of the Committee. And said books shall have an alphabetical index so arranged that the parties using water from said service pipes may be easily ascertained. And it shall be the duty of said Superintendent to perform all such other duties as may be reasonably required of him by said Committee. It shall be the duty of the Superintendent to attend all fires within the limits of the city, and see to the proper management of the Works on such occasions. It shall be the duty of the Assistant Engineer, charged with the care of the Force Pumps, to be at the pump room at every alarm of fire; and if the alarm is given at night, he is to start the pumps and keep up a full supply of water, according to such regulations by the Committee on Water Works as they establish from time to time. It shall be the duty of said Superintendent and Assistant Engineer, charged with the care of the Force Pumps, on all occasions as may be ordered by the Committee on Water Works, to so arrange the duty or work done by said pumps as to furnish an extra supply of water for washing out and cleansing the street drains of the city, and on all such occasions, said Superintendent is to see that the fire-plugs are properly used for the purpose aforesaid. For a violation of this section, said Superintendent


Page 4

and said Assistant Engineer having charge of the Force Pumps shall be fined, reprimanded, or discharged, as the Council may determine, on complaint made to them by said Committee on Water Works, or any member thereof.

        10. AND BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED, That the Secretary, subject at all times to the control of the Committee, shall have an office at some convenient place, at which he shall attend regularly every day, Sundays excepted, from the hours of nine o'clock before noon to two o'clock in the afternoon, to receive applications for the use of water, receive water rents, and issue written permits addressed to the Superintendent authorized to tap the mains. It shall be the duty of said Secretary to keep a book prepared for the purpose, with a caption importing that the owners of property whose names are undersigned, request that water may be introduced upon the premises mentioned opposite their respective names, upon the terms proscribed by this Ordinance. And it shall be his duty to see that the owner of any property applying for the introduction of water into his premise, shall by himself or his authorized agent, write his name in said book, under said caption, and write opposite thereto the date and number of his application, the location of his premises, and the purpose for which the water is to be used. And in the book aforesaid, it shall be the duty of the Secretary to enter the rate of water rent to be paid by the applicant, and state the amount, upon the receipt of which he is to give to said applicant a written permit, stating therein the purpose for which the water is to be used, and the amount paid; and said permit is to correspond in number and date with the entry thereof in said book. And it shall be the duty of the said Superintendent to pay over to the City Collector and Treasurer, at least once in each week, all water rents collected by him, and for which he is to take a receipt from said Collector in a book to be kept for that special purpose. In case an applicant for the use of water does not agree with the Secretary in his construction of any part of this Ordinance, determining the rates of water rent, it shall be the duty of said Secretary to lay such application before the Committee, and abide by their decision.

        All water rents are to be paid half yearly in advance, on the first of January and the first of July, in each year; but when the application for water is made at any time by which its use to the time of regular payment will be less than a half year, then said Secretary is to make his first statement to correspond with the time the water is to be used, but at the rate per year, as hereinafter ordained. It shall be the duty of said Secretary to keep in a book provided for the purpose, an alphabetical account of the names of the water tenants, with proper references to the before mentioned book, containing a description of the premises, &c., of said tenants; and to each name he is to enter the amounts of water rents received by him. It shall be the duty of the said Secretary to lay said book before the Committee at every regular meeting, and receive and abide by such instructions as they may consider expedient to give in relation to defaulters; and if


Page 5

any water tenants are in default for the space of three months, he shall furnish the Superintendent with a list of their names, and direct him forthwith to proceed with such measures as may be necessary to stop the water from them. He shall also furnish a list of defaulters to the City Collector and Treasurer, who shall issue executions and adopt such measures for the collection of water rents as are prescribed in the general Ordinance for the collection of taxes. (111th Sec. G. O.) At the time hereinbefore stated for making quarterly reports by the Superintendent, it shall be the duty of the said Secretary to prepare an abstract from his books, showing the number of water tenants, the various uses to which the water is applied, the prices received for the same, and the gross amount paid into the City Treasury. And it shall be the duty of said Secretary to attend all meetings of the Committee, and keep such other accounts, and do such writing as may be required by said Committee: Provided, all such accounts and writing are connected with the Water Works.

        11. AND BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED, That the Assistant Engineer shall at all times be under the control of the Superintendent; and he shall take proper care of the Pump House and lot, and all the buildings and machinery connected therewith; and he is also to take proper care of the Elevated Reservoir. It shall be his duty to attend personally to the starting, running, and stopping of the water-wheel and pumps; and he is to keep said pumps and the machinery clean and in good order, and to keep all the steps, journals, and other working parts clean and properly oiled; he is also to keep the pump room and premises clean and in good order. In case of any of the works getting out of order, if the work required to put them in order is more than he can accomplish by himself, he is to stop the wheel, and report at once to the Superintendent, who shall, with him, and such help as may be required, proceed immediately to make the necessary repairs. It shall be the duty of said Assistant to see that the tank of the Elevated Reservoir is properly filled with water at regular intervals of not more than three hours between four o'clock every morning and eight o'clock every evening of every day, and at such hour every evening and every morning of every day as may be determined by the Committee or Superintendent said wheel and pumps are to be stopped and started; but in case of an alarm of fire at night, at any time after said wheel and pumps have been stopped, it shall be his duty to start them again and keep them running until the fire is extinguished, taking care to so adjust the working of the pumps as to keep the tank of the Reservoir full of water, without overflow, and see that the pressure guage indicates a steady pressure. It shall be the duty of said Assistant to note the indications of the register at every starting and stopping of the pumps, as well as the hour and minute of starting and stopping; and he shall keep in the pump room a book prepared for the purpose, in which he shall record the notes above mentioned, placing in separate columns those of the ordinary working of the day and those of fires. It shall be the duty of said Assistant to examine the tank and other works of the Elevated Reservoir once at least


Page 6

every day, and see that they are in good order, and in case of the discovery of any leak, or signs of leak, or other defect, he is to report at once to the Superintendent, and with him, as hereinbefore directed with regard to the wheel and pumps, shall proceed at once with the repairs thereof. The keys of the doors of the Elevated Reservoir shall be kept by the Superintendent and said Assistant, and no person or persons except those presenting cards of admission from the Mayor, Members of Council, or of the Committee on Water Works, shall be allowed to enter said Elevated Reservoir, unless accompanied by one or other of them. And in case of an mischief being done, or attempted to be done by any visitor, it shall be reported to the Committee. It shall be the duty of said Assistant, to perform all such other duties as may be required by the Committee or Superintendent, provided such duties are connected with the care and management of the water-wheel, pumps, and Elevated Reservoir.

        12. AND BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED, That the street mains are to be tapped exclusively by the Turn Cock, under the direction of the Superintendent, with such ferrules and cocks only as may be furnished by the Committee, and they are to see that all such work is properly done, and that the water is turned on so soon as the plumbers' work connected therewith is completed, if so desired by the water tenant. The water tenant to pay [blank space] for tapping and cock.

        13. AND BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED, That all plumbers residing, and carrying on a regular business in the city of Augusta, but no others, shall have the privilege of laying the service pipes connected with the Augusta Water Works, and they shall be severally subject to the following regulations:

        The work of the plumbers shall commence at the cock fixed in the street main by the Turn Cock. The trenches in the streets are to be properly made, and when the pipe is laid in them they are to be carefully filled, and the street made good without delay for the passage of carriages. The pavements of the side-walks may be taken up to lay pipes under them, but they must be relaid immediately, and made as good as before they were disturbed. Any violation of this rule resulting in damage to any person, shall be considered as a violation of the 8th section of the General Ordinance, and punished accordingly.

        At the end of every pipe laid for a wash pavement, there shall be an iron casing and cover marked "Augusta Water Works," and said casings shall be placed on the side-walks as near the curb thereof as convenient.

        All the pipes and cocks laid and fixed by said plumbers shall be of sufficient strength to resist the pressure of a head of water one hundred and fifty feet high without leaking, and no material shall be used for pipes or cocks which, upon fair trial, shall be found to injure the quality of the water.

        Said plumbers shall not lay any pipe, or fix any cock, or make


Page 7

any connection with any street main for themselves or for any other person, without a regular permit, signed by the Secretary, and they are not to lay any pipe or fix any cock for any purpose whatever, except such as are designated in said permit.

        All pipes used as service pipes, shall be so laid as to be protected from freezing. And if any pipe is damaged by frost or any other cause, so as to leak and waste water, it shall be the duty of the plumber to report the same to the Superintendent, so that the water may be shut off until the proper repairs are made.

        Any plumber who fails to observe these regulations, or shall be fairly convicted of doing such bad work as will result in injury or damage to either the Water Works or water tenants, shall forfeit all claim to, and be prohibited from the privilege of, laying any pipes connected with said Water Works.

        14. AND BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED, That the Special Committee on Water Works are hereby authorized and required to enforce the preceding and following sections of this Ordinance; and they are further authorized to adopt such further rules and regulations as may be necessary to place the care and management of the Water Works in all and every particular fully under their control.

        15. BE IT ORDAINED, FURTHER, That the following shall be the rates, payable as hereinbefore provided, semi-annually, by such persons as comply with this Ordinance, and use the water supplied by the Augusta Water Works for one year:


Page 8

RATES OF
Water Rents in the City of Augusta.


Page 9

MEMORANDA

        No Steam Engine is to be supplied at the rate before stated, unless the water is taken in the same building for the usual purposes.

        The rates for Stores are for Stores alone; if the upper or any other part is occupied by the Storekeeper or his family, then the whole concern is to be rated as a Dwelling.

        Offices connected with Dwellings and under the same care, to be charged at the same rate as Dwellings; if separate, and not strictly private, an additional charge will be made.

        In all case, Self-closing Cocks, Faucets, and other apparatus, are to be used; if not, then an additional charge is to be made, to cover the risk of unnecessary waste.

        The size of nozzles for Wash Pavements, Sprinkling Streets, Watering Gardens and yards, is to be determined by the Committee and Superintendent; and the size of Jets for Fountains is to be determined in the same way. The price for each is to be determined by the quantity of water used in a given time.



Page 10

        16. AND BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED, That all Ordinances and parts of Ordinances militating against this Ordinance be, and the same are hereby repealed.

Done in Council, this first day of February, in the year of our Lord Eighteen Hundred and Sixty-one.

FOSTER BLODGET, JR., Mayor. ATTEST: SAM'L H. CRUMP, Clerk.


Page 11

FORMS.

AUGUSTA WATER WORKS.
PERMIT No. 1. OCTOBER 1st, 1860.

        The undersigned hereby applies for the use of Water from the above named Works, and promises to pay for the same at the following rates per year, on the 1st of January and 1st of July, every year--payment to be made in advance:

        The water to be used exclusively for the Dwelling No. [left blank] , South side of Greene Street.

        PLAN.

        3/4 inch pipe from street pavement 100 feet to Hydrant, thence 1/2 inch pipes to one Basin in first Story and two Basins and one Bath in second Story, and 1/2 inch pipe from Hydrant to Kitchen, Stable, and Privy, according to diagram. In all [left blank] feet of 3/4, and [left blank] feet of 1/2 inch pipe, and 8 self-closing Cocks or Faucets.

Signed, [left blank]

PERMIT No. 1. OCTOBER 1st, 1860.

        Notice of the above given to the Superintendent and Engineer.

October 2d, 1860.

[left blank for signature] Secretary Augusta Water Works.

PERMIT No. 1. OCTOBER 1st, 1860.

To SUP'T & ENGINEER A. W. W.,

        Mr. [left blank for name] has this day obtained permission to use water in the Dwelling No. [left blank for number] , South side of Greene street, as follows: One Hydrant, one Water Closet, one Bath, two Stable Stalls, one Four-wheeled Carriage, one Wash Sink, and three Basins. You will therefore see to it, that the proper connection is made with the Street Main, and that the Plumber's work is properly done, in conformity to the City Ordinance.

October 2d, 1860.

[left blank for signature] Secretary Augusta Water Works.

AUGUSTA WATER WORKS.

PERMIT No. 1. OCTOBER 1st, 1860.

        Received of [left blank for name] , Four Dollars, for three months' Water Rent, for Dwelling No. [left blank for number] , South side of Greene street, in which he is permitted to have Water for one Hydrant in the yard, one Water Closet, one Bath Tub, two Stable Stalls, one Four-wheeled Carriage, one Wash Sink, and three Wash Basins, to be arranged as per plan and diagram now of file in this office; and the Cocks, and other Apparatus as may be required to furnish the said [left blank] with a full supply of Water, and make the proper return thereof in due time, according to file City Ordinance, to this office.

Signed, [left blank for signature] Secretary Augusta Water Works.