With the permission of the Kirkwood Historical Society, the following excerpts on the beginnings of the Kirkwood Water Department are provided from “A History of Kirkwood,” by June Wilkinson Dahl, published in 1965 by the Kirkwood Historical Society of Kirkwood, Missouri, pp. 187-192.

Highlights:

• On November 30, 1901, the voters of Kirkwood by a vote of 292 to 86 authorized the aldermen to issue bonds to cover the cost of constructing the necessary facilities for distributing water in Kirkwood.
• On December 21, 1901, the voters returned to the polls and approved the signing of a contract with the Missouri Light and Traction Company to supply “filtered Missouri River water for public, domestic and all other purposes for which water may be used …”
• May, 1902, the aldermen selected Owen Ford as the Supervising Engineer for the “water works” (as the system was called).
• Finally, on October 12, 1903, it appeared that everything was ready. The Board of Aldermen advised the company that it was ready for “the water to be turned on and received by the City into its mains and pipes …” Fifty years had elapsed since the Kirkwood Association had sold lots to potential suburbanites and for the first time Kirkwood had a municipal water supply for both public and private use.
• As of 1911 there were eighty fire hydrants located in various places throughout Kirkwood.
• The Water and Light Company announced that at the expiration of the twenty-year contract on November 23, 1921, it would raise the price of Kirkwood water. The city did not want the increase in rates. In March, 1923, the voters gave their overwhelming approval and when 1924 arrived, Kirkwood residents were enjoying their new waterworks system, now entirely owned and operated by the city.

Full Text:

The installation of a system for the supplying of electrical current to the residents of Kirkwood had not been trouble-free but the problems encountered were relatively minor in comparison to the installation and maintenance of a water supply for the residents. It will be recalled that the trustees had tried vainly to arrange for a municipal water system but their efforts had ended in the courts and residents still depended on wells and cisterns when the aldermanic form of government came into existence.

One of the first problems, therefore, to which the alderman addressed themselves was the acquisition of water both for the use of the city as well as in the homes of Kirkwoodians. The summer of 1900 was a very dry one and many cisterns became perilously low, if not entirely dry, before the rains came to replenish them. Fires continued to take their toll of both public and private property. Something had to be done – and promptly!

The first step was the discussion in the meeting of the Board of Alderman on December 3, 1900, after John Quigley had presented a proposition to supply water to the city. A committee of aldermen, consisting of N.B. Weeks, Theodore B. Bopp, and Maurice Cronin, assisted by T.D. Kimball, M.W. Leet and J.W. Wilkinson, was appointed to consider the proposition. After talking with a committee from Webster Groves, which was attempting to solve the same problem there, the Kirkwood Committee recommended that Kirkwood erect its own water works system and not purchase water from a private company. Various ideas, plans, and systems were discussed by the aldermen and another hot and dry summer came in 1901 without any concrete arrangement for a supply of water. Finally, in August, 1901, Clinton Kimball, as an interested resident anxious to see a supply of water made available, urged the aldermen to employ a consulting engineer to help in making decisions about such a technical matter.

By October 1901, the residents of Kirkwood had become quite alarmed about the failure of the aldermen to produce any tangible evidence of a water system so a mass meeting was held on October 7, 1901. The resolution adopted at the meeting contained four major instructions to the Board of Aldermen: 

1. to acquire “an adequate filtered water supply” from either the Meramec or Missouri Rivers from the lowest bidder.
2. to construction “an adequate system” of water mains, including fire plugs, to be owned by the city of Kirkwood.
3. to secure the approval of the voters of Kirkwood to issue bonds for the construction of the water mains and to contract with a private company for a supply of water.
4. to secure from any commercial water supply company the option to buy their water works system.
5. if possible, to arrange to have water delivered to Kirkwood before July 1, 1902

The aldermen took immediate action after this very definite statement of the wishes of the residents. They advertised for bids to supply water to Kirkwood and received two, the lower of which came from The Missouri Light and Traction Company. On November 30, 1901, the voters of Kirkwood by a vote of 292 to 86 authorized the aldermen to issue bonds to cover the cost of constructing the necessary facilities for distributing water in Kirkwood. On December 21, 1901, the voters returned to the polls and approved the signing of a contract with the Missouri Light and Traction Company to supply “filtered Missouri River water for public, domestic and all other purposes for which water may be used …”

These were vitally important steps. By March, 1902, the company had arranged for office space on the second floor of the Hill building on the corner of Main (Argonne Drive) and Webster (Kirkwood Road) for the two representatives who were supervising the construction of the company’s facilities to supply both Kirkwood and Webster Groves with water since the Missouri Water, Light and Traction Company had secured both contracts.

It soon became apparent that the recommendations which Clinton Kimball and others had made should be followed because the supervision of the construction of a water distribution system within the city of Kirkwood was a very technical matter needing the attention of an engineer. Several applications were received and reviewed, and in May, 1902, the aldermen selected Owen Ford as the Supervising Engineer for the “water works” (as the system was called). His plans and specifications were ready in less than four months, and the aldermen ordered the sale of $25,000 in bonds for the cost of installing the water supply system. On August 29, 1902, the editor of The Kirkwood Argus reported to his readers that the city’s plans to get the water system in operation were moving satisfactorily. The standpipe, according to The Argus, was to be 24 feet in diameter and 110 feet high and was to be located on Swan Avenue between Webster (Kirkwood Road) and Taylor Avenue. The water pumping station was to be built on the southwest corner of Monroe and Taylor Avenues. Water pipes would be laid, said The Argus:

Beginning at Swan and Taylor, south to Main, east to Woodlawn, south to Monroe and east to Clark. Also west on Main to Van Buren, from Swan and Webster south to Woodbine, from Webster west on Essex to Harrison and north one block and south to Cleveland … from Webster to Clay on Adams, from Taylor to a point near Harrison, on Clay between Woodbine and Monroe, Geyer Road between Woodbine and Rose Hill, on Van Buren between Main and Way and on Filmore between Main and St. Louis Avenue …

At the end of another long, hot, dry summer this report was music to the ears of the residents who had not dared to use water from their cisterns for any but the most essential purposes. The editor if The Argus commented early in September, 1902, that grass, flowers, and shrubs, as well as the city streets, and become a great source of concern for lack of water. The streets continued to produce clouds of choking dust and the dead grass was a fire hazard. He concluded his remarks on September 5, 1902, with information eagerly awaited – “The water pipes have arrived and are now being unloaded.” He conveyed another happy bit of news in November, 1902, when he reported:

The pipes for the new waterworks are being laid and the work is progressing rapidly. The full system is to be in operation by the first of April.

The Board of Aldermen proceeded with the business of determining rates to be charged the customers who purchased water. Those who could afford it, of course, were arranging to have water pipes installed in their homes. Others installed hydrants in their yards. The rates were less for users of yard hydrants -- $9 per year plus five cents per front foot and 1/20 of one cent per square foot of area of lot or $15 per year with the privilege of 50 feet of hose, not to exceed 3/8 inches in diameter. The rates were sufficiently reasonable to attract householders, but not all were immediately interested in purchasing water. Some families had sunk deep wells which were providing an adequate supply of water and they probably did not wish to be taxed for another water system.

While the aldermen worked on the establishment of rates to be charged, the pipes were laid in Kirkwood and the distribution system was ready to start functioning. In the meantime, the Missouri Water, Light and Traction Company had been sold to the West St. Louis Water and Light Company which caused a slight delay in the completion of the company’s construction work. Finally, on October 12, 1903, it appeared that everything was ready. The Board of Aldermen advised the company that it was ready for “the water to be turned on and received by the City into its mains and pipes …” Fifty years had elapsed since the Kirkwood Association had sold lots to potential suburbanites and for the first time Kirkwood had a municipal water supply for both public and private use. This is not to imply that water problems were solved in Kirkwood – many of them had not yet begun.

How much easier it was to turn on the tap than to pump the water from the cistern can scarcely be understood by a generation that regards old-fashioned hand pumps as delightfully decorative antiques to be set amid old-fashioned flower gardens. However, almost as soon as the water began to flow through the pipes, the aldermen were confronted with a multitude of problems. Many of these required extensive consideration before decisions could be reached. Among these were the matters of paying for the construction of extensions of the water mains; the cost of supplying water to persons too far from the mains to make connections but who wanted to fill water tanks and haul them to their residences; the problem of low water pressure because of Kirkwood’s high location; the location of a watering trough for horses; the sale of water to the Missouri Pacific Railroad fur use in their engines and for use in the Kirkwood depot; the matter of reduced water rates to schools and other non-profit organizations; the necessity of insulating water pipes to prevent their freezing; the collection of delinquent water bills; providing water for residents outside the town; complaints about meters from customers receiving water; location of fireplugs on the streets of the city; the curtailment of lawn sprinkling during peak hours of consumption during the dry summer moths. Since the city had never had a water system before, there were no precedents to follow so each problem had to be considered before a solution could be reached. Because of the number and variety of problems in connection with the provision of light and water, the aldermen in 1911 created a Board of Public Works to handle the electric light system and the waterworks. This, obviously, relieved the aldermen of two of the problems which required a great portion of their time.

Kirkwood was proud of the very existence of its “water works,” imperfect though it might have seemed at times. A resume of the system, prepared in 1911, indicated that the city had invested $25,000 in the water supply system and was receiving water from the West St. Louis Water and Light Company, which pumped the water from the Missouri River about  a mile and a half west of Creve Coeur Lake along the route of the Rock Island Railroad. From the pumping station the water was piped by the Water and Light Company to the stand pipe on Swan Avenue, and from there it was distributed over twelve miles of water mains, owned by the city and designed by Owen Ford, to Kirkwood customers. As of 1911 there were eighty fire hydrants located in various places throughout Kirkwood. The city of Kirkwood paid the company 12 ½ cents per 1,000 gallons and sold the water to consumers at a considerably higher price, the profits being placed in a special fund for the extension and improvement of the system.

Many early twentieth-century residents remember the problems of the installation of the water works as well as the long-awaited public watering trough for horses which was installed at the east end of the park space on Main Street (Argonne Drive). The installation of such public drinking fountains was a rather frequent occurrence as towns and cities installed municipal water supply systems, and Kirkwood residents wanted all the modern conveniences possible at the time! However, the most suitable location for the fountain was a problem. In 1907, it was moved to Webster Avenue (Kirkwood Road). This was not an ideal location either so it was moved back to Main Street (Argonne Drive).

In May, 1913, Dr. H.G. Wyer brought suit against the City of Kirkwood for damages to his automobile as a result of his striking the drinking fountain! His attorney appeared before the aldermen and reported that Dr. Wyer would withdraw the suit if the city would pay the costs and waive any reciprocal damage suit against him, provided the city would have the fountain remove d from the center of Main Street. Although the official records of the city do not give the details of the doctor’s accident, he evidently was unable to stop or steer away from the drinking fountain. In 1913, family doctors were rather frequently called upon to make night house calls, and since the drinking fountain had no light above it, the doctor obviously was unable to avoid striking it. Finally, the aldermen agreed to pay half of the court costs, put the fountain back in usable condition, and referred its location to the Water Committee of the Board of Aldermen.. The committee felt that the fountain was in a suitable location but that there should be a light above it at night for the benefit of late travelers. However, Dr. Wyer was insistent that it was a hazard so the aldermen decided to avoid future problems and move the fountain fifty feet west of the Missouri Pacific depot. Driving skills improved, street lights were increased, the fountain was out of the middle of the street, and by the time the case was settled Europe was about to go to war so Kirkwoodians turned their attention to other problems.

During World War I, Kirkwood’s water system problems seemed rather small in comparison to the total war effort. However, problems did develop and by 1920 the Water and Light Company had assorted complaints and the aldermen in turn felt that the water pressure in Kirkwood was so low that a booster pump was needed to supply water to all residents. The time for the expiration of the twenty-year contract was approaching and it was clear that some difficulties would arise before a renewal would be possible.

The Board of Aldermen had so many complaints about low water pressure in Kirkwood that it was determined to install a booster pump nest to the standpipe on Swan Avenue. In the meantime, the Water and Light Company announced that at the expiration of the twenty-year contract on November 23, 1921, it would raise the price of water to Kirkwood from 16 2/3 cents to 25 cents per 1,000 gallons. With this announcement, the battle lines were drawn! The city did not want the increase in rates; the Water and Light Company insisted that it could not continue to supply water at the present rate. The matter was taken to the Missouri Public Service Commission in Jefferson City, which suspended the effective date of the new rates until the problems could be thoroughly investigated. Much legal maneuvering followed, including an appeal of the first decision reached by the Public Service Commission. However, the original decision was upheld, and the aldermen were told that Kirkwood would be required to pay the increased cost of water received from the Water and Light Company.

The city appealed the case further and in December, 1922, the decision was reversed by the Cole County Court. Kirkwood’s attorneys felt certain the Water and Light Company would appeal to the Missouri Supreme Court for approval of the increased rates so the aldermen requested the engineer, C.E. Smith, who had been retained in an advisory capacity during the litigation, to investigate the possibility of Kirkwood’s constructing its own water pumping station and obtaining its own water supply.

Mr. Smith’s report to the aldermen seemed feasible so an election was held on February 10, 1923, to determine whether Kirkwood voters wished to increase the city’s indebtedness to “construct, extend, enlarge and improve water works.” The voters gave their overwhelming approval by a vote of 792 to 162. With this authority in hand, the aldermen arranged for the issuing of $105,000 in water-works bonds in March, 1923 and steps were taken as rapidly as possible. Mr. Smith was retained to supervise the construction of the pumping system, four test wells were sunk, and the aldermen authorized the purchase of the property at Andrews and Rose Hill Avenues for the new waterworks. The test wells had proved satisfactory so two permanent wells were sunk and the intake pump was installed on the banks of the Meramec River near Meramec Highlands. Since the water mains had already been installed throughout the city, the Meramec River water was turned on as soon as the “treatment” plant was finished. When 1924 arrived, Kirkwood residents were enjoying their new waterworks system, now entirely owned and operated by the city.

Unfortunately, it became evident very soon after the new system began to operate that the amount of water being pumped from the Meramec River was inadequate for Kirkwood’s use but the Board of Aldermen did not want to announce this publicly. When the Glendale Board of Aldermen asked to purchase water from Kirkwood, the Kirkwood Board of Aldermen simply “postponed action!” To rectify the insufficient supply of water, the aldermen asked Kirkwoodians to approve another bond issue on July 18, 1926, to enlarge the waterworks system. Other improvements and several enlargements of the system have followed but Kirkwood has maintained its municipal ownership of the water supply system up to the present.

The availability of water for drinking and household use was a real convenience and an added comfort to Kirkwoodians but one of the reasons for urgency in getting the system into actual operations was the desperate need for fire protection. The loss of the high school building in a fire of undetermined origin in 1900 was a severe blow to Kirkwood’s residents and the loss of other public and private buildings created a sense of urgency in securing fire protection.