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HomeMy WebLinkAboutKitchener Water CommissionCity of Kitchener Archives Kitchener Water Commission fonds, 1899-1999. Prepared by: Christina Pflug June 2000 Updated by: Hilda Sturm August 2011 KITCHENER WATER COMMISSION fonds. - 1889-1999. - 102 cm of textual records and 1 artifact. Over the course of 74 years, the Kitchener Water Commission has made a significant contribution to the community. It was devoted to providing the community of Kitchener with a clean and reliable supply of water - a service that is crucial to the growth of any urban area. The Commission has its beginnings in 1888 with the establishment of The Berlin Waterworks Company which was owned by the American company, Moffett, Hodgins, and Clarke (several spelling variations in the records). As the Berlin Waterworks approached the end of its ten-year franchise, the town of Berlin investigated the possibility of purchasing the waterworks and making it a public utility. It concluded that this would be a wise decision and in 1898, the town bought the Berlin Waterworks Company. From then on, it was known as the Berlin Water Commission. While the general responsibility of the Commission was to supply the growing town with water, it was also involved in various tasks such as conducting regular water quality tests, maintaining the equipment and purchasing new machinery to ensure that the system was always current and installing water pipes and mains to provide new customers with water. In addition, the Commission was responsible for installing fire hydrants throughout the city, a service that was essential for the successful execution of the fire protection program. In 1900, the commission decided to not use the water directly from Shoemaker Lake, but instead began drilling wells close to the pumping station. This resulted in better quality water. In 1916, the Commission acknowledged that in a period of high demand, their current water supply would not be sufficient to meet the demands of the ever-growing population and they entered into negotiations with the Waterloo Water Commission regarding the possibility of obtaining water during periods of extreme need. A contract was formalized in 1917. In 1920, with the conclusion of this contract, another three-year agreement was made. It should be noted that in 1948, after 50 years of service, John C. Breithaupt retired from the Commission. For 49 of the 50 years, he served as chairman to the Commission. Late in 1964 construction on a new building for the Commission commenced and was completed in September 1965. The official opening of the new Water Commission headquarters was held on December 1, 1965. In 1972 the Kitchener Water Commission was dissolved and its responsibilities were taken over by a new regional program. The Commission held its final meeting on December 28, 1972. The fonds consists primarily of minutes, annual reports and financial records, however, the minutes and reports also contain some accounting information. The annual reports cover the periods 1899-1950 and 1958-1971 and the minutes cover the entire existence of the Commission. The financial records span the years 1920-1972. There are duplicate copies of several annual reports. The earlier reports contain photographs of the Commissioners and the various pumps and pumping stations. Reports marking an anniversary of the Commission contain a brief historical overview of the Commission and provide a comparison of the state of the waterworks at its inception with that of the particular anniversary. The fonds also consists of a seal from the Water Commissioner. Additional information was found by city staff and added to the fonds. This material includes service records, water applications, newspaper articles, memos and a letter book. Title based on the contents of the fonds. Records transferred to the City of Kitchener upon the dissolution of the Commission. 1: Minutes. - 1914-1980. - 33 cm. This series consists of minutes of the Commission. In addition to reporting the decisions and activities of the Commission throughout the years, the minutes also contain some accounting information. An index of the minutes is available in Appendix A. 2: Annual Reports. - 1899-1971. -19cm. This series contains the annual reports of the Commission and includes duplicate copies of several reports. The reports are both bound volumes that contain individual reports and loose leaf reports. The earlier annual reports contain photographs. The reports provide a detailed account of the activities of the Commission for the particular year and those reports marking milestones are especially useful as they contain a brief history of the Commission. An index of the annual reports is available in Appendix B. 3: Financial Records. -1920-1998. - 50cm. This series consists of some financial records of the Commission. They comprise of one current ledger (1920-1972), several bank pass-books (1961- 1972), one trial balance (1964-1972), one cash book (1970-1972), one Disbursement Ledger (1969-1972) and sample applications. An index of the financial records is available in Appendix C. 4: Artifact. - 1 item. This series consists of a seal from the Water Commissioner. An index of the financial records is available in Appendix D APPENDIX A Series 1: Minutes Title Date Volume/Item Box Minutes 1914-1916 1-1 10732 Minutes 1917-1919 1-2 10732 Minutes 1920-1923 1-3 10732 Minutes 1924-1927 1-4 10732 Minutes 1928-1931 1-5 10732 Minutes 1932-1935 1-6 10732 Minutes 1936-1939 1-7 10732 Minutes 1940-1943 1-8 10732 Minutes 1944-1947 1-9 10732 Minutes 1948-1951 1-10 10732 Minutes 1952-1955 1-11 10732 Minutes 1956-1959 1-12 10732 Minutes 1960-1963 2-1 10731 Minutes 1964-1966 2-2 10731 Minutes 1967-1968 2-3 10731 Minutes 1969-1970 2-4 10731 Minutes 1971-1972 2-5 10731 Historical information re: members of the commission 1960-1980 2-6 10731 Reference to Minutes of the Kitchener Water Commission 1920-1970 7-4 10941 Kitchener Water Commission memos 1967-1971 9-1 11193 100 Years of Water Supply 1999 9-2 11193 Letter Book 1914-1909 11-1 13515 APPENDIX B Series 2: Annual Reports Title Date Volume/Item Box Annual Reports 1899-1924 2-7 10731 Annual Reports 1925-1950 2-8 10731 Annual Reports 1899-1922 2-9 10731 Annual Reports 1904 & 1908 3-1 10733 Annual Reports 1919-1929 3-2 10733 Annual Reports 1930-1939 3-3 10733 Annual Reports 1958-1963 3-4 10733 Annual Reports 1964-1968 3-5 10733 Annual Reports 1969-1971 3-6 10733 Rules & Regulations 1902 3-7 10733 APPENDIX C Series 3: Financial Records Title Date Volume/Item Box Current Ledger 1920-1972 4-1 10835 Bank Pass Book 1961-1972 4-2 10835 Trial Balance 1964-1972 4-3 10835 Cash Book 1970-1972 4-4 10835 Sample Applications 1942-1973 4-5 10835 Disbursement Ledger 1969-1972 6-1 12718 Water Service Information 1920-1954 7-1 10941 Services 1953-1979 7-2 10941 Water Main/ Service Costs 1963-1977 7-3 10941 Diary Orders 1920-1966 7-5 10941 Services 8-1 10939 Customer Information System Fit Analysis Workbook 1998 8-2 10939 Mains/ Old Budgets 1975-1980 8-3 10939 Mains 1947-1978 8-4 10939 Services Binder 1955-1975 8-5 10939 O. M. W.A. Accounting Index 1958-1973 8-6 10939 Water Service Diary Orders 1920-1956 8-7 10939 Services on prepaid streets 1953-1979 8-8 10939 Water Service applications 1986-1998 10-1 13598 Berlin Water Works Connections 1888-1898 12-1 13713 Service Record books 1913-1981 12-2 13713 APPENDIX D Series 4: Artificat Title Date Volume/Item Box Water Commissioner Seal 1920-1972 5-1 10138