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• Overview
• Arrangement
• Scope and Contents
• Access Restrictions
• Processing Information

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New York State War Council Office of Civilian Protection Local Water Companies Survey and Equipment Inventory

Some content may contain outdated and offensive terminology. See: New York State Archives Statement on Language in Descriptive Resources

Overview of the Records

Arrangement

Numerical by zone, then alphabetical by municipality.

Scope and Content Note

This series contains surveys of local water companies detailing personnel, equipment, supplies, and facilities. This information was collected by the Office of Civilian Protection to prepare for the needs caused by possible enemy bombing including fires and the destruction of water supplies.

Each 36-page survey form lists the total number of personnel of each water company involved in operations and pipe laying, as well as the number and size of supplies such as: collector branches; couplings; hydrants, adapters, and valves; pipes; plugs, caps, and offsets; reducers and increasers; solid, split, tapping, and other sleeves; and tees, crossers, and bends.

Also listed is equipment available within the municipality such as: bulldozers; chlorinators and chemical supplies; fire engines and portable pumps; floodlights; leak detectors; milk trucks and other trucks which could haul water; motors, hoists, and pulleys; pipe locators; tapping, wet cut, and cutting machines; and tractors, compressors, and cranes.

The form also includes the names and addresses of water superintendents, water works experts, and consultants, as well as laboratories which could test for bacteriological and chemical purity, chlorinators at private facilities, reservoirs and elevated tanks, and pumping stations.

Also discussed or found in the form are: brief descriptions of the existing, possible, or proposed (if any) interconnections between public water systems or other water supplies; the level of documentation of water systems; the types of cooperation with local fire departments, other utilities, and local defense plants; the existence of training programs; and sabotage threats and their deterrence.

A4389-15: This accretion consists of one New York map depicting emergency water supply zones and giving information on water supply coordinators and the stations to which they were to report in the event of air raids.

Processing Information

This series was originally accessioned as box 366 of old collection #77, accession -71.

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions regarding access to or use of this material.