Three Rivers Water Filtration Plant

Three Rivers Water Filtration Plant. . , The Three Rivers Water Filtration Plant was constructed between 1931 and 1933 as a solution to persistent difficulties suffered by the growing city of Fort Wayne in obtaining a sufficient quantity of safe drinking water., Before the 1870s, water was drawn from the rivers, springs, and creeks that flowed into the confluence or from shallow wells, cisterns, and even the stagnant waters of the canal. The rapidly growing population brought increased fire hazards, and epidemics of water-borne diseases, such as cholera and typhoid, were not uncommon., In 1879, a new water supply system was built using deep wells with steam-powered pumping stations and a great reservoir tank on the south side of town (present-day Reservoir Park). For half a century this was the heart of the water system, but the quality of the water and the dependability of the supply were difficult to maintain., In the early 1930s, Mayor William Hosey proposed the construction of a filtration plant to treat river water effectively. Today the filtration plant system produces tens of millions of gallons of safe drinking water each day, meeting health, safety, and convenience demands of the modern city, and holds tens of millions of gallons in reserve., This $2.5 million project during the Great Depression was the first federally funded project in Fort Wayne; it was heralded as one of the finest public works projects in the nation.