Norwalk After Two Hundred & Fifty Years

The city's original plant for street lighting", now a part of the enlarged electrical system for both public and commercial service, was authorized to be establish- ed after several meetings had been held in 1891-92 to consider the subject of a municipal plant, with the result that a favorable vote of the citizens was cast and $22,500 appropriated for the construction of such a plant. The plant was constructed under the direction of a committee composed of Joseph A. Volk, appoint- ed by city meeting, Gen'l Nelson Taylor and Edwin Adams, appointed by the Common Council. Albert E. Winchester was selected as consulting engineer to design and supervise the work. Apart of the "Old Nursery" property located on the south side of State Street, adjoining the N. Y., N. H. & H. R. R., was purchased as a site for the station building Ground was broken in the spring of 1892 and on the evening of October 13th, of the same year, the new lighting- system was regularly started. The original installation consisted of the middle section of the present building, (which is now nearly- double its original size) an iron smoke stack, one horizontal tubular boiler, an engine, feed water heater, pump, injector, all necessary piping, two 60 light arc dynamos, switch-board, all necessary electrical ap- pliances, tools, office fixtures, and a pole line system, supplying 86 arc lamps, all of which are in regular service at the present, except the iron smoke stack, which was replaced by the large brick chimney, made necessary by the addition of the commercial system. After the public lighting system had been in operation for several years, a petition headed by Isaac S. Jennings, one of the original promotors of the plant, was submitted to the Common Council, re- questing the appointment of a committee to investi- gate and report on the advisability of enlarging the plant for the purpose of supplying commercial electric lighting. In compliance with the petition the Com- mon Council appointed the following committee: Councilmen Stephen S. Hatch, Frank N. Ferris, Oliver E. Weed, City Attorney John H. Light and Electrical Commissioners Joseph A. Volk, Col. Leslie Smith and Albert E. Winchester. Nearly two years were devo- ted to a most careful investigation of the subject, 383 covering municipal and other electric light plants in all parts of the United States and a favorable report was submitted to the Common Council that was unan- imously adopted. It was also commented upon by- leading electrical journals as being a reliable and un- biased authority of the times upon the subject of mu- nicipal ownership of electric light plants. The matter was then brought before a city meeting held October 26, 1897, and a favorable vote was cast authorizing the construction of a commercial addition to the existing system under the direction of the Board of Electrical Commissioners, Joseph A. Volk, Col. Leslie Smith and Albert E. Winchester, and appropriating the sum of $20,000 called for in the report to cover the cost of construction. Work was immediately started. Mr. Winchester being again selected by his brother com- missioners to design and supervise the construction of the new system, and commercial lighting was supplied for the first time on the evening of August 1, 1898. The system was run under test until the 13th of the following October, when it took its place as part of the city's enlarged electrical service, at which time the combined plant was placed upon a practical commer- cial basis. A fixed rate being established for street arc lamps as well as for all other out-put, thus ena- bling the plant, under favorable circumstances, to pay its expenses from its own legitimate income similar to a private corporation. This being, as far as known, the first municipal electric light plant to operate upon a practical business standard, under which municipal ownership must be successful. The commercial branch had not been in operation a year before the demand for electric lighting became so great that the plant was taxed to its full capacity. It became at once apparent that the commercial branch would have to be speedily enlarged and Commissioner Winchester was once more selected by the other mem- bers of the Board, Commissioners Volk and Smith, to design an enlargement of the commercial branch, doubling its capacity and obtain estimates on the cost of same. In the early part of May, 1900, a report was submitted to the Common Council recommending the enlargement at a cost of $17,500. The Common Council gave unanimous approval and called a citizens' meeting on the evening of May 15, 1900, to take final action. The city meeting unanimously appropriated $17,500 and authorized the Electrical Commissioners to proceed with the contemplated enlargement, which was started without further delay. The enlargement was built, placed in operation and is now heavily taxed to meet the demand for lighting and power that con- tinues unabated. The day power system for motor service which had for several years been operated for the city by the former Norwalk Tramway Co. was bought outright on June 29, 1901, by the Electrical Commissioners from the Connecticut Railway & Lighting Co. It was immediately connected with the station by an independent feeder and the distributing mains were replaced with larger ones extending over a much greater area. By the end of the year 1901 so great had become the demands upon the plant, that early in 1902 the Board of Electrical Commissioners submitted to the Council a request for a special city meeting, to consid- er appropriating an additional $15,000.00 to enlarge the plant and to purchase equipment therefor. At a special city meeting, held October 28, 1902, the citi- zens voted an appropriation of $15,000. to enlarge the plant, and also voted to establish the meter system to measure electricity furnished for commercial light- ing, appropriating $5,000. for this latter purpose. The Commissioners are taking the necessary steps to carry out the purposes of these two appropriations. The station is a substantial brick structure practi- cally fire-proof, with slate roof on which are two cu- polas. The building proper is one and a half stories high, of rectangular form, 48 feet wide by 109 feet long with a coal house extension on the east of 100 tons storage capacity, opening into the fire room. On the west side are located a battery room containing the city's fire alarm batteries, a repair room, a test room and a stock room. The interior of the main building is divided by a fire wall into an engine room and boiler room. The boiler room contains a battery of four 125 horse-power horizontal tubular boilers, a feed water heater, an in- jector, a fire hose, coal weighing scales, an iron smoke flue from the boilers to the 500 horse-power brick chimney. Above the roof is a large steam whistle for fire and other calls. The chimney is a massive struc- ture, 91 feet high, built up from a natural bed rock foundation, and is provided with an iron ladder, sec- tional cast iron cap and copper lightning rod. In the base of the chimney is a fire-proof safe deposit vault 385 for city records. The engine room which is connected with the boiler room by a large sliding door, contains a ioo horse-power "Ideal "high speed engine belted direct to two 60 light "Western Electric" arc dynamos, four 100 horse-power "Watertown" high speed en- gines each connected direct to a 60 K. W. compound 220 volt multipolar dynamo, two of the dynamos are of the Siemens & Halske and two of the Eddy types, a large fully equipped marbleized slate switch-board on which are mounted all controlling devices for both the high tension arc, and the low tension commercial lighting and power circuits. The remaining equip- ment is composed of a fire alarm switch-board with a gong, a telephone, damper regulator, an additional 200 horse-power feed water heater, two steam feed water pumps, etc. The steam piping is covered with "Nonpareil" cork covering neatly painted. At the front end of this room is a gallery, under which are the main entrance, general office, private office and dressing room ; the offices communicate with each other and the engine room and are provided with a long distance telephone, desks, chairs, safe, etc., the dressing room contains individual clothes lockers, sink and toilet. Convenient to the main entrance is located a fire alarm box. Both engine and boiler rooms have large double outside doors through which the largest machinery may be handled. The boiler room floor is composed of bricks laid on edge in cement, except in front of the boilers where blue stone flagging is laid. The other rooms have concrete floors. All doors opening through brick partitions are fire-proof. Fifteen electrical circuits radiate from the station throughout the city, two are high tension mains supplying all arc lamps in the streets ; four are low tension feeders, one for the day light and power system and one double and two single for commercial lighting connected to centers of distribution of the "crib" system of commercial mains, three are pressure wires, from outside feeder ends, one is a service from the mains to light the station and the remaining four are circuits of the fire alarm system connected with all fire alarm boxes, bells, etc., of the fire department The executive staff consists of a non-partisan board of three Electrical Commissioners appointed by the Common Council, each for the term of three years, one commissioner being appointed annually. As com- 386 missioners, the members of the board draw no salaries, but they have the power to make appointments from their own members, to any position on the salaried list of the operating staff. Their titles are President, Secretary and Treasurer and General Superintendent. It is their duty to have charge of the operation and maintenance of the city's electric light, fire alarm sys- tem and other electrical details of the city. The operating staff is composed of the above General Superintendent, two Engineers, two Linemen one Trimmer and two Firemen, who are appointed by the Commissioners on the qualifications of merit only.