robert morse - water filtration plant

7/24/2019 Robert Morse - Water Filtration Plant

1/48

ROBERT MORSEWATERFILTRATIONPLANT

AER

MD-166

Washington

Suburban

Sanitary

Commission,

BurntMills

Facility D 66

10700

and

10701

Columbia

Pike

SilverSpring

Montgomery

Maryland

PHOTOGRAPHS

WRITTEN

HISTORICAL

AND

DESCRIPTIVEDATA

REDUCEDCOPIES

OFMEASURED

DRAWINGS

FIELDRECORDS

HISTORIC

AMERICAN

ENGINEERING

RECORD

NationalPark

Service

U.S.

Departmentof

the

Interior

1849

C

Street

NW

Washington,

DC

20240-0001


2/48

HISTORIC

AMERICAN

ENGINEERING

RECORD

ROBERTB.MORSEWATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

(Washington

Suburban

Sanitary

Commission,

BurntMills

Facility)

HAERNo.

MD-166

Location:

10700

and

10701

ColumbiaPike,Silver

Spring,

Montgomery

County,Maryland

TheRobertB .MorseWaterFiltrationPlantis

located

at

UTM

Zone

18 ,

easting

326353.847m,

northing

4321863.204m.he

coordinaterepresentsth eapproximate

center

ofth eHigh-Lift

Pumping

Station.

his

coordinate

was

obtained

on

April

15,

2009,

byplottingitslocation

on

th e

Kensington,

MDUSGS Digital

RasterGraphicinESRI

ArcGIS

9.2.he

accuracy

ofth e

coordinatesis+/-12meters.The coordinatedatumis

North

American

Datum

1927

CONUS.

Present

Owner:

Present

Use:

Significance:

Historian:

Maryland-National

CapitalParkan d

Planning

Commission

BurntMills

East

and

Burnt

MillsWest

parks

now

encompass

th esiteofth e

former

RobertB.

Morse

Water

Filtration

Plantan d

contain

trails

an d

parking

lotsforvisitors.he

former

pumping

stations

currently

stand

vacant.

Constructed

by th e

Washington

Suburban Sanitary

Commission

an d

opened

in

1936,

th e

Robert

B.Morse

Water

Filtration

Plant

is

significant

for

itsunique

filterassembly

designed

by

Chief

Engineer

RobertB.Morse.

ather

thanlocating th estepsofth e

filtrationprocess

(sedimentation,

flocculation,

filtration

an d

storage)

inseparate

structures,

Morse

designed

afilterassembly

that

incorporated

nearly

al lth esteps

into

on e

circular

structure.

Although

th efilterassemblieswereremovedafter

th eplantw as

taken

offline

in

1962,

elements

of

th e

filtrationprocess

remain.

Thesiteisalso

significantin

th e

history

of

th e

development

of

municipal

watersystems,bothin

th eWashington,D.C.,

metropolitan

region

and

in

th e

United

States.

Justine

Christianson,

HAER

Historian,2008


3/48

ROBERT

B.

MO RSE

WATE R

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAERNo.MD-166

(Page

2)

Project

Information:heHistoric

American

Engineering

Record

(HAER)isa

long-

range

program

thatdocumentsan dinterpretshistorically

significantengineering

sites

and

structures

throughout

th e

United

States.

A ERis

part

of

Heritage

Documentation

Programs

(Richard

O'Connor,

Manager),

a

division

of

th e

National

Park

Service,

United

States

Departmentofth e

Interior.

he

RobertB .

Morse

Water

Filtration

Plantrecordingproject

w as

undertaken

in

cooperation

withth e

Maryland-National

CapitalParkan d

Planning

Commission's

(M-NCPPC)

CulturalResourcesStewardship

Section

(CRSS),

Park

Planning

&

Stewardship

Division,

Elizabeth

Jo

Lampl,

Manager.

hristopher

Marston,

HAER

Architect,

served

as

projectleader.ulianneMueller(CRSS)oversaw the

project

an d

provided

access

toth e

site.lden

Watts

(CRSS)

providedresearch

assistance.

he

HAER

field

team

consisted

of

WillDickinson,volunteer

Laila

Sharafi,an dAnnaAranovich.

Renee

Bieretz

an d

Je t

Lowe,

HAER,

produced

th e

large

format

photographs.

ustine

Christianson,

HAER,

served

as

th e

project

historian.


4/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page3)

Part

I.

istorical

Information

A.

hysicalHistoryof

Buildings:

The

Washington

Suburban

Sanitary

Commission

(WSSC)

built

the

Robert

B .

Morse

Water

Filtration

Plant

and

opened

it

for

operation

in

1936.

olesville

Road

(also

known

as Columbia

Pike

andU.S.

Route29)

bisectsthe

site

onwhichtheremains

ofthe

plant

arelocated.

he

Northwest

Branch

oftheAnacostia

River,

whose

watertheplant

filtered,

bordersthe

site

to

the

south

and

west.soriginally

constructed,the

components

oftheplantincludedadam,

preliminarysedimentation

basin,

low-liftpumpingstation

with

two

adjacentaerators,

hydropumping

station,

outbuilding,twofilterassemblies,

high-lift

pumping

station,

two

wash

water

tanks,

and

high

tension

substation.

heplant

hada10 milliongallon/daycapacity(acommonunitof

water-usemeasurement,

usually

abbreviated

as

Mgd)

andcould

serve

75,000

customers

according

to

a

1935

article

written

by

its

designer,

Robert

B .

Morse. Thefilterassemblies

consisted

of

concentric

ringsaroundacentralwell,whichcontaineda pipevault

topped

byacontrolhouse.he

ring

circling

the

central

well

was

divided

into

four

filters.

he

next

ring

served

as

the

coagulating

basin,

and

the

outermostringstored

thefilteredwater.

he

WSSC

dismantledandremovedthe

filter

assembliesandmachineryaftertheclosure

of

theplant

in1962.urrently,the

site

consists

ofthe

dam,

high-liftandlow-liftpumpingstations,a

parking

lot

on

top

oftheformer

preliminary

sedimentation

basin,

high

tensionsubstation,

andasmall

brick

outbuildingto

the

rearof

thelow-lift

pumpingstation.

The

WSSCdestroyedtheoriginaldocuments

anddrawingsrelatingtothe

design,

construction

and

operation

ofthe

plant,

which

has

madedescribingthestructures

and

the

operationoftheplantdifficult.obertB .Morse,ChiefEngineeroftheWSSCwho

designedthisplant,

publisheda few

articles

detailing

its

designand

operation.hese,

coupled

with

several

extant

copies

of

drawings

held

by

the

Maryland-National

Capital

Park

andPlanningCommission,photographs,andWSSCpublications,provide

the

basis

for

boththephysicalhistoryof

theplant'sbuildingsand thedescriptionofitsoperation.

Both

the

extant

anddismantledstructures

originally

constructed

as

partof

theplant

are

described

in

this

section

of

thereport

while

thelater

section

detailingthecurrent

state

of

thesitedescribesonlytheextant

structures.

1

Robert

B.

Morse, Th e

Ne w

Water Purification

Works

at

Burnt

Mills,

Maryland, Journal

ofth e

AmericanWater

Works

27,no.

6

(June

1935):

p.

679.

he

low-liftpumping

station

is

variously

referred to

asthehead

house

and

raw

waterpumping

station,

whilethe

high-lift

pumping

station

is

alsoknownasthehighservicepumping

station.

2

Thisdescriptionisbasedonsite

visitsmade

in

May-June

2008

bythe

fieldteam.

3

Morse

acknowledgedthe

aidof AssistantEngineerCharles

O .Wherley

indevelopingmany

details

forwhich no

precedentappearedat

hand

inhis

article,

Features

of

the Ne wWater P urification WorksatBurntMills,

Maryland, Water

Works

andSewerage LXXXI,no.

6

(June

1934):p.182.


5/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page4)

Dam(Extant):

1.

ateofConstruction:

The

dam

was

constructedfrom1929-30

at

acostof

$94,000

andreplacedan

earlier

dam

at

thissite.t

wascompleted

in

May

1930.

2.

rchitect/Engineer:

The

engineer

who

designed

the

damisnot

known,but

presumably

it

was

someoneemployed

by

the

WSSC,perhapsMorse

himself.

3.

uilder/Contractor/Supplier:

Thebuilderofthe

damisunknown,

but

it

mayhavebeen

built

by

the

WSSC's

daylaborforce

sincetheywereresponsibleforconstructingthepumping

stations.

4.

riginalPlans:

The

original

plans

have

not

been

discovered

for

the

dam,

but

contemporary

accounts

doexist

thatinclude

descriptions

ofits

as-built

condition.

ocated

in

a narrow,shallowgorgecharacterizedbycomparativelysteepsidesandaflat

rockbottom, the

Ambursen-type,

reinforced

concrete

dammeasures

215' in

total

length

with

a

150'

longspillwayandhasa60'thick

base.

he

downstream

face

is

ogee-shaped(meaningit

hasa

slightlyS-shaped

profile),

whiletheupstreamside

is

flatwitha1: 1slope. Theheightof

thespillway

above

thewaterlevel

has

beenvariouslyrecorded

as

20',22',and23'. The

height

ofthedam

has

been

recorded

as

30'

and32'.

Asbuilt,the

damcreatedanapproximately1.5

mile-longreservoircovering

13.5

acres

with

a

30

million

gallon

capacity.

he

primary

purpose

of

the

dam,

however,wasnottocreatea reservoir

buttoraise

the

level

of

the

Northwest

Branch

of

theAnacostiaRiverenough

to

allow

water

to

flowbygravityfrom

the

dam

to

the

filtration

plant.

he

installationof

4'

wood

flashboards,

which

wereput

in

place

usually

between

Apriland

October,

increased

capacityto

50

milliongallons.heflashboardsfellwhenthe

water

levelreached3.3'above

their

tops.

he

dam's

spillway

had

adischarge

capability

of8,000

cubic

4

Washington

Suburban

SanitaryCommission(WSSC),

Burnt

Mills

Dam,

Press

Release,

March

1966,

unpaginated.

5

FarrellF.

Barnes an dCarlB .

Brown,

Advance

Report

on th e

Sedimentation SurveyofBurnt MillsReservoir,

Silver

Spring,

Maryland,

February

22-March

3,

1938, U.S.

Department

of

Agriculture,

Sedimentation

Studies,

DivisionofResearch,

in

cooperationwith

the

Maryland

Agricultural

Experiment

Station,

January

1939,

p.

3.

6

WashingtonSuburban SanitaryCommission, A Brief

DetailedDescription

ofthe

Robert

B .

MorseFilterPlant

an d

Appurtenant

Works

at

Burnt

Mills,

Maryland, June

8,

1936,

unpaginated,

gives

thespillway

height

as

20'.n

an

article

entitled The New

Water

Purification

Works

at

Burnt

Mills,Maryland, Journal

ofth e

AmericanW a t e r

W o r k s

27 ,

no .

6(June

1935):

p.

680,Morsestatesth espillway

measured

22 'above

original

water

levelin

th e

stream.

Barnesand

Brown,

Advance

Report

on

the

Sedimentation

Survey, p.

3,give the

height

as

23'

aboveth e

lowestpart

ofthechannel.

7

WSSC,

Burnt

Mills

Dam, unpaginated,givesthe

da m

height

as

30'

aboveth e

stream

bed;Barnes an d

Brown,

AdvanceReportonthe

Sedimentation Survey, p.3,

statest

is

32'.


6/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page

5)

feet/second.

woscreened

intakes

arelocated

in

the

dam

abutment

where

water

fromthe

reservoir

passed

into

thepipes

thatled to

thefiltering

operation.

5.

Alterations

and

Additions:

Theflashboards

are

no

longerinstalledon the

dam.

heirabandonment

probably

dates

to

the

1962closure

ofthe

plant.

Aerators(Removed):

1.

ate

ofConstruction:

Thetwo

aerators

were

presumably

installed

with

the

construction

ofthe

low-

liftpumpingstationin

1936.

2.

upplier:

Theaeratorswerethe Aer-O-Mix brand.

4.

riginal

Plans:

Theaeratorshada6milliongallon/day(Mgd)ratingandwere located

adjacenttothe

low-liftpumpingstationwithinextantconcrete

structures.

Blowersalso

provided

additional

air to

the

aerator's

U-tubes

when

10

necessary.

5.

lterations

andAdditions:

The

aerators

have

beenremoved,

probably

as

part

of

the1962

closure

ofthe

plant.

11

Preliminary

Sedimentation

Basin

(also

referred

to

as

the

Preliminary

Sedimentation

Reservoir)

(Extantbutaltered):

1.

ate

ofConstruction:

The

preliminary

sedimentation

basin

had

been

finished

by

spring

1934.

2.

rchitect/Engineer:

Robert

B .

Morse

designed

theplant,

withassistancefromCharles

O.

Wherley.

8

WSSC,

Burnt

MillsDam, unpaginated;WSSC,

A

Brief

Detailed Description,

unpaginated;

Barnes

andBrown,

Advance

Report

onthe

Sedimentation

Survey,

p.

3 .

9

Morse,

Features

of

the

Ne wWater

Purification

Works, p.

179;

Morse,

New

Water Purification

Works, p.681.

10

Morse,

New

Water

Purification Works, p.

681.

1 1

Th e

December

11,1961

edition

of

T heWashington PostcontainedinformationaboutWSSCContractNo. 3283,

whichinvolved dismantling

andremovingthe

site's

steel

filter

units,

steel

standpipes,

pumping

equipmentand

piping(p.B9).

12

Morse,

Features

oftheNewWater P urification

Works,

p.179.


7/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page6)

3.


Althoughthe

builderof

thepreliminarysedimentation

basin

is

unknown,the

WSSC's

daylabor

force

may

have

beenresponsibleforits

construction

since

theyalso

built

the

pumping

stations.

4.

riginalPlans:

According

tocontemporary

descriptions,the

concrete

preliminary

sedimentation

basin

measured110'

wide

x

200'

long.

he

inletend

measured

8.5'deep,the

center

was

13'

and the

outletend

was

shallowestat6'

deep.

The

capacity

of

the

basin

was1.7

million

gallons,

which

allowedfora

sedimentation

period

of

three-and-a-half

to

four

hours. An

automaticvalve

on the

inletline

controlledthe

basin's

water

levelwithin6 to

prevent

overflowing.

5.

lterationsandAdditions:

As

part

of

the

plant's

1962

closure,

the

WSSC

filled

in

the

basin

and

built

a

parking

lot

ontop.

he

concrete

wall

surrounding

the

originalbasin

is still

extantandformsthe

perimeter

oftheparking

lot.

hewall

contains

tracesof

thepiperailingthatwas

originallylocatedon top

of

thewall.ightstandards

once

circled

the

perimeter

of

the

basin,

butnowonly

five

light

poles

remain.

Outbuilding(Extant):

1.

ateof

Construction:

Theoutbuilding

was

probably

constructed

at thesame

time

as

the

rest

ofthe

plant

sinceit

is

stylisticallysimilartothepumpingstations.

2.

rchitect/Engineer:

RobertB .Morsedesignedthe

plant,

withassistancefrom

Charles

O.Wherley.

3.


Althoughthe

builderof

theoutbuilding

is

unknown,

theWSSC'sday

labor

forcemayhavebeenresponsible

for

itsconstructionsincetheyalsobuiltthe

pumping

stations.

4.

riginalPlans:

The

ColonialRevival

style

outbuilding,

located

at

the

eastend

of

the

preliminary

sedimentation

basin,

is

not

described

in

contemporary

accounts

of

the

plant.

ts

location

suggests

that

the

building

originally

may

have

housed

valves

to

controlwater

flow

tothepreliminarysedimentationbasinand/or

the

hydro

pumping

station.

he

only

clue

tothebuilding's

lateruse

is

asetof

papers

datingto

November

1968

and

distributed

by the

AT&TCompany

that

are

tackedtothebackwall.

hepapersprovide

informationabouttheN2

1 3

Morse, Ne wWaterPurification Works, p.681.SSC, BriefDetailed Description, unpaginated,

givesthe

depthsof

thebasinasrangingfrom6.9'-13.9'.

14

WSSC, Brief


unpaginated;

Morse, Ne wWaterPurification

Works,

p.681.


8/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page7)

Repeater,

Repeated

High-Frequency

Line,N2

Repeater-To-Nl

and

-NlA

Adapters.

Hydro

Pumping

Station

(Removed):

1.

ate

of

Construction:

The

foundation

ofthehydropumpingstation

had

beencompletedbyspring

1934,

and

the

station

began

operating

in

Novemberof

thatyear.

2.

rchitect/Engineer:

Robert

B .

Morse

designed

theplant,

withassistancefromCharles

O.

Wherley.

3.


Althoughthebuilderofthehydropumpingstationisunknown,the

WSSC's

day

labor

force

may

have

beenresponsiblefor

its construction

since

theyalso

builtthepumpingstations.

4.

riginal

Plans:

Thehydropumpingstationhasbeenremovedandnoplans

for

it

havebeen

found,butcontemporarydescriptions

oftheplantprovide

some

information.

According

to

Morse,the

WSSC

built

thehydro

pumping

station

to

take

advantage

of

theabundant

water

supply

provided

by the

Northwest

Branch

andaugmentthehigh-liftpumpingstation'scapacity.heone-storybrick

structuremeasuring30'ong

x

16'

wide

was

originallylocatednearthe

Northwest

Branch

behind

and

down-slope

fromthe

preliminary

sedimentation

basin.he

building

containeda high-liftpumpwitha1.75Mgdcapacity

againsta275'

head(referringtothepressure

exertedbyacertaindepthof

water).

ne

end

of

the

pump

shaft

connected

to

a

100-horsepower

(hp)

electric

motor

while

theother

endconnected

via

speed-increasinggears

to

a

137-hp

hydraulicturbine.Waterwasdeliveredtotheturbinevia42 and36

cast-iron

pipes

from

the

dam.

he

turbine's

rating

was

105

hpat

a

33'

heador

120

hpat

a

37'head.hestation

pumped

filtered

waterfrom

thefilter

assemblyintothedistributionsystem,

thereby

increasingthecapacityofthe

high-lift

pumping

equipment

housed

in

the

high-lift

pumping

station

to

21

Mgd. Morse

noted

that

the

station

provides

a

valuableauxiliary

or

emergencysourceofpumping,keepingdownthemaximumdemandcharge

during

on-peak

hours

in

thewinter

when

stream-flowis

ordinarily

above

normal,

and

reducing

therequiredgasoline

engine

capacity,

notto

mention

the

incidental

saving

obtainable

in

a

decrease

of

electrical

energy

used.

1 5

Morse, Features

of

the NewWater

Purification

Works, p.

179;

Morse, NewWater Purification Works, p.680.

16

WSSC, BriefDetailed Description, unpaginated;Morse, Features

oftheNewWaterPurification Works, p.

179;

Morse, Ne wWater P urification

Works,

p.684.

17

Morse, NewWater Purification

Works,

p.

684.


9/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page

8 )

5.

Alterations

andAdditions:

Q

The

building

wasdismantledas partofthe1962 closureoftheplant.

Low-lift

Pumping

Station(also

known

as

the

Head

Houseand

the

Raw

Water

Pumping

Station)

(Extant):

1.

ate

ofConstruction:

The

foundation

ofthe

low-lift

pumpingstation

had

been

finished

by

spring

1934.

19

2.

rchitect/Engineer:

Robert

B .

Morsedesigned

theplant,

withassistance

from

Charles

O.

Wherley.

3.


The

WSSC's

daylabor

force

built

both

the

high-lift

and

low-liftpumping

stations.

4.

riginal

Plans:

Locatedin

front

ofthepreliminarysedimentationbasin,thetwo-and-a-half

story,

Colonial

Revival

style,bricklow-liftpumpingstationmeasures48'

long

x

30'

wide.

Morse

described

thepumpingstations

as

steel-framedbrick

buildingswith

roofofnailing

concrete

andslate. Thermostat-controlled

electricheatwasinstalledinstead

of

a

furnace.

Rock

lumber

partitions

(presumablyMorse

was

referring

to

sheetrock)dividedthe

interiorspace,

which

was

finished

with Euboeolith brand

cement

floors,

while

1.5 thick

Armstrong

Corkoustic

corktiles

clad

thewallsandceilings,exceptinthe

chemical

storage

rooms.

he

Corkoustic

helped

insulatethebuildings

as

well

as

absorb

the

noise

and

reverberations

made

by

the

pumps

and

other

machinery.

Morse

noted

thepleasingeffect

of

theinterior

finishes:

buff-

coloredwallsandivoryceilingscomposed

of

thismaterial[Corkoustic], in

conjunction

with

the

green

floors

and

the

pumping

machinery

painted

in

light

gray,present

a

decidedly

attractiveappearance.

All

the

machinery

andequipment

havebeen

removed

from

thebuilding,

but

contemporary

descriptions

provide

information

as

to

what

it

once

contained.

Sixelectric

motor-driven

centrifugal

pumpswithatotalcapacity

of

20Mgd

againsta

12'

head

pumped

water

to

thefilterassemblies

located

across

Colesville

Road.

wo

ofthepumps

(each

with

a2

Mgd

capacity)

operated

automatically

and

maintained

the

water

level

in

thecoagulating

ring

within

a

18

Th e

December11,1961

edition

of

T he

Washington

Post

containedinformationabout

WSSCContractNo. 3283,

which

involved

dismantling

and

removingthe

site'ssteel

filter

units,

steel

standpipes,

pumping

equipmentand

piping

(p.

B9).

19

Morse, Features

of

theNewWater

Purification

Works, p.

179.

20


21


Works,

p.681.

22


Works,

p.

683.


10/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page9)

2 range.wo

ofthepumps

(5

Mgd)were

connectedto

gasoline

engines

so

they

could

continue

operationevenin

poweroutages.

arious

gauges

monitored

the

amountandrate

of

water

beingpumpedintothe

filters.

he

secondfloor

contained

four

dry-feedchemical

machines

to

addalum,

soda

ash,

and

activated

carbon

to

the

water

as

needed.

he

second

and

third

floors

containedchemicalstorage

spaces,

includingasecuredareawitha metalgate

and

lock

thateffectivelyrestricted

access

thatis

assumed

todate

tothe

original

construction

ofthebuilding.

5.

Alterationsand

Additions:

The

original

equipment

and

machinery

used

to

operatethe

low-liftpumping

stationwereremoved

as

partof

the1962

closure

of

theplant.

High-lift

Pumping

Station(alsoknownas

the

High

Service

Pumping

Station)

(Extant):

1.

ate

of

Construction:

The

high-lift

pumping

stationdatesto

1936.

2.rchitect/Engineer:

Robert

B .

Morse

designed

theplant,

withassistancefromCharlesO.

Wherley.

3.


The

WSSC's

daylabor

force

builtboththe

high-liftandlow-liftpumping

stations.

4.

riginalPlans:

The

two-and-a-half

story,

Colonial

Revival

style,

brick

high-lift

pumping

station

withone-story

wingsat

eitherend

hasatotal

length

of

82'anda

width

of30'. Aone-storyhalf-circleprojection

is

centeredon the

rear

ground

floor

facade

and

contained

the

control

room.Morsedescribedthepumping

stations

as

steel-framedbrick

buildings

with

roofofnailing

concrete

and

slate.

Thermostat-controlledelectricheatwasinstalledinsteadofa

furnace.ock

lumber

partitions

divided

the

interior

space

intorooms,

which

were

finished

with

Euboeolith

brandcementfloors

and

1.5 thick

Armstrong

Corkousticcorktileson thewallsand

ceilings,

exceptinthechemicalstorage

rooms.

he

Corkoustichelpedinsulatethe

buildings

as

well

as absorb

the

noise

and

reverberations

made

by

thepumps

andothermachinery.

Morse

noted

the

pleasing

effect

of

the

interior

finishes:

buff-colored

walls

and

ivory

23

WSSC,

Brief


unpaginated;

Morse,

Ne w

Water P urification

Works,

pp.

681-82.

24

Th e

December11,1961

edition

of

T he

Washington

Post


WSSCContractNo. 3283,

which

involved

dismantling

andremovingthe

site'ssteel

filterunits,

steel

standpipes,

pumping

equipmentand

piping

(p.B9).

25


26

WSSC, Brief

Detailed Description, unpaginated.

27


Works,

p.

681.


11/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page

10)

ceilings

composed

of

this

material[Corkoustic], in

conjunction

with

the

green

floors

and

thepumping

machinery

paintedinlightgray,present

a

decidedly

attractive

appearance.

All

the

machinery

and

equipment

have

been

removed

from

the

building,

but

contemporarydescriptionsprovide

information

as

to

whatitonce

contained.

There

were

supposed

to

be

sevenelectrically-operated

high-lift

pumps,

although

one

had

not

yet

been

installed

as ofJune1935.t

is

not

known

if

the

seventh

was

installedas

planned.

he

capacityofthe

sixpumps

was

17 Mgd,

with

the

seventh

planned

as

havinga

19

Mgd

capacity.

Thetwo

largest

pumpswere

connectedtoauxiliary

240-hp

gasoline

engines.ll

thepumps

connectedtothefiltered

water

reservoirscontainedwithinthefilter

assemblies

viaa24

header.

controlpanel

andswitchboardlocated

in

the

center

of

aseparate

room

at

therearofthefirst

floor

controlled

the

pumps.A

steelplate

trough

ranbehindtheswitchboard. Thesecondfloorwasdivided

into

rooms

by

partitionsclad

in

Corkoustic. The

chemical

machine

room

located

on

the

secondfloor

held

three

dry

feed

chemicalmachinesfor

applyinglime,alum,andactivatedcarbon,as

necessary.

wochlorinators

andanammoniatorwere

locatedinaseparatecompartmentfromthedry

chemicalmachineroom.

chemical

andbacteriologicallaboratoryand

office

were

alsolocatedonthesecond

floor.heattichadchemicalstoragespace.

A ChlorineRoomPartition

is

depictedonanextantdrawing.hispartition

was

comprisedof

five

full-length,

fifteenlightwindows

measuring2'-8 wide

and

a

doorwith

a

similar

light

pattern

but

measuring

slightly

wider

at

3'.

A3

hatchinthe

floor

ofthe

third

floor

wasadjacentto

two

27 diameterpipesand

one

21

diameterpipe.

A

drawingshowsthepipelayoutinthebasementofthe

building.

24

unlinedpiperanparallel

to

thepumpfoundations,withentry

points

oneach

endwall.

here

were

connections

from

eachpump

to

this

pipe,

which

connectedto

the

filterassembliesto

the

rearof

the

high-lift

pumping

station.

At thefront

of

thebuildingwereentrypoints

for

varioussizedpipes(ranging

from12 ,

14

and

18 )

branching

off

froma20 discharge

line

thatappears

to

28


29


Works,

p.682.

30

WashingtonSuburban

Sanitary

District, FourCornersDistrict,HighLift PumpingStation

Burnt

MillsFirstFloor

Plan,

Approved December

3,

1934,

A-10

34264Y,

available

from

Montgomery

County

D epartment

of

Parks,

Facilities

Management

Office.

31

Washington

Suburban

Sanitary

District, Four

Corners

District,HighLift

Pumping

Station,

Burnt

Mills,

Second

Floor Plan &

Reinforcing, Approved December

3,

1934;

Revised

February14,

1935,

available

from

Montgomery

County

Department

of

Parks,

Facilities

Management

Office.

32

Morse,

Ne wWaterPurification Works, p.682;

WSSC,

Brief

Detailed

Description,

unpaginated;Washington

SuburbanSanitaryDistrict,

Second

Floor

Plan

&

Reinforcing ;

Washington

Suburban

SanitaryDistrict, Four

CornersDistrict,

High LiftPumpingStation,

BurntMills,

Floor

ReinforcingPlans

&

Sections, Approved

December3,

1934,

A-1034259Y,availablefromMontgomeryCountyDepartmentof

Parks,FacilitiesManagement

Office.


12/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page

11)

haveextended

fromthatportion

oftheplant

on

the

other

sideof

Colesville

Road.hesepipesalsoconnectedto

thepumpson thefirst

floor.

5.

Alterations

andAdditions:

The

original

equipment

and

machinery

used

to

operate

the

high-lift

pumping

stationwereremoved

as

partof

the

1962closure

of

theplant.

FilterAssemblies(Removed):

1.

ateofConstruction:

Thetwofilterassemblieswere

completed

in

May

1934

and

1936.

2.

rchitect/Engineer:

Robert

B .

Morse

designedtheplant,


Wherley.

3.


The

Chicago

Bridge

and

Iron

Works

Company

supplied

the

steel

filter

assemblies,

which

included

thepipe

vault,

filtertanks,

coagulating

basin,

filteredwaterreservoir,andcontrolhouse,

as

well

as

theinfluentandeffluent

steel

devices,

filterbottom

supports,walkways

and

railings.

he

company

also

built

thefiltercontrolhouses

located

in

the

centerofthe

assembly.

he

control

houses

were

outfitted

withEuboeolithcement

flooringandcork

onthe

wallsandceiling

for

insulation(presumablyCorkoustic).Windowsanddoors

opened

to

thebalconyencirclingthecontrol

house.

The

Tri-Lok

brandgrating

used

inthefilterscostapproximately$400per

Mgd.

7

4.

Original

Plans:

Despitetheremovaloftheoriginal

filter

assembly

prior

totheplant'sclosure

in1962,

the

basicdesign

and

operation

of

the

filter

can

bedetermined

from

extant

drawings

and

contemporary

descriptions. (SeeAppendix

A ,Figure

1-)

33

Washington

Suburban

Sanitary

District,

Four

Corners

District,

Pump

Connections,

High Lift

StationSuction

&

Discharge

Connections& Force

Mains,

Approved

December3,1934,A-10 34285Y,

availablefromMontgomery

CountyDepartmentofParks,FacilitiesManagement

Office.

34

The

December

11,1961editionof

T h e

W a s h i n g t o n

Post


WSSCContractNo .

3283,

whichinvolveddismantling an dremovingth esite'ssteel

filter

units,

steelstandpipes,pumping equipmentan d

piping

(p.

B9).

35

WSSC,

BriefDetailed

Description, unpaginated.

36

Morse,

Features

ofthe

New

Water

PurificationWorks,

p.

181.

37

Morse,

Features

ofthe

New

Water

PurificationWorks,

p.

181.

38

Although

the

Washington

Suburban

Sanitary

Commissiondestroyed

the

recordsrelating

th eMorse

plant

sometimeafter

1994,M-NCPPCdoeshave slidesof

drawings

ofthehigh-lift

pumping

station

andfilterassembly

that

weretaken

byWilliamBushongin

1994.he MontgomeryCountyDepartmentof

Parks'

Facilities

ManagementOfficeholds

paper

copiesofsome

drawings

ofth ehigh-lift

pumping

station.

ushong

researched

the

plant

an dcompleteda

Maryland

HistoricTrust,StateHistoric

Sites

InventoryForm

that

year.

ee

also

Morse,

FeaturesoftheNew Water

Purification

Works, forimagesan d

drawings

of the

filterassembly.


13/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page

12)

Thecircular

filter

assembly

measured100' indiameter

and

sat

ona

concrete

slab.

perators

accessed

the

filterassemblyviaa

catwalk

extendingfrom

the

rearofthe

secondfloorofthe

high-lift

pumping

station.

hefilterassembly

consisted

of

a

central

well

with

a

filter

control

house

on

top.

hree

concentric

rings

in

whichthevarioussteps

of

the

filtering

processtook

place

surrounded

the

central

well.

tructural

steel

plateswelded

together

made

up

the

wallsof

thefilterassembly,

which

Morse

proudly

notedachieveda

notable

economy

inboth

cost

andspace. itumastic

enamelcoatedthose

portions

ofthesteel

walls in

thefilters

coveredby

sand

andgravel

as

well

as

theunderground

ii

9

exterior

wall

sections.

The

centralringof

the

assembly,measuring24'-6

in

diameter,

served

as

the

control

chamber

withthe

controldowntake

and

pipe

vault

in

the

center

and

the

filter

controlhouseon

top.

peratorswereabletoobservethefiltration

process

and

sample

the

water

from

the

20'

diameter

circular

filter

control

housetwenty-fourhours

adaybecause

of

underwater

lights in

thefilter

assembly.nstrumentslocatedwithinthecontrolhouseincludedfour

compactvalve-controloperatingstands

andrate-of-flowgauges. pump

raisedwater

from

the

filtered

water

reservoirtothetwowashwatertanks

locatedonthehill

behindthe

filterassemblies.

welvewindowsand

four

doorsleadingtothebalconyencirclingthecontrolhousegavetheoperators

access

to

the

assembly.rom

the

interiorofthe

controlhouse,

operators

couldaccess

thecentral

pipevault

via

an

open

stairwell

enclosed

by

a

pipe

railingandtwo4'

x

4'hatches.

The

filter

ring,

located

adjacent

to

the

central

control

ring,

measured

54'-3

in

diameter

with14'-6 high

walls.

hering

wasdivided

intofoursections,

eachofwhichcontainedanindependentlyoperating

filter

made

up

of

an

elevated

floor

of

Tri-Lok grating

resting

on

astructural

steel

frame.

Morse

stated

thatthe

grating

wasgalvanized

copper-bearing

steel,and the

inner

endsof

thebarsareslightlypinchedso

that

thesectionsfit

radially.

ntop

ofthe

grating

wasan

18 -thick

layer

of

gravel

followed

by

a24 -thicklayer

of

sand.ive

wash

water

troughs

were

located

at the

topofeach

filterand

extended

fromtheouter

ring

wall

to

a

trough

circlingtheinnerring

wall.

steel

slipless walkway

measuring

3'

widewitha

31'high

pipe

railingwas

located

around

the

exterior

perimeter

of

the

filter

ring

andconnected

to

the

balcony

circling

the

control

house

as

well

as

the

catwalk

extending

from

the

high-lift

pumpingstation.

39

Morse, Features

of

theNewWater

Purification

Works,

pp.

179-180.

40

Morse, Featuresof the NewWaterPurificationWorks,

pp.

179-181;slide

of WSSC

drawing

offilter

assembly.

41

Morse,

Features

of

the NewWaterPurification

Works,

pp.179-180;Morse, NewWater Purification

Works,

p.

686;WSSC, Brief

Detailed

Description,

unpaginated;

slide

of

WSSC

drawingof

filter

assembly.


14/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page

13)

The

next

ring

in

the

assembly

heldthecoagulating

basin

and

measured

72' in

diameter

with14'-6 high

walls.rainsinthe

ring

floor

would

have

allowed

the

sludge

producedduringcoagulation

to

descendintothe

sewer

lines.

The

filter

assembly's

outermost

ring

(measuring

100'

in

diameter)

stored

the

filtered

water,up

to

275,000

gallons.

steel

roof

supportedbybeams

covered

the

filtered

water

reservoirto

preservethe

water's

purity.

he

exteriorwallsof

this

ring

were

shorterthanthose

ofthe

rest

of

the

assembly

at

10'

high.

wo

4'

x

3'

hatches

on the

roof

locatedopposite

one

anotherhad

ladders

extendingintothe

ring's

interiorand

provided

access

to

WSSC

personnelas

well

as

ventilated

the

ring.creenslocated

on

thehatches

preventedmaterialfromenteringtheringandpollutingthefilteredwater.

5. AlterationsandAdditions:

TheWSSCdismantledandremovedthefilterassemblies

as

part

of

the1962

closure

of

the

plant.

WashWaterTanks(Removed):

1.ateof

Construction:

Thewashwatertankswere

in

place

in

1934.

2.

rchitect/Engineer:

RobertB .Morse

designedtheplant,


Wherley.

3.


The

Chicago

Bridge

andIron

Works

may

have

suppliedthetanks

sincethe

WSSC

also

contracted

with

the

company

for

the

steelwork

used

in the

filter

assemblies.

4.

riginal

Plans:

The

two

steel tanks

measured17.5'

highand

16' in

diameter

andhad

a

25,000-galloncapacity.heywerelocatedona hillabovethefilter

assemblies

and

supplied

thewater

needed

for

backwashing

the

filters. 16

pipe

connected

the

tanks

to

the

piping

system

located

in

thefilterassembly's

centralpipevault.

42

Slide

of

WSSC

drawing

of

filter

assembly;

Morse,

Features

of

th e

New

Water

Purification

Works,

p.

179.

43

Morse,

Featuresof

th e

NewWaterPurificationWorks,

pp .179-180;

Morse, New

Water

Purification

Works,

pp .

686-687;

slide

of WSSC

drawing

offilter

assembly.

44

The

December

11,1961edition

of

T h e

W a s h i n g t o n Post

containedinformationaboutWSSCContract

No .

3283,

which

involved

dismantling

an d

removing

th esite's

steelfilter

units,steelstandpipes,

pumping

equipment

an d

piping

(p.

B9).

uring

an

April

2009sitevisit,

along-timeresidentofthe

area

statedthat

he

remembered

th efilter

assemblies stillstandingin

1963,

but that

they

were

removedshortlythereafter.

45

William

Bushong,

Robert

B .

MorseWaterFiltration

Plant, Maryland

HistoricalTrust,

State

Historic

Sites

InventoryForm,M ay

1994,

Section

7.4.

46

WSSC,

BriefDetailedDescription,

unpaginated.


15/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page

14)

5.

Alterations

andAdditions:

The

tanks

were

dismantled

as

part

of

theplant's

closure

in1962.

B.

istorical

Context:

Burnt

Mills

Priorto

the

construction

of

the

Robert

B .MorseWater

Filtration

Plant,

a

number

of

grist,

saw

andflourmills

hadbeen

locatedinthis

areafromthemid-eighteenth

to

the

early

twentieth

century.ne

mill

burned

before

1 7 8 8 ,

afterwhich

the

area

becameknownas

Burnt

Mills.rom

ca .

1890-1903,

SamuelWatersand

William

Mannakee

owned

the

propertyonwhichthefiltrationplantwouldbe

constructed

andoperateda millthere.

Theflourand

corn

mill

was

located

to

the

southofColesville

Road

on thebankofthe

NorthwestBranch,

in

the

general

vicinity

of

wherethe

low-lift

pumping

station

and

preliminarysedimentationbasinwouldlaterbebuilt.roundWorldWarI,themill

ceased

operation,and

in

1920,

the

land

became

part

of

the

Boys

Scouts'

Camp

Woodrow

Wilson.

he

Boy

Scouts

used

themill

as

adining

hall.

The

Washington

Suburban

Sanitary

Commissionhadobtaineda portion

of

thepropertyfromthe

Boy

Scoutsbythe

mid-1920s

andrazedthe

mill

forthe

constructionofthe

filterplant.he

details

surrounding

this

landacquisition

are

unknown

as are

the

changes

made

by

the

WSSC

to

thesite. TheWSSC

builta

dam

anderecteda

temporary

filtration

plantsoonafter

acquiringtheproperty.rom1929-36,the

WSSC

builtthepermanentRobertB .Morse

WaterFiltrationPlant(also

calledthe

BurntMills

Facility)

to

serve

residentswithin

its

district,

which

encompassed

suburban

Maryland,

outside

Washington,

D.C.

Establishment

of

the

WashingtonSuburbanSanitaryCommission

Established

on

May

1,

1918

by

the

Maryland

state

legislature

in

Chapter

122,

Acts

of

1918,

theWashingtonSuburban

Sanitary

Commission(WSSC)hadtheauthorityto

constructwater,sewageandstormdrainsystems,

as

well

as

issuebonds,levytaxes,and

fixwater

and

sewer

charges.

he

newly

established

sanitary

district

encompassed

the

majority

of

Prince

George'sand

Montgomery

counties

in

Maryland.

The

establishment

ofthe

WSSC

was

the

result

of

several

years

of

planning.

ublic

outcry

about

the

unsanitary

conditions

ofthe

waterwayssupplying

drinking

water

to

the

Maryland

suburbs

of

Washington,D.C,had

begun

as

early

as

1910

amid

growing

concernabout

potential

typhoidoutbreaks

and

other

diseases.

istrictofficialswere

also

47

The

December

11,1961

edition

ofT h e

W a s h i n g t o n

Post

contained

information

about

WSSC

Contract

No .

3283,

which

involveddismantling

an d

removing

th e

site's

steel

filter

units,

steel

standpipes,

pumping equipment

an d

piping

(p. B9).

48

An

articlein

the

March

13 ,

1925

editionof

T h e

W a s h i n g t o n Post

reported thatin

th e

summer

of

1924

more

than

1,500

B oy

Scoutsrepresenting

forty-seven

troops

visited

th e

reservation

to

practice

theirscout

skillsan d

hike.

ee

37

Acres

ofLand

Given

toB oy

Scouts'Cause,

T h eW a s h i n g t o n

Post ,March

13 ,1925,p.

9 .

49

Se e

Bushong,

Robert

B.

Morse

Water

Filtration

Plant,

Section

8; Searching

fo r

the

Mill,

T h e Hi l l andal e r,

January

2006,unpaginated; 37

AcresofLand, p.

9.

50

A rt

Brigham,

History

of

th e

W S S C ,

5

th

A nni ve rsary,

1918-1993

(Laurel,MD:

ashingtonSuburbanSanitary

Commission,1993),

pp .

3,

10 .


16/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page

15)

concerned

about

pollution

because

the

newly

created

Rock

Creek

and

Anacostiaparks

had

as

their

focal

pointswaterways

thatwere

being

pollutedinMaryland. Inthefirst

decade

ofthetwentiethcentury,

onlyaboutone

quarter

ofthe

Maryland

populationto

be

included

in

the

new

sanitary

districthad

publicwater

and

sewer

lines

whilethe

rest

relied

upon

wells

for

drinking

water

(more

than

half

of

which

were

thought

to

supply

unsafe

water)andcesspools

andouthousesforsewage

disposal.

rashcollection

was

only

available

to

6percentofthepopulation;the

rest

disposedoftrash

by

burning

or

burying

it

on

site,feeding

itto

animals,

or

throwing

itinto

dumpsdeemed

offensive.

In

1912,

stateofficials

establishedaBureauofSanitaryEngineering

within

the

state's

Department

of

Health

with

Robert

B .

MorseasitsChief

andHarry

R.

Hallas Assistant

Engineer.he

state

tasked

thebureauwithexaminingand

recording

anyplansby

municipalitiesto

develop

private

orpublicwatersupplyandsewerage

systems,reporting

on

sanitation

in

public

buildings

as

well

as

thewaste

andseweragepractices

of

businesses,anddevisingmethods

to

improvesanitaryconditionsand thestate's

water

supply.

Morse

blamed

the

state's

poor

public

works

on

the

short-sightedpolicyofmunicipalofficials,whothinktheyarekeeping

down

expensesonpublicworks...withtheresultingestablishmentofimproperly

protectedor

uneconomicallyoperatedwater

supplies,

andpoorlydesigned

sewerage

systems

whichareuneconomicalinconstruction,

unsatisfactory

in

maintenanceandoperation,andwhichcreatedangerous

or

offensiveconditionsin

thebodies

of

waterintowhichthey

discharge.

A

joint

resolution

of

theMarylandGeneralAssemblyin1912authorizedthegovernor

to

appointacommissionfromMontgomeryandPrince

George's

countiestoreportonthe

area's

sanitary

conditions.

he

Prince

George's

and

Montgomery

Counties

Sewerage

Commission,

as

it

wascalled,

relied

upontheBureau

of

SanitaryEngineeringandMorse

for

assistanceinitsinvestigation.nFebruary4,1914,thecommissionpresentedits

findings

on

the

stateof

sewerageto

the

governor,

butthe

legislature

failedto

enact

the

proposed

bill

intolaw. Two

yearslater, in1916,

Morse

and

T.Howard

Duckett

(a

member

of

the1912advisorycommission)presenteda revisionofthe1914

recommendations

that

included

adiscussionofthewatersituation

in

thetwo

counties

to

the

Maryland

General

Assembly.his

time,the

act

passed

as

Chapter

313 in

the

Acts

of

1916andestablishedtheWashingtonSuburbanSanitaryDistrict.hearea

encompassed

51

Washington Suburban SanitaryCommission,

Report onth eAdvisabilityofCreatingaSanitaryDistrict in

Maryland,

Contiguous

to

th e

District

of

Columbia,

and

Providing

it

with

Water

and

Sewerage

Service

to

the

General

AssemblyofMaryland

by

the

Washington

Suburban

Sanitary

Commission,

January

21 ,

1918,

p.

2.

52

WSSC, Report

on

th e

Advisability

of

Creating

a

SanitaryDistrict,

p.12.

53

Bngham,

History

of

th e

W S S C ,

pp .

7-8.

54

Robert

B.Morse,

State

Control

over

WaterSupplyan d

Drainage

Conditions

in Maryland, American

Journal

of

Public

He al th

4,

no .

10

(October

1914):

p. 48 .

55

Membersofth ePrince

George'sand

Montgomery

Counties

SewerageCommissionincluded:William

T. .

Curtis,

T.

Howard

Duckett,Dr.

J.

Dudley

Morgan,Dr.

John

L.

Lewis,

John

I.

Cassidy,

J.

Dawson

Williams,

Oliver

S .

Metzerott,

Jackson

Ralston,

J.Enes

Ray,Jr.,

Dr.CharlesA.

Fox,Louis

L.

Dent,

Dr .

WilliamH.

Welch,Dr.

M.

Langton

Price.WSSC,

Reporton

theAdvisability of

Creating

aSanitary

District, p.

2.


17/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page

16)

withinthe

district

included

portions

ofthe

Rock

Creek

and

Anacostia

River

drainage

areasandall

of

the

Oxon

Run

and

LittleFallsBranch

drainage

areasand totaled95

square

miles,

41

of

which

were

locatedwithin

Montgomery

Countyand

theremainder

in

Prince

George's

County. Thelegislation

also

created

a

Sanitary

Commission

made

up

of

three

members

and

allocated

$10,000

to

finance

its

work,

which

consisted

of

investigatingthewater

supply,

developinga watersupplyandsewerage

systemplan,and

identifying

potential

constructionprojects

and

distributionmethods.

TheState

Department

of

Health(andMorse)

was

tasked

with

contributingto

thereport,

and

the

CO

commission'sfindingswere

slatedforpresentation

to

the1918

General

Assembly.

The

establishment

ofthe

new

district

andcommission

would

facilitate

constructionofa

comprehensive

water

supplyandsewerage

system...affordingpurewater,

excellentfireprotection,

andrelievinginsanitaryconditions,at

less

costto

individuals

than

themajority

of

inhabitantsnot

having

access

to

publicwaterand

seweragesystemsarepaying

for

insufficient, impure,orunattractive

water

and

lack

of

fire

protection,

or

unhealthful

and

offensive

methods

of

sewage

disposal.

As

directed,theSanitaryCommissionpresented

its

findingstotheMarylandGeneral

Assembly

in

1918 .

herecommendations

included

permanently

establishing

the

WashingtonSuburbanSanitary

Commission.

hecreation

of

a

sewer

and

water

distributionsystemoverseenbyoneagencywouldreplacethe

patchwork

of

private

systems

servingincorporatedtowns

andprivatelyowneddevelopmentsthencontained

withinthe

boundariesof theproposed

Washington

Suburban

Sanitary

District.

As

F.Howard

Townsend,a

WSSC

employeeforforty-sevenyears,remembered:

Each

town

or

incorporatedsettlementwas

trying

to

improve

itscondition

but

therewasnoconcertedactiontowardadvancingtheinterestsoftheWashington

suburbs

as

a

whole.

Water

supply

and

sewage

disposalweretwo

of

the

most

vital

and

difficultproblemsfacingthesuburban

area.

The

commission

also

recommended

developing

independent

sources

of

waterand

establishing

aseparate

distribution

system

rather

than

connectingthe

sanitary

district's

systemswiththoseoperated

bytheDistrict

of

Columbia

as

earlier

proposed.

o

thatend,

the

commissionasked

the

legislature

to

grantit

the

authority

toacquire

land

as

well

as

build,

operate

and

maintain

water

supply,

sewerage,

stormdrainage

and

trashdisposal

systems.

inally,

it

strongly

urged

the

legislature

to

restrict

private

entities

from

56

WSSC, Report

on

th e

Advisability

of

Creatinga

SanitaryDistrict,

p.11 .

57

Commission

members

included

J.William

Bogley

(appointed

by

th e

governor),

William Curtis

(representing

Montgomery

County),

an dT.

Howard

Duckett

(representing

the

town

ofBladensburg in

Prince

George'sCounty).

WSSC,

Report

on

th eAdvisabilityofCreatingaSanitaryDistrict,

pp .

3-4.

58

Bngham,

History

of th eW S S C ,

pp .

3,9.

59

WSSC,

Report

on

th eAdvisabilityof

Creatinga

SanitaryDistrict, p.

13.

60

QuotedinBngham,

History

of

th e

W S S C ,p.5.


18/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page

17)

establishing

rivalsystemswithout

prior

approval

by

the

WSSC.

The

Maryland

General

Assembly

approvedtheplans,

thereby

permanentlyestablishingtheWSSC.

The

WSSC

initially

focused

on

developing

a

waterandsewerage

systemforthe

area

under

its

jurisdiction.

he

rapid

growth

of

the

Maryland

suburbs

from

post-World

War

I

to

post-WorldWar

II ,

resultingfromthe

expansion

of

thefederal

government,

pushedthe

capacities

ofthe

infrastructure

toits

limits.

he

WSSC,

consequently,

had

to

continually

add

tothe

system

to

keep

pace

with

the

rate

of

development.

t thesame

time,the

burgeoninginfrastructure

spurredthe

establishmentof

residentialdevelopments in

Montgomeryand

Prince

George's

counties.

The

WSSC'sfirst

undertaking

was

constructionofatrunk

line

sewerinRiverdale,

Prince

George's

County,

Maryland,

in

1919.

therearlyendeavors

includedpurchasingvarious

systems,

including

thosein

TakomaPark

(1919),

Chevy

Chase

andEdgemoor

(1921),

MountRainierandKensington(1922),andGlenEcho(1926).hecommissionalso

began

to

look

for

new

sources

of

water.

rapid

sand

filter

plant

drawing

water

from

the

NorthwestBranchofthe

Anacostia

River

with

a

filtering

capacityof

20

milliongallons

perday(Mgd)wasbuiltin1920inHyattsville,PrinceGeorge'sCounty.

Temporary

Burnt

Mills

Filtration

Plant

TheWSSC's

first

major

building

campaign

wasa

temporaryfilter

plant

witha

2. 5Mgd

capacityatBurntMillsonColesvilleRoadinSilverSpring,MontgomeryCounty,

Maryland,thatopened

in

1924.

rawingfromtheNorthwestBranchofthe

Anacostia

River,

the

plant

consisted

of

a

small

stone

intakedam,a

steelcoagulating

basin,four

woodenfiltersequippedwithrakes

for

sandagitationandhousedinagalvanizediron

building,asteelfiltered

water

reservoirandtherequiredpumpingfacilities.

n

1926,

two

open

steel

filters

with

wooden

slat

bottoms

and

a

steel

coagulating

basin

were

added,

increasingoutput

by1.3Mgd.

heWSSCadvertisedContractNo.3411n1926,which

called

for

theconstructionof4,350square

yards

of

concretesurfacethatincludedcurbs,

sidewalks,

anddriveways,

as

well

as

necessary

gradingandsiding.

All

of

the

structures

(except

for

thegalvanized

iron

building

and

pumps)came

from

an

industrial

plant

located

inHopewell,

Virginia,

thathadbeenabandonedafterWorldWarI.

By1930,however,

the

newly

completed

dam

and

temporary

Burnt

Millsfiltration

plant

couldnot

supplya

sufficient

amount

of

water

to

theburgeoningsuburbanMaryland

population.

he

WSSC

made

plans

to

build

a

newplant

with

atleasta

10

Mgd

capacity

on

the

same

site.

he

permanent

plant

wascompleted

in1936and

named

in

honor

of

its

engineer,

Robert

B .

Morse.

61

Bngham,

History

ofth e

WSSC ,p.

0 .

62

Bngham,Historyofth e

WSSC ,

pp.

15-16.

63

Classified Ad ,T he

Washington

Post,

June

22,

1926,

p.D4.

64

Classified Ad ,p.

D4;

Bngham,Historyofth e

WSSC ,

p.

6 .

65

Morse,

Features


Works,

p.179.


19/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page

18 )

Robert

B.

Morse

Robert

B .MorsewasborninMontpelier,Vermont,onSeptember13 ,

1 8 8 0

toHarmon

Northrop,

achemistryprofessoratThe

Johns

Hopkins

University

in

Baltimore,

Maryland,

andCaroline

Augusta

(Brooks)

Morse.e

attendedBaltimore

CityCollege,

The

Johns

Hopkins

University

(JHU),

the

University

of

Maine,

and

the

Massachusetts

Institute

of

Technology(MIT).

e

earnedtwo

Bachelor

degrees

in

civil

engineering,

one

from

JHU

in

1901

and

the

other

fromMIT

in

1904.

ftercompletinghis

studiesin

1904,

Morseworked

as

a

draftsman

at

the

Bureau

of

Construction

and

Repairs

oftheU.S.

Navy

Departmentfor

one

yearbefore

acceptinga position

as

adraftsmanwiththeSewerage

Commission

of

Baltimore

City.

or

the

next

five

years,

from1905-10,

he

held

various

positions

within

the

commission

before

movingto

New

York,

where

heworked

as an

assistantsanitaryengineerwiththe

Metropolitan

Sewerage

Commissionuntil1912.

Duringhistenure

withthe

Metropolitan

Sewerage

Commission,

hehelpeddevelopthe

plans

to

clean

up

the

polluted

New

York

Harbor.

Morse

returned

to

Maryland

to

work

for

theMarylandStateBoardofHealthas itschiefengineerfrom1912-18,where,

as

previously

noted,

he

also

served

as

a

consultant

on

the

establishment

of

the

Washington

Suburban

SanitaryDistrictandCommission.

Morse

held

the

chief

engineerposition

with

theWSSCfromitsinceptionin1918 untilhisdeathfromsepticemia(bloodpoisoning)

followinga minoroperationinFebruary1936

at the

age

of5 5 .

Obituariespublishedin variousnewspapersextolledMorse'sengineeringcareer.he

PortlandPressHeraldofPortland,Maine,statedthathewas

considered

one

ofthe

outstandingsanitaryengineers

ofthe

Country andthathe pioneereda new

field

inhis

designing

and

constructing

ofconcentric

filters

attheBurnt

Mills

water

works in

Maryland, adesign

that

hereplicated

for

a plantin

Rumford,

Maine. Washington,

D.C.'s

Evening

StarreportedthatMorsewas

regarded

asone

ofthe

outstandingsanitary

engineers

in

the

Eastern

States, while

The

New

York

Times

noted

his

work

was

well-

knowninthe

field

of

sanitary

engineering.

Robert

B.

Morse

Water

Filtration

Plant

Design

and

Construction

Morse

designed

thepermanent

filtration

plant

at the

Burnt

Millssite,consisting

oftwo

filter

assemblies,

two

pumping

stations,

adam,andvariousrelated

structures.

When

Morse

planned

the

layout

ofthe

site,

he

had

totake

into

account

the

limitedland

66

Biographical

informationaboutMorse

obtainedfrom Robert MorseFuneralIsSetfor

Tomorrow, T he

WashingtonPost,February2,

1936,

p.X 7,and Robert BrooksMorseFamilyHistory, pamph letprepared by

LawrenceTreverFadner,March1992,

available

atMaryland HistoricalSociety,Baltimore,Maryland.his

pamphlet

contains

articles,

primarily

obituaries,

about

Morse

and

his

family

from

various

newspapers.

Morse

also

publishedanumberofarticlesduring

his

career.

Examples

found

not

directly

related

tothe

Burnt

Mills

plant

include:

StateControl

Over

Water

Supply

and

Drainage

Conditions

inMaryland, American

Journal

o f

'Public

Health4,

no.

10

(October

1914):

p.

847-852,

written while

he

wa schief

of

the

Bureau

of

SanitaryEngineering,

Maryland

State

Department

of

Health,

and

Water

Serviceto

Consumers

in

Areas

Outside

of

Municipalities, Journalofth eAmerican

Water

Works

Association

23,no.

5

(May

1931):

p.

733-735.

67

Rob'tB.MorseDies

inWashington,

DC, Portland Press Herald[Portland,

Maine],

February

9,1936,located

in Robert BrooksMorseFamilyHistory.

68

R.B.MorseDies;Noted

Engineer,

T heEvening Star[Washington,D.C.],February 1 1936,and RobertB.

Morse,

T h e

N e wYork Times,February2,

1936,

bothin Robert BrooksMorse

Family

History.


20/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page

19)

available

and

the

intrusion

of

Colesville

Road,which

bisects

the

site.n

addition,

the

Northwest

Branch

of

theAnacostia

Riverborders

the

plant

to

thesouth

and

west,

further

restricting

itslayout.Morse

himself

noted

that

the

layoutoftheplantconsideredas

a

whole

was

not

ascompact

as

otherwise

would

have

beenpossible. (See

Appendix

A,

Figure

2

for

aerial

photograph

of

plant.)

The

challenges

ofthe

site

particularly

affected

theplacementofthe

preliminary

sedimentation

basin.Morseoriginally

wantedto

include

it

as

a

ring

in

thefilter

assembly

(as

specifiedinhispatentfora LiquidPurificationPlant ),buthefoundthe

site

could

notaccommodate

a

10

Mgd

filterassemblycontainingapreliminary

sedimentation

basin,

coagulating

basin,

filters,

andwater

storage.

nsteadMorsehad

to

settle

for

putting

the

preliminarysedimentationbasinbehindthe

low-liftpumpingstation,

which

required

excavatingthrough

rock

andaddingconcretefillto

stabilizeportions

of

the

ground.

Thetwo

steelfilterassemblies

wereunique,

even

ifthey

did

notfollow

Morse's

ideal

design.atherthanspreadingthefiltrationprocessacrossseveralstructures,

one

filter

assembly

accommodated

the

chemical

mixing,

coagulation,

filtration

and

water

storage

in

a5

Mgd

circular

unit.

Morsewrote

in

a

1934

articlethat

the

filterassemblydesign

was

ananswertothechallengesoftheBurntMillssiteandanattempttosaveonconstruction

costs.Morsewentonto

state:

The

writer

hadin

mindtheapparently

unchallenged

beliefamongengineers

that

themostcompactandeconomicalarrangement

of

filter-tankassemblies

required

rectangularunits.evertheless, inchecking

up,

heprovedthatcylindricalunits

permitted

of

at

least

equalcompactness.

Morsealso

choseto

designthepumpingstationsinthe

Colonial

Revival

style,

perhaps

because

of

their

prominent

location

on

a

major

thoroughfare.

rchitectural

historian

WilliamBushong

notes

thattheuse

of

theGeorgianandColonial

Revival

styles

was

commoninbuildingsthroughoutMontgomeryCounty,Maryland.enotestheGeorgian

Revival

style

hadstrongassociationswiththeearlyarchitectureandhistory

of

thestate.s

MontgomeryCounty

sought

toestablish

a

modern

civic

identity

in

the

1920s

and

1930s,

thetradition

and

conservatism

represented

by

the

Georgian

Revival

becamea

popular

unifying

themein thecounty'spublic

architecture.

Morse, New

Water Purification

Works, p.

680.

70

Morse,

New

Water Purification

Works, p.682;Morse,

Features

of

the

Ne w

Water P urification

Works, pp.

179-180;Robert B.

Morse

and

CarrieE.

Morse,

administratrix

of

saidRobertB.

Morse,

deceased,

Liquid

Purification

Plant, PatentNo. 2,129,181,filedApril

1 1

1934,

granted

September

6,1938.

71

Morse, Featuresof the NewWaterPurification Works, p.179.or

more

informationonthe

designand

operationof

thefilterassembly,seePartIII,OperationsandProcessofthisreport.

72

Bushong, Robert B. MorseWater

Filtration

Plant,

Section8.3-8.4.


21/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page20)

In

addition,thistimeperiodsaw

ageneral

trend

in

publicworks

constructiontocreating

moremonumental

structures.

Thebuildings

were

solidlyconstructedofsteel

frames

andbrick

with

roofs

ofconcrete

slabs

andslateto

accommodatethe

pumping

machinery

and

equipment.

he

concrete

slabs

werenumbered,

which

may

have

beenfor

easeof

construction

since

the

WSSC's

day

labor

force

erected

both

pumping

stations.

he

interiors

ofbothfeaturedgreenEuboeolithcementfloors

and

1.5

thickCorkoustictiles

on

the

walls

andceilings

to

insulatetherooms

and

deaden

the

sound

and

reverberations

emanating

from

thepumps

and

machines.

Corkoustic

was

asound

insulating

product

manufacturedbyArmstrongandpart

of

the

developmentofsoundproofing

technology

at

the

beginning

of

thetwentieth

century. The

tiles

were

easier

to

installand

more

uniform

thanearlier

soundproofing

materials

like

felt

stripsand

plasters.

Morse'sconcernforachievingefficiencyandcostsavings

isrepeatedthroughouthis

writings

aboutthe

plant.n

thefilterassemblies,

cost

savings

were

realized

in

the

use

of

steelas theprimaryconstructionmaterial.Morse

believed

that

steelwasasuperior

material

because

thepossibilityalone

of

reproducingtheoriginalcondition

of

thesurfaceatany

timebypaintinggives

agreatadvantage

overreinforcedconcreteforfilterplant

construction,

as will

be

evidentwhenoneremembersthe

sad

appearance

andstate

of

disrepair

of

many

concrete

structures

connected

with

water

works.

Morse'sdecision

toleave

the

coagulatingbasinandfiltersuncovered

was

another

cost

saving

measure,based

upontheoperation

of

the

temporary

Burnt

Mills

plant

for

several

winters.ccordingtoMorse,

that

experiencerevealedrapidsandfilterscouldbeleft

uncoveredthroughoutthe

winter

withminimal

additional

efforton thepartofoperators

to

keep

them

running,

even

when

a

layer

of

ice

formed.

He

attributed

this

to

the

constant

movementof

the

water

during

filtration,andespecially

violent

agitation,at

timesof

washing.

n

lowertemperatures,henotedoperatorshadfoundthatopeningthe

wash

water

valves

fora

time

gave

goodresults. he

onlyother

problem

he

observed

was

that

sand

tended

to

freeze

fromthesteel

plating

of

the

ring

inward,butMorse

thoughttheadditionofthecoagulatingbasinas theexteriorringwouldsolvethe

problem.

In

the

pumping

stations,

Morsechose

to

haveelectric

heat

installed

in

all

the

73

PaulHansen,

Developments

inWaterPurification Practice, Engineering News-Record104,

no.

2 1

(May

22,

1930):p.843.

74


Works,

pp.

681,683.

75

B y

1930,

a

wide

range

of

companies

were

producing

various

types

of

acoustical

products,

including

such

specific

brands

as

Audiocoustone

Plaster, Acoustifibrobloc, Insulite

Acoustile,

aswell

as

Armstrong Corkoustic.

Various

types

of

materialswere

used

in

manufacturingthese

products,

likemineralwool,

asbestos,pumice,

gypsum,

lime

and

volcanic

silica.

76

Emily

Thompson,T he Soundscape ofModernity:Architectural Acousticsandthe Cultureof

Listening

in

America,

1900-1933

(Cambridge:he

MITPress,

2002),

see

Chapter

5 :

Acoustical

Materials

and

Modern

Architecture,1900-1933.

77


78


Works,

p.687.

79

Morse,

Features


Works,

p.181.


22/48

ROBERT

B .

MORSE

WATER

FILTRATION

PLANT

HAER

No.

MD-166

(Page21)

buildings,

resulting

in

a

savingsin

robert morse - water filtration plant

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