Des Moines Water Works History

Allen had built Terrace Hill in 1867.

States enacted laws in the 1870 s that allowed farmers and landowners to organize and create drainage districts.

In 1871, Frederic Hubbell and his law partner, Jefferson S. Polk, organized the Des Moines Water Company.

In 1873, Allen purchased a bank in Chicago and moved there, but he couldn t save the bank and went bankrupt.

The company passed to Polk Hubbell, and in 1880 to a joint-stock company, where a stockholder-elected board of five directors appointed a president, secretary, and one member, with the exclusive rights to operate the company for 40 years.

In 1891, the first water tower was constructed on 17th Street, between Center and Crocker.

In 1897, the newspaper and City Council launched a vigorous attack on water quality so they could get the company s asking price down.

In 1898, the City said they would purchase the company, but the people voted it down.

On July 8, 1899 an election was held to approve the formation of Valley Junction s first public water supply.

In 1902, a new water gallery was begun out of large concrete rings 5 feet in diameter and 2 feet long, held slightly apart to allow water seeping in.

In 1910, construction of ponds in the park began to augment the water supply.

In 1911, the vote passed, but Denman wouldn't sell at the price.

In 1912, a laboratory was started with a chemist, a bacteriologist, and an assistant.

For various reasons, the utility faltered and another election was held in 1913 to establish the Valley Junction Water Works.

The vote to purchase in 1914 was favorable, but the vote to issue bonds didn t pass.

Shortly after the election, in 1915, a three-member Board of Trustees was formed to oversee operation of the utility.

The vote to issue bonds did not pass until November 1918, and at that unfavorable time for the bond market, the city could not sell enough bonds, and sued for an extension of time.

Finally in 1919, the City purchased the water company.

Construction of a new pumping station at its present site began in 1920.

Seven thousand plantings of trees and shrubs were made yearly from seedlings grown in the greenhouse under the care of Arie den Boer he joined DMWW in 1928 , who also introduced several hundred varieties of crabapple trees and won many awards for his work in horticulture.

In 1929, construction of the Hazen water tower on Hickman began.

In 1931, scientists started realizing the benefit fluoride plays in preventing tooth decay.

In 1948, the first water rate increase in 50 years occurred.

An election in 1950 authorized forming a three-member Board of Trustees to provide oversight and direction to the utility.

In 1953, West Des Moines constructed a water treatment plant.

In 1955, the Nollen Standpipe at 26th and Hull and the Wilchinski Standpipe at SE 9th and Pleasant View Drive were built.

In 1957, Iowa Light and Power installed a substation at DMWW and electric motors and pumps began to be used ending steam power.

In 1959, DMWW started fluoridating its water at the request of the city council.

Hubbell and Polk bought most of Allen s assets with Hubbell buying Terrace Hill which remained in the Hubbell family until it was given to the state in 1971 . Augustus Denman became the general manager.

In 1973, this standpipe, near Sears at Merle Hay Mall, was named Tenny.

In 1985, an office building was built.

In 1992, the eight tanks of a nitrate removal facility were built.

In 1993, the Raccoon River crested at a record 14.7 feet above flood stage, forcing the Fleur Drive treatment plant to be shut down and residents were without any water service for 11 days, and non-potable water for 18 days.

In 1994, the offices were remodeled after the flood.

In 1998, ground was broken for a new treatment plant, called the Maffitt Treatment Plant.

In May of 2000, the Water Treatment Plant at Maffitt Lake, a 25 mgd facility, began operation using five radial collector wells for its main water source, but also drawing from Maffitt Reservoir for additional water resources.

In August 2003, a monthly pump record was set at 2,262.82 million gallons.

On June 6, 2006, groundbreaking occurred for the Saylorville Water Treatment Plant, DMWW s third treatment plant located in the 6500 block of NW 26th Street in Polk County.

In 2007, the Board of Water Works Trustees renamed the Maffitt Treatment Plant to the L.D. McMullen Water Treatment Plant.

With his long, silver hair and resemblance to the actor Russell Crowe, Stowe garnered a cult-like fascination as public works director for his calm demeanor throughout each snow season and in 2008, when Des Moines dealt with historic flooding.

In April 2011, the official start-up of the Saylorville Water Treatment Plant occurred.

In July 2012, a new monthly record for pumpage was set 2,544.12 million gallons.

Even the Iowa Soybean Association has conceded, that more ways to finance the 2013 Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy plan cutting the nitrogen and phosphorus by 45 percent need to be found in light of the problem in the Gulf of Mexico dead zone.

In July, the water utility reported that it spent more than 1.5 million since December 2014 to remove nitrates from the drinking water it supplies to 500,000 customers.