The Kalamazoo Water Works

Origins of Kalamazoo’s Municipal Water System

During Kalamazoo’s first decade as a growing village, Arcadia Brook, Axtel Creek (a.k.a. Balch Creek), Portage Creek, and the Kalamazoo River were its sole sources of running water, especially for the aid of fire protection, which was a major concern. But by the late 1840s, it had become abundantly clear even then that those few existing streams were woefully inadequate for protecting the village in case of fire.

The town’s first municipal water system came about in April 1851 when the Michigan Central Railroad offered to give the village its surplus water, which was then held in an overflow tank near the railway station. A system of non-pressurized gravity-fed wooden pipes buried beneath the city streets fed into an underground reservoir in Courthouse Square, where a quantity of water could be held ready in case of fire. As the village grew, a second such reservoir was later added near the intersection of Main and Portage streets. These water lines were eventually tapped by the Kalamazoo House and others for domestic purposes.

By the late 1850s, the village had grown considerably, and the danger of fire had rendered the existing system of pipes and cisterns outmoded, portions of which had been installed by Lovett Eames more than a decade earlier.

“Even now the scarcity of water for fire purposes is so extreme that the more thoughtful of our citizens carry with them the constant dread of a conflagration that shall destroy the most costly part of the village, and inflict a terrible blow to the prosperity of the whole. And this state of things grows worse with each succeeding year.”

—Kalamazoo Daily Telegraph, 4 December 1867

“The Water Question”

In September 1868, the village board of trustees determined the “construction of suitable water works therein to be of actual necessity for the people, in relation to health and the protection of property” (Telegraph). Numerous public discussions and lectures took place as Kalamazooans grappled with their water works dilemma. The following year in March, the village charter was amended by a bill that authorized up to $75,000 for the construction of a water works facility.

After a massive fire swept through the western portion of the village in April 1869, a renewed sense of urgency around the “water question” fueled the need for a plan that would ensure “an abundant supply of water for the extinguishment of fires” (Telegraph). A vote was taken and a plan was adopted by the village board for the immediate institution of a new municipal water system.

“Kalamazoo celebrated at Corporation Hall. Over four hundred of our citizens met there, and many brief speeches were made, and a vote was taken on the water question. The result is that we have appropriated $25,000 for putting in the Holly water works.”

—Kalamazoo Daily Telegraph, 12 May 1869

Holly Water Works

The water works facility was initially planned to be located near Arcadia Brook on village property along Eleanor Street. Soon, however, it was determined that the Arcadia would not be able to supply enough water for the foreseeable future, so a location on the east side of South Burdick Street near a more robust Axtel Creek was chosen instead.

The village contracted with the Holly Manufacturing Company of Lockport, New York, developers of a direct-pressure pumping system, using technology patented by Birdsill Holly (1820-1894). Holly by then had instituted successful water systems in several major cities and was becoming recognized as a leader in water pump and fire protection technology.

“The Holly plan consists simply of a stationary steam engine, of the requisite power to run a rotary force pump of peculiar construction, capable of discharging about twelve hundred gallons of water per minute. The engine and force pump are located at the source of supply, from whence iron pipes of six inch calibre are laid through the streets, and provided with hydrants at the designated points, to which hose is attached when necessity may require.”

—Kalamazoo Daily Telegraph, 7 May 1869

A one-acre parcel of land was purchased from Antone DeKam for $3,500. A well was dug, 24 feet in diameter and 30 feet deep, and a new pump house was erected. Augustus Menard and Henry W. Coddington were contracted to build the well and the dome that covered it. Menard would take care of the stonework, while Coddington was to handle the carpentry and woodwork. Bricks for the project would be sourced from R. Dexter Walker’s brickyard on the Grand Rapids plank road (now Douglas Avenue).

In June 1869, workmen began installing new cast iron pipes below the streets to support the new pressurized system, and Holly’s patented fire hydrants were installed throughout the village. Machinery began arriving in August and Mr. Holly himself traveled from New York to personally oversee the installation.

On 25 October 1869, the boilers were fired up, and testing of the system began. By November, the tests had been completed and the new system, considered “a glorious success” (Telegraph), was ready for use. According to the Kalamazoo Daily Telegraph, “the entire cost of the system, including 16 miles of water mains, is $168,673.53,” roughly $3.97 million in today’s currency.

“The water works of the city are remarkable in the pure quality of the water, and the tremendous power that has been concentrated in the machinery, that will throw six streams of water from hose attached to as many hydrants, over 150 feet high, without other forcing power than that of the engines at the works.”

—Kalamazoo Daily Telegraph, 12 January 1870

Of the 130 or more Holly direct-pressure water works systems that were instituted across the U.S. between 1863 and 1890, Kalamazoo was an early adopter. The local Holly water system was just the 11th such system to be placed into service. Officials from numerous communities looked to Kalamazoo as a leader and visited the village to inspect this groundbreaking technology.

“From the hydrant at the corner of Main and Stuart Avenue, a stream was thrown, last Friday, clean over the tall old oak that stands in the street there. This hydrant is nearly two miles from the water works.”

—Kalamazoo Daily Telegraph, 20 October 1870

“Fire!”

A critical test of the new water works came during the early morning hours of 9 February 1873, when fire broke out at L.H. Alexander’s store near the corner of Water and Church streets. Firemen arrived promptly, only to find there was no water pressure. Alexander’s store was a complete loss, as was Henry Coddington’s workshop next door. Several other buildings were also damaged. The system’s failure was blamed on domestic water streams that had been left running overnight to prevent the pipes from freezing, along with a broken water main on North Burdick Street, which, it was said, deprived the fire hydrants of necessary water pressure.

“…we do think that an investigation, by competent engineers and experts, would show that a large part of the present trouble is within the water-works building. Why have the works run down so immensely in a few months that people now talk of Holly as a failure?”

—Kalamazoo Daily Telegraph, 1 March 1873

The original rotary pump was believed to be the root of the pressure problem. It was replaced in October 1873 with Holly’s new “Quadruplex Pumping Engine,” a pioneering steam-driven device with four interconnected cylinders for more continuous water flow. This improvement would serve the community for another decade before fire would again put the system to the test and further reveal its shortcomings.

“The Water Question” Revisited

In August 1883, fire damaged a portion of the W.E. Hill & Company shops at the corner of Rose and Eleanor streets. The blaze did not result in great destruction of property, but the lack of water pressure served as a wake-up call, emphasizing the fact that the village had already outgrown the capacity of its existing water works.

The August fire brought renewed interest in “the water question” and it was discussed extensively. During a special session held in September 1883, the Committee on Fire and Water submitted detailed reports to the village board of trustees. George H. Chandler, chief engineer at the water works, and civil engineer William R. Coats spoke at length about the state of the current system and the need for improvements. The village board decided that a massive overhaul of the system was indeed necessary. In July 1884, bids were solicited for “the construction of a Brick Building, to be erected on the water works lot on South Burdick Street, for a Pumping Station” (Gazette).

Coats made a lengthy list of recommendations, including the idea of abandoning the direct-pumping approach and instead placing “a large steel reservoir at such an elevation as to afford sufficient pressure upon the main to give efficient fire service” (Gazette). This would allow the pumps to be run at predetermined intervals, rather than continuously, adding greatly to the system’s efficiency.

Kalamazoo Water Works

The new water works facility was designed by Kalamazoo architect Martin W. Roberts and constructed by Kalamazoo builder William Ritchie at a cost of roughly $10,000 (nearly $319,000 today). The Holly Manufacturing Company of Lockport, New York, would provide a new 100-ton pump with Harvey F. Gaskill’s “improved compound condenser engine” (Gazette). The new engine, the second one ever made, was capable of pumping up to 3 million gallons of water per day. Chase H. Dickinson of the Kalamazoo Cornice and Roofing Works would cap the new building with slate roofing and elegantly detailed iron work. Foundation work began in April 1885 and by July that year, Ritchie was putting the finishing touches on the new water works building.

“Mr. Ritchie has done a first class job on this building, and his work challenges admiration from all who inspect it.”

—Kalamazoo Gazette, 3 July 1885

Through various upgrades, repairs, and a sizeable building addition, the water works facility on South Burdick Street served the Kalamazoo community until 1960, when it was replaced by a new water department pumping station a couple of blocks south of the original site. The property was sold and the buildings were razed to make way for a gas station, which apparently never happened. Instead, a branch of the American National Bank opened in 1964, and stood under various ownership until 2023. The lot has since been set aside as open greenspace. Up to the present day, portions of Kalamazoo’s old wooden water mains, which harken back to the 1840s, have been recovered from beneath the city streets during repair work and building projects.

Written by Keith Howard, Kalamazoo Public Library staff, February 2026