Over time, residents of Chillicothe and other communities have gotten used to learning that there is a “Boil Order” or during hot, dry periods “Water Restriction” is put into effect for a short period. For the most part, boil orders occur as a result of a water main leak or hydrant broken by an errant motor vehicle failing to stay on its proper right of way. Those events do not generally last for more than a week. But who declares the need for these orders? Occasionally during hot, dry summers when residents and businesses water their lawns, the demand for water can over-load the City’s ability to pump enough water to meet the demand.

These events are regularly and routinely dealt with by the Chillicothe Public Works Department. Director, Shawn Sutherland has a force of seven men who work well to respond to the challenges to maintain all public property within the city. Water system leaks can result from many different causes, such as winter-time frozen valves and lines, accidental damage from excavators breaking a watermain, and even collision damage to hydrants struck by vehicles in accidents. Part of his crew are assigned specifically to the Water Department and focus much of their efforts to keep on top of that service. There are many tasks performed by the Public Works Department that are taken for granted, but become very evident to the public when something goes wrong during intense windstorms, snowfalls and severe cold snaps, and droughts. 

According to Sutherland, a privately owned business brought water, light and power service to Chillicothe in 1891 and the Village of North Chillicothe some years later. A man named D.I. Davis incorporated the company under the name of Chillicothe Water, Electric Light and Power Company in May of 1891. The business was located on the current site of J.T. Fennell Company. D.I. Davis sold the water business to Chillicothe and dissolved the corporation in May 1914 while selling the light and power systems to other parties.

The original water systems have been modified, repaired, and replaced in many places, adding wells and expanding the system of pipes necessary to deliver clean, clear, safe water to everyone. In February 2022, Director Sutherland noticed a sharp decline in gallonage being delivered by Well Number Six. The system has seven fully active pumps spread around the city with an additional one available on standby status. Sutherland monitors water demand for the entire city daily. In his six years as Director, he has learned to balance the amount of water drawn from each well in a manner to prevent overworking any one well pump. The daily demand for water ranges between 1.2 and 1.5 million gallons, if everything runs smoothly. Although the residents of Chillicothe regularly consume the above daily volume, Director Sutherland reports that nearly 56 per cent of the water lost daily is through unknown leaks throughout the city-wide system of pipes and pumps. Sutherland says that a new system of leak detection will be implemented in the future to hopefully reduce the amount of water lost. A major fire can create an even higher demand. In those situations, some pumps may be forced to increase the rate of flow to keep the entire system capable for all users.

In 2004, the EPA advised the Chillicothe water system was not adequate to meet health safety standards if a major fire calamity occurred and called for a sustained demand for water. The system would not be able to provide residents safe healthy water, or their ability to use any water during those events. The City Fathers voted to meet that challenge and purchased and installed the new 1,000,000-gallon water tower now located off Cloverdale Road. This tower acts as a control point for the system, though it does not have a well of its own.

Sutherland saw a sharp drop in the output of Well Six. On a routine day this pump delivers water at 205-220 gallons per minute to the system. The output volume dropped to under 100 gallons on the first day and fell to 30 gallons per minute the second day. That required the other pumps to run at higher levels to meet the daily demand. A thorough examination of the pump was made to see if it was defective. The pump was not the problem. Sutherland contacted Mike Stoddard of Cahoy Well Service in Lincoln, Illinois, for help in diagnosing the problem. Stoddard used electronic equipment and a video camera system to go into the well to see what might be causing the problem. The video told the story.

The water pipe system, the 50,000-gallon water tower, and Well Number Six were installed and began operating as the Village of North Chillicothe water system in August 1941. The

94 feet high water tower was constructed by the Chicago Bridge and Iron Company while the pump and electrical system was installed by Bacon Electric Co. of Chillicothe. The cost of the project in 1941 was approximately $15,000–$20,000 (Construction Dollar Value scale based upon 2024 CPI would have been $1,347,189–$4,280,000 today). Since that time, Well Six has served the water system with regular standard maintenance. The original 1941 water tower was shut down and removed several years ago. So, what went wrong?

Watch for Part Two in the next issue of the Chillicothe Hometown Voice.