1878.] 
CITY DOCUMENT. 
[No. 30. 
THE CITY OF PROVIDENCE. 
REPORT OF THE SUPERINTENDENT OF HEALTH RELATIVE TO 
THE CONDITION OF THE POND NEAR McKENNA STREET, 
AND ALSO THE MOSHASSUCK RIVER. 
[Presented to the Board of Aidermen, October 31, 1878.] 
Office of the Superintendent of Health, / 
Providence, October 23, 1878. j 
To the Honorable the Board of Aldermen : 
Upon the petition of Jacob Dubes and others, in relation to 
a pond of water west of McKenna street, I would report: 
The pond referred to is a portion of the reservoir of Allen's 
Print Works, and is the portion into which the West river 
enters, and is mostly on the east side of McKenna street. 
It also communicates with the Moshassuck river, though the 
latter river does not flow through it. 
The pond is very shallow, and apparently filled up with 
a black, filthy deposit from the river above. The river above 
receives large amounts of filth from the Wanskuck and other 
woolen mills, and other manufactories, and from the Silver 
Spring Bleachery. It also receives animal filth from tripe 
works on a branch of the river above Randall's pond. It 
also receives acids and other chemicals, and the refuse of the 
gas works from the Providence Tool Company. The aggre- 2 
CITY DOCUMENT. 
[No. 30. 
gate impurities are sufficient to convert the water of the 
small stream into a mass of liquid filth, and the stream being 
sluggish at and above the pond complained of, the stream 
and pond are both filled up with the disgusting deposit. 
Of course such a condition of things cannot be consistent 
with the public health, and there can be no doubt that the 
whole of both rivers, the West and the Moshassuck above 
Allen's Print Works, and still worse, the Moshassuck below 
the Print Works, are causes, to some extent, of sickness, 
disease, and death to the public. The pond complained of, 
when full of water, is not greatly different in its condition 
from the river above the pond, and if kept full would not 
generally be complained of. But the complaint is, as I 
learn from the petitioners and others in the vicinity, that as 
often as once a week, and sometimes oftener, the water in the 
pond is drawn off and the whole bottom of the pond is ex- 
posed, filled with the most disgusting filth. At such times the 
stench is very great, and fills the whole vicinity of McKenna 
and neighboring streets, in which the population is very 
dense. There can be no doubt that this stench is highly 
dangerous to the public health, and should never be permitted. 
In this connection, I would refer to another pond of which 
frequent complaint is made. It is a reservoir of the Allen 
Print Works, located up the West river, not far below Wan- 
skuck. This reservoir is filled from a branch of the river, 
and does not receive the filthy water of the West river coming 
from Wanskuck. The water of the reservoir is therefore 
comparatively pure. But when the reservoir is full, the water 
covers a considerable extent of low ground filled with vege- 
table matter. The complaint is that the water in this reservoir 
is frequently drawn down (once a week, or oftener), exposing 
a large extent of surface filled with dead grass and other 
vegetable matters. 
It is a well established fact that the exposure of the bottoms 
of ponds and reservoirs, by drawing off the water, especially in 
the fall of the year, is a most prolific source of fevers, dysen- REPORT OF SUPERINTENDENT OF HEALTH. 
3 
tery, and other diseases. The people living on the mill 
streams, in this and other states, are often severely afflicted 
with typhoid fever or dysentery, from this cause alone. There 
are few things done more dangerous to the public health than 
the exposure of the vegetable matter in the bottom of ponds, 
particularly in the autumn. 
The unavoidable conclusion, then, in regard to the petition 
before you is, that the complaint is well founded; that the 
drawing off of the water of the pond is dangerous to the 
public health in the highest degree, and should be stopped. 
Nearly a year since, I presented a report to your Board 
upon the impurities in the Moshassuck river, and urged im- 
mediate action. The report was printed, but no action was 
taken. There can be no doubt in the minds of any one, that 
the Moshassuck river, before it enters the city, is in a very 
filthy condition, and that, after it enters the city, the amount 
of filth is enormously increased by manufactories within the 
city limits. When to these sources of filth we add the rap- 
idly increasing amount of sewage that is turned into the 
river, we ought not to be surprised that the river at Weybosset 
bridge has become extremely filthy, and, at times, very offen- 
sive to sight and smell. Of course, it must be more or less 
injurious to health, though there are counteracting causes 
that remove the danger in some degree. 
The Woonasquatucket river is, in some respects, in a simi- 
lar condition to the Moshassuck, though not yet as bad. 
There are two important measures that require the early 
attention of the city government - in fact, that are impera- 
tively demanded in the interest of the public health. 
The first is that which I urged a year since - to obtain ac- 
tion through the General Assembly to prevent the pollution 
of the streams by manufactories throughout the State. This 
subject is exciting much attention in other states, and most 
valuable information has been recently printed in relation to 
it, especially in Massachusetts. It is a subject in which man- 4 
CITY DOCUMENT. 
[No. 30. 
ufacturers are interested as well as the public, as at the pres- 
ent time, the manufacturer who is located farthest up stream 
seems to enjoy the right to ruin the water for the use of all 
below him. The city is specially interested in the subject, as 
two mill streams are flowing through it, and another supplies 
us with drinking water. 
The second measure of immediate importance is the con- 
struction of intercepting sewers to receive all the sewage of 
the city and carry it down to Sassafras point or beyond. 
This was and is a part of the system of sewerage upon which 
the city has entered, which was known to be an absolute ne- 
cessity from the beginning, and the construction of which 
was made imperative by the introduction of the Pawtuxet 
water. As, then, its importance and positive necessity are 
universally conceded, it would seem to be the part of wisdom 
to make preparations for commencing the work at as early a 
day as possible. 
Respectfully, 
EDWIN M. SNOW, 
Superintendent of Health.