Cool again this morning but no frost on the roof. Lots of sun so it warmed up quickly. Not a lot going on today, a day of rest, so lots of football and rexlzation.
Our photo is from the Hall of Flame. A very interesting unit, not fully shown in this photo, but it is a water tower, quite long and gangley. It is a Champion/Christie Water Tower, 1897-1915. Water towers came into use around 1880 to fight fires in multi-story buildings. Improved water supplies and steam pumpers made them possible, since they were designed to pump between 1,000 and 3,000 gpm. This one was originally horse drawn. The Toledo, Ohio fire Department purchased it in 1897. Water towers were used only for large fires. The lack of hydraulic power to raise and extend the tower made it unwieldy and difficult to maneuver. Most departments preferred to use aerial ladder trucks equipped with play pipes attached to the end of the ladder to play water on fires in tall structures. Although aerial play pipes could only handle a water flow of about 15% the capacity of a tower pipe, the aerial was much easier to maneuver than a tower. It wasn't until the 1960's that hydraulic powered water towers, called snorkles or Squirts, made the water tower a turly useful firefighting tool. In 1915 Toledo motorized its tower with a gasoine fueled tractor built by J. Walter Christie, a noted automotive engineer. It remained in service until 1950. This is an interesting power unit in that the engine sets crosswise the unit and drives the front wheels by gears inside the wheel around the outer portion. The tires are solid rubber, not unusual for that era.
Our photo is from the Hall of Flame. A very interesting unit, not fully shown in this photo, but it is a water tower, quite long and gangley. It is a Champion/Christie Water Tower, 1897-1915. Water towers came into use around 1880 to fight fires in multi-story buildings. Improved water supplies and steam pumpers made them possible, since they were designed to pump between 1,000 and 3,000 gpm. This one was originally horse drawn. The Toledo, Ohio fire Department purchased it in 1897. Water towers were used only for large fires. The lack of hydraulic power to raise and extend the tower made it unwieldy and difficult to maneuver. Most departments preferred to use aerial ladder trucks equipped with play pipes attached to the end of the ladder to play water on fires in tall structures. Although aerial play pipes could only handle a water flow of about 15% the capacity of a tower pipe, the aerial was much easier to maneuver than a tower. It wasn't until the 1960's that hydraulic powered water towers, called snorkles or Squirts, made the water tower a turly useful firefighting tool. In 1915 Toledo motorized its tower with a gasoine fueled tractor built by J. Walter Christie, a noted automotive engineer. It remained in service until 1950. This is an interesting power unit in that the engine sets crosswise the unit and drives the front wheels by gears inside the wheel around the outer portion. The tires are solid rubber, not unusual for that era. 
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