Subjects Pollution

Includes pollution caused by the direct dumping of factory or industrial wastes into rivers and streams, the dumping of industrial wastes and sewage through the city's sewer system, combined sewer overflows during wet weather, and polluted stormwater carried into streams by the city's stormwater drainage pipes.

Petition of manufacturers along the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia for a new upstream water supply, 1868

The Water Supply Problem of Philadelphia, 1899

Oak Lane Reservoir pipeline, 1904

The Water and Drainage History of Philadelphia: A seven-part course

Birkinbine Schuylkill Hydrographical Survey 1861-66

Two reports on the state of the Schuylkill River, 1867

William Penn balks at drinking the "mixed drink" offered him: Schuylkill water, mixed with pollution from the upstream sources named. Editorial cartoon by Fred Morgan, Philadelphia Inquirer, April 6, 1899. One of a series of cartoons drawn by Morgan protesting the state of the city's drinking water and trying to encourage the passage of legislation authorizing the construction of a water filtration system.

Half a Century of Clean Water: The Clean Water Act, 1972-2022

Black-and-white image showing several cubic measurements of various types

Volume of Sludge from 1,000,000 Gallons of Sewage

Black-and-white photo of a man standing in a long trench

Sludge Drying Beds, Essen Nord, Germany

Black-and-white photograph of a man in a hat standing in a brick trench

Grit Chamber, Essen, Germany

Black-and-white image of two cylinders on a white surface

Effects of Expansion of Gas Bubbles in Enscher Sludge Shown in Right-Hand Cylinder

Black-and-white line graph showing two jagged lines on a grid

Diagram Showing Decreased Amount of Dissolved Oxygen in Delaware River, 1913

Water, Water Everywhere – Philadelphia Record, 1937-03-14

Outhouse over Schuylkill near Pottstown

Outhouse over the Schuylkill near Pottstown