Item Types Technical Drawing

A two-dimensional drawing or plan that includes specifications for the creation of the depicted object or building in three dimensions, including architectural plans, plans for construction of sewer and water lines, and plans used to fabricate parts for machinery.

Frankford Pumping Station, ca. 1900

Frankford Pumping Station Plans and Diagrams, 1870s

Diagram from sewage treatment plan for Philadelphia, 1912

Centre Square Water Works, Frederick Graff, Sr. Plans, 1799

Frederick Graff’s drawing of the 1815 steam engine, adapted from a design by Englishmen Matthew Boulton and James Watt, shows the engine from the north, with Faire Mount and the reservoirs to the left of the drawing and the river to the right. The 1815 engine sat on the south side of the Engine House and was thus called the South Engine. As Graff indicated in his drawing, the Engine House was essentially open from river level to the roof in order to accommodate the massive beam and fly wheel of the two engines. While Graff showed the crank attached to the axle of the fly wheel, he left the crank shaft and the pump out of the drawing. The North Engine, designed and built in 1816 by Philadelphian Oliver Evans, advanced steam engines’ operating pressures from 2 pounds per square inch (psi) to 200 psi, a significant technological achievement.

Steam engine drawing, Frederick Graff Sr., 1815

Color Diagram of Plan for the Collection, Purification and Disposal of the Sewage of the City of Philadelphia

69th St. Sewer and Culvert across Lansdowne

69th St. Sewer and Culvert across Lansdowne AVe.

Ventilating cover for manholes

Ventilating cover for manholes

Sewage collection and disposal plan

Plan for the Collection, Purification and Disposal of the Sewage of the City of Philadelphia, 1912

Typical House Drainage, Combined and Separate Systems (2008.001.0032)

Typical house drainage