The Water Wars of 1899
Seattle's city water department warns residents: follow the strict lawn-watering schedule or lose your access entirely.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The city water department is taking a hard matter to have people live up to the rules for sprinkling. All those living south of Yesler Way from Elliott Bay to [Ninth] Avenue and east of Fourth Avenue are permitted to sprinkle from 6 to 8 o'clock in the morning. Those in the remaining district are permitted to water from 6 to 8 o'clock in the evening. This rule is not adhered to, and Superintendent Youngs, of the water department, says that it is impossible to fill the tanks enough to supply the demand. 'In case of fire,' says Mr. Youngs, 'there is not enough water for the department. If the patrons do not obey the rules, the department will have to stop all sprinkling.'
“In case of fire, there is not enough water for the department. If the patrons do not obey the rules, the department will have to stop all sprinkling.”
More than a century later, Seattle’s infrastructure remains locked in a battle between population growth and natural resource management. While the 'water department' (now Seattle Public Utilities) manages supply much differently today, the tension between individual suburban landscaping habits and collective urban sustainability remains a recurring Seattle headache.
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