Plumbing Failure Floods State Capitol
A clogged flush tank at the Olympia capitol caused hundreds of dollars in damage to government records.
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.
Olympia— A flush tank on the third floor of the state capitol building overflowed, flooding a portion of the building. The auditor's office on the main floor was badly drenched and the state superintendent's office in the basement was also drenched. Records, papers and office fixtures were damaged. The damage is estimated at $400. The accident was due to the accumulation of sand in the water pipes.
“The auditor's office on the main floor was badly drenched.”
Infrastructure failures in government buildings were as frustrating in 1903 as they are today. The event highlights the vulnerability of physical archives to the basic mechanics of city utilities.
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