WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES JULY 12, 2018 25
OUR NEIGHBORHOOD: THE WAY IT WAS
The search for water in the
early days of Ridgewood
BY THE OLD TIMER
EDITORIAL@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
@RIDGEWOODTIMES
As hard as it may be to imagine
Ridgewood and surrounding
neighborhoods as mostly farmland,
it may be harder still to comprehend
life in New York City without a
clean, reliable water system.
The fi rst residents of our community
depended on fresh water ponds and
streams fl owing through the area as
their primary source of water; those
ponds disappeared long ago due to development.
It wouldn't be until the early
19th century that the area would have
the network of pipelines, mains and
faucets that we now take for granted.
But fresh ponds weren’t the preferred
water option for the earliest
settlers of colonial Newtown, which
would later become Ridgewood,
Glendale, Maspeth and Middle Village.
Spring water was highly prized
because it was cleaner than pond or
stream water.
If a natural stream was discovered,
it was utilized by building a spring
house over it to prevent animals and
birds from soiling the water. Because a
supply of good water was so important,
usually the farmhouse would be built
near the spring.
The surplus water would fl ow out
of the spring house as a stream which
was used by farm animals. The spring
house also made it easier for the farm
and his family to draw water during
the winter time.
If no spring was available, the
early settlers resorted to digging
wells, generally about fi ve or six feet
in diameter, and — depending on the
area’s water table — anywhere from
10 to 40 feet deep. In some cases, it was
necessary to go even deeper to fi nd
fresh water.
These wells drew on the ground
water or “fi rst water” as it was called. If
the well was dug through sandy soil, it
was necessary to line it with fi eldstone
set with natural limestone mortar to
prevent the well’s walls from caving in.
The fi eldstone wall was extended
about three feet above the level of the
ground to prevent surface water from
entering the well. As you might imagine,
the method for retrieving well
water was very basic, with a bucket
attached to a long rope lowered and
raised with a crank attached at the top
of a windlass.
The Moses Debevoise Farm located
on the west side of Old Fresh Pond Road
(now Cypress Hills Street) just north of
Myrtle Avenue, used a well dug in 1723
that was still supplying good water
until 1899, when the farm was sold.
Travelers on the dirt roads that ran
through the area back then usually
carried a container of water or would
use public wells dug along highways.
Horses would be watered and rested
at public wells.
A large public well in our neighborhood
was once located at the corner
of Dry Harbor Road (now 80th Street)
and Cooper Avenue in Glendale; it was
dug in the 1700s.
Wells were generally dug near
farmhouses but in a direction away
from the privy or outhouse to avoid
contamination. During periods of severe
drought, some wells would run
dry, creating a crisis for the farmer
and family.
In later years, driven wells equipped
with hand pumps came into use. They
went much deeper for their water
supply which better insured water
during a drought and reduced the risk
of contamination.
CATCHING THE RAIN
The earliest farmhouses in present
day Ridgewood had thatched rooftops.
When wood shingles eventually
replaced thatched roofs, some farmers
used cisterns to supplement their
water supply by catching rainwater.
Cisterns, or large tanks, were dug in
the ground, comprised of fi eldstone set
with mortar and a wooden cover.
During the colder months of the
year in a heavy rainstorm, farmers
would wait an hour or so allow rain
to clean off the roof and divert the
valve in their downspout and channel
the water into the cistern. When the
rain stopped or the cistern was full,
the valve was turned to its normal
position to allow rain water to spill on
the ground.
Cistern water was used for laundry
and bathing and, if necessary, for
drinking in the event fresh water was
scarce. Rain water, however, was not
used during the summer due to the
risk of algae contamination.
Reprinted from the Jan. 15, 2015
issue of the Ridgewood Times.
* * *
Share your history with us by
emailing editorial@ridgewoodtimes.
com (subject: Our Neighborhood: The
Way it Was) or write to The Old Timer,
℅ Ridgewood Times, 38-15 Bell Blvd.,
Bayside, NY 11361. Any mailed pictures
will be carefully returned to you upon
request.
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