Map of the water courses at and near Philadelphia.

1875

These streams were of interest to the Philadelphia Water Department as it searched for a purer water supply for the city. The green area on the map shows the Perkiomen Creek watershed, of special interest in this time period. Many alternative water supplies were examined by the city from the mid-19th to the mid-20th century, but the original system, which still draws water from the city’s two rivers, was never abandoned. 2004.057.0085