Caption: John F. Wixford, the city chemist generally credited with the formula that made city water clear just before the World's Fair opened on April 30, 1904. The photo is from June 1927, shortly after Wixford returned to the city staff after an absence of 21 years. Wixford graduated from Washington University with a degree in engineering and first joined the city in 1903. At the time, city water flowed from faucets and hydrants with a distinctive brown hue. The reason was the muddy Mississippi River at Chain of Rocks, where the city still has a water works. (The mud actually is mainly from the Missouri River, which joins the Mississippi five miles upstream from Chain of Rocks.) Wixford adjusted the treatment method used in Quincy, Ill., by greatly increasing the amount of lime used to get sediment to sink much more quickly to the bottom of settling tanks. When the city began using Wixford's formula of lime and iron oxide, the water ran clear, and did so only one month before the fair opened in Forest Park. Wixford tried to patent the formula, but mayor Rolla Wells complained publicly that many people were involved in the deal. Wixford resigned in 1906 during the controversy, but later administrations praised his work. He died in 1935 at age 74. (Post-Dispatch)
Album ID: 1199804
Photo ID: 34835704
Email Page to Friend
Save in My Album
Buy this Photo
View Gallery
