
Figure 2,— HE ORIGINAL PRICE CURRENT METER, now preserved in the Smithsonian Institution’s 
(USNM cat. no. 289638; Smithsonian photo 
Museum of History and Technology. 
44538-H). 
built the first model of those meters (fig. 2) while 
working on the Ohio River near Paducah, Kentucky, 
in 1882. 
Price’s current meter was by no means the first one 
built, but, as it is presently the most commonly used 
meter in the United States, it was selected for 
discussion in this paper. First, though, it seems 
appropriate to discuss some of the important uses for 
which streamflow data are obtained, daily records of 
which are maintained and published by U.S. Geo- 
logical Survey for almost 8000 gaging stations on 
rivers throughout the United States. A partial list 
explaining the importance of streamflow records to 
modern engineering follows: 
Dams.—Dams are built for water supplies, hydro- 
electric power, flood control, irrigation, navigation 
improvement, and recreation. In each instance, a 
careful study of all pertinent streamflow records 
must be made well in advance of any construction 
work to determine whether the drainage area above 
the selected site yields an adequate amount of water 
to accomplish the purpose for which the dam is 
intended, particularly when intended for irrigation 
or municipal water supplies. For hydroelectric 
power, all aspects of the streamflow characteristics 
must be considered before the economic feasibility 
of the venture can be determined. A common 
requirement concernirg every proposed dam is that 
its spillway capacity ke adequate to accommodate 
a maximum possible flood within the drainage area, 
because inadequate spillway capacity is one of the 
major causes of dam failure. Streamflow records, 
which are obtained by using current meters, provide 
the best possible basic data for designing proper 
spillways. 
40 BULLETIN 252: 
Lirications.—Litigations involving. the uses of 
water have occurred since the beginning of written 
history. In A History of Technology,' one finds evidence 
that the words “rivals” and “rivers”? stem from the 
same source. ‘“That very word [rivals], the book 
states, “in Roman law denoted those who shared 
the water of a rivus, or irrigation channel; it thus 
implies jealously guarded 
quarrels.” 
Perhaps the most equitable method yet devised for 
settling litigations concerning water rights has been 
rights and frequent 
by means of court decisions which allot certain 
amounts or proportions of the available water to each 
Water 
masters are appointed to carry out these court orders, 
litigant who has a legitimate right to it. 
and the masters base the distribution on data pro- 
cured with current meters. 
Pusuic HreattH.—Today streams often are pol- 
luted by untreated sewage, by manufacturing 
wastes, and, more recently, by modern detergents, or 
by combinations of the three, with a consequent 
destruction of fish and wild life and withdrawal 
of attractive recreational waters and city water 
supplies from public use. Conservation officials and 
public health officers at all administrative levels— 
Federal, State, and local—are deeply concerned, par- 
ticularly in periods of drought, when streams are 
1CuHaries A. SincerR, and others, eds. From Early Times to 
Fall of Ancient Empires (vol. 1 of A History of Technology, by 
Singer, and others, eds; Oxford: Oxford University Press, 
1954), p. 521. 
CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE MUSEUM OF HISTORY AND TECHNOLOGY 
