THE CUBA REVIEW And Bulletin. 



GOVERNMENT CONSTRUCTION WORK 



THE SANTIAGO WATERWORKS. 



IN the year 1905 the government of Cuba 

 awarded the contract to the Snare & 

 Triest Company for the construction of 

 a waterworks system at a total cost of 

 $400,000, which involved the building of a 

 dam across the Purgatoria River at a point 

 about four miles from the city, to be used 

 in impounding the flow of that stream dur- 

 ing the rainy season with the expectation 

 that sufficient water would be stored up for 

 supplying the daily needs of the city of 

 Santiago during the dry season, 

 the city heretofore depending 

 upon a meagre supply of water 

 from the Boniata River, which 

 vas also so unhealthy and scant 

 in quantity that during the dry 

 season the city of Santiago 

 was for a number of hours 

 every day entirely without water. 

 The contract involved the 

 building of a pipe line from the 

 dam to the city of Santiago, de- 



also a standpipe of sufficient elevation to 

 supply the high service. This contract was 

 completed, and accepted by the Department 

 of Public Works on November i of this 

 year. 



The dam proper was built by erecting a 

 concrete core wall across the river and an 

 earthen embankment on each side of the 

 same, requiring about 75,ooo meters of earth 

 fil', the inner face of the wall being rip- 

 rapped with stone and concrete. 



The entire project was built 

 along the best up-to-date engi- 

 neering lines and has proven 

 quite satisfactory in the volume 

 of water stored, and the city of 

 Santiago, for the first time in its 



No. 2. Lower side of Dam showing 

 outlet connection to the cit.y. 



livering tLe water to an interior 

 distribution reservoir at an ele- 

 vation sufficient to supply the 

 lower section of the city, and 



No. 3. UpiiiT t^ide of Dam. 



history, has had a supply suf- 

 ficient for the needs of the 

 day. 



Other cities in Cuba lack an 

 adequate water supply, and it 

 is Governor J\Iagoon's inten- 

 tion to construct reservoirs as 

 soon as possible. Engineers 

 are at work at various places 

 throughout the island making 



No. 4. View of the interior reservoir at Santiago. 



