Souvenirs of Yesteryear: Personalized manhole covers
Most of the things that make urban life livable are taken for granted and go unnoticed. Not by me. Whenever visiting a city, I like to walk around and examine its visible infrastructure. Manhole covers are often characteristic of a location, especially in the older parts of our older cities.
In the photos are two of our personalized “NORWICH” manhole covers. Some merely state the city name while others elaborate with “NORWICH SEWER.” Thus far, I have tallied 53, so we have at least that many. Counting manhole covers is like eating potato chips; it is hard to stop. Unfortunately, I do not know when they were made and placed here, but I suspect the early 1900s. Having two different types would indicate that they were purchased at two different times. There are at least five up on the high land in the north part of the city, an area which was not developed until around 1960. I suspect that these covers get switched around over time. Perhaps they were made locally.
Some covers bear different embossments. “SANITARY SEWER” is comforting, because we certainly do not want (perish the thought) unsanitary sewers. A few say “STORM SEWER”. Many bear the names of the company that manufactured them. “NEENAH FOUNDRY CO. NEENAH, WIS.” and “UTICA STEAM ENGINE & BOILER WKS UTICA N Y” get their commercials in. Many covers merely sport patterns ranging from cross-hatches to polka dots to radial/concentric circle designs. Some covers look as if the names of other municipalities were ground off. A few have bizarre statements, such as “THE MADISIN FDR’Y CO. CLEVELAND, O.” and “( ) OF ( )HAUMBURG,” where ( ) is a splotch of asphalt. How many manholes of all designs do we have in the city? I do not know, but my guesstimate is at least 500. I suspect that generic covers are generally preferred because they can be sold and purchased by any municipality. However, I like the custom made ones that give a personalized unique touch to our streets.
Other local municipalities also sport their own personalized manhole covers. Greene has at least 25 and Sherburne has at least 15. Oxford has none; all are generic. New Berlin has none because it has no subterranean sewer system and ergo, no manholes. I have yet to check out our other villages: Afton, Bainbridge, Smyrna, and Earlville.
It is impossible to say anything about manhole covers without tackling that eternal question: why are manhole covers round? There are many answers, but most are facetious or overly contrived. There are five sensible answers. A round cover cannot fall, or be dropped, into its hole. A round cover will seat itself into its lowest energy state as vehicles pass over it, thereby reducing noise. A round cover can be easily reinstalled upon its receptacle. A round cover can be easily rolled aside rather than having to be dragged or lifted. Then there is tradition; perhaps they started out being made round and the practice simply continued.
Political correctness might someday demand that these covers be called “personhole covers.” I will conform to that term the first time I see anyone other than a man going in or out of a manhole, or even working near one. On the other hand, perhaps the name has to be changed first to make them more welcoming. You know, make people of both sexes want to drop in.
I can make light of nomenclature, but what really disturbs me is that manhole covers proudly bearing the name “NORWICH,” “GREENE,” or “SHERBURNE” are in danger of being slathered over with asphalt. Actually, it is hard to know how many have already been besmudged because once buried they cannot be read. My plea here is to prevent such a terrible fate in the future. These personalized covers are among our historical treasures and deserve to be conserved as unique landmarks. When covers do have to be paved over, the impersonal patterned ones should be selected instead. Our namesake manhole covers should be displayed in prominent locations, to let the whole wide world know we are proud of who we are!
In 2014, just eight years from now, the City of Norwich will be celebrating its centennial as a city. Perhaps commemorative manhole covers would add a nice touch. They could even be financed as a fundraising event.
In the photos are two of our personalized “NORWICH” manhole covers. Some merely state the city name while others elaborate with “NORWICH SEWER.” Thus far, I have tallied 53, so we have at least that many. Counting manhole covers is like eating potato chips; it is hard to stop. Unfortunately, I do not know when they were made and placed here, but I suspect the early 1900s. Having two different types would indicate that they were purchased at two different times. There are at least five up on the high land in the north part of the city, an area which was not developed until around 1960. I suspect that these covers get switched around over time. Perhaps they were made locally.
Some covers bear different embossments. “SANITARY SEWER” is comforting, because we certainly do not want (perish the thought) unsanitary sewers. A few say “STORM SEWER”. Many bear the names of the company that manufactured them. “NEENAH FOUNDRY CO. NEENAH, WIS.” and “UTICA STEAM ENGINE & BOILER WKS UTICA N Y” get their commercials in. Many covers merely sport patterns ranging from cross-hatches to polka dots to radial/concentric circle designs. Some covers look as if the names of other municipalities were ground off. A few have bizarre statements, such as “THE MADISIN FDR’Y CO. CLEVELAND, O.” and “( ) OF ( )HAUMBURG,” where ( ) is a splotch of asphalt. How many manholes of all designs do we have in the city? I do not know, but my guesstimate is at least 500. I suspect that generic covers are generally preferred because they can be sold and purchased by any municipality. However, I like the custom made ones that give a personalized unique touch to our streets.
Other local municipalities also sport their own personalized manhole covers. Greene has at least 25 and Sherburne has at least 15. Oxford has none; all are generic. New Berlin has none because it has no subterranean sewer system and ergo, no manholes. I have yet to check out our other villages: Afton, Bainbridge, Smyrna, and Earlville.
It is impossible to say anything about manhole covers without tackling that eternal question: why are manhole covers round? There are many answers, but most are facetious or overly contrived. There are five sensible answers. A round cover cannot fall, or be dropped, into its hole. A round cover will seat itself into its lowest energy state as vehicles pass over it, thereby reducing noise. A round cover can be easily reinstalled upon its receptacle. A round cover can be easily rolled aside rather than having to be dragged or lifted. Then there is tradition; perhaps they started out being made round and the practice simply continued.
Political correctness might someday demand that these covers be called “personhole covers.” I will conform to that term the first time I see anyone other than a man going in or out of a manhole, or even working near one. On the other hand, perhaps the name has to be changed first to make them more welcoming. You know, make people of both sexes want to drop in.
I can make light of nomenclature, but what really disturbs me is that manhole covers proudly bearing the name “NORWICH,” “GREENE,” or “SHERBURNE” are in danger of being slathered over with asphalt. Actually, it is hard to know how many have already been besmudged because once buried they cannot be read. My plea here is to prevent such a terrible fate in the future. These personalized covers are among our historical treasures and deserve to be conserved as unique landmarks. When covers do have to be paved over, the impersonal patterned ones should be selected instead. Our namesake manhole covers should be displayed in prominent locations, to let the whole wide world know we are proud of who we are!
In 2014, just eight years from now, the City of Norwich will be celebrating its centennial as a city. Perhaps commemorative manhole covers would add a nice touch. They could even be financed as a fundraising event.
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