The "Soda Fountain Developer And Cherry Coke Hero: Part II - The Procedure" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Yesterday's story was about Dr. Samuel Fahnestock receiving a soda fountain patent in 1819 for a unit that included a wooden barrel, fitted with a pump and spout to dispense carbonated water, with the device being meant to be kept out-of-sight, under a countertop.  He also promoted a seltzer, soda and magnesia et soda at his doctor's office/apothecary.  He was able to keep mineral water in stoneware vessels to avoid the metal taste of keeping it in a metal vessel.  To be able to make this seltzer water in large quantities, he needed large amounts of water.  

The Train Station where Dr. Fahnestock's carbonated
water was used to make cherry cokes.

So, in May of 1825 he was granted an "Ordi- nance", which is a legal document, for the.....use of so much of the waters of the run passing down the run in Water Street, and also of the waters of a small stream running through the culvert under West King Street, as shall, or may be necessary for the use of certain water-works, which he, the said Samuel Fahnestock, contemplates erecting on his lot, in the city, fronting on said Water street, and composed of lots No. 335, 336, 337, 338, and to carry the same, by the right to the water of the run passing down the run in Water Street, and also of the waters of a small stream running through the the culvert under West King Street and into the main pipe in the run in Water street, where the same may meet the said main pipe, so sunk and fastened to the bottoms thereof, as that no fresh or flood can remove the same, the commencement or head of which pipes, in said run, shall be at some point between the bridge, across Orange street, and the fourteen feet alley running east and west, between Orange and West King street, and in the said stream or culvert, nor farther up than the run under the street; and etc., etc.   The ordinance goes on and on, but I believe you may have the idea that he wants to use all the water he can in the manufacturing of his seltzer water and patents he is working on in his nearby home.  It was a rather interesting read as long as you can get by all the unusual wording that was, and may still be, used by the government to grant the good doctor, or anyone, certain legal privileges.  The ordinance went on to give Dr. Fahnestock the right, if necessary, to make dams which can be easily removed if needed and which shall not exceed 12 inches in height on the run, known as "Roaring Brook", in Water Street.  He could also be held liable if he caused any of his neighbors damage to their property.  

I usually sat on the front, or second from the front,
stool to read my comic and drink my cherry soda.
This is the actual soda fountain from the train station.

The ordinance was to take effect April 15, 1825 A.D. and last for eighteen months after its passage.  In order to run the water where he needed it, he used wood pipes that were about 12 inches is size to convey the water to the lots he owned on Water Street.  The Ordinance allowed him to do so for 25 years.  Seems that Dr. Fahnestock died 11 years after he obtained the Ordinance and I can find no record as to what happened to those wooden pipes or his experiment.  Perhaps if I had the chance to look in the basements of the houses in the 300 block of Water Street, I may find the answer to my question.  But, that's not going to happen in my lifetime.  For me, it was just enough to know that he was responsible for the great cherry cokes that I enjoyed as a child.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.