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Water cribs are offshore structures that collect water from close to the bottom of a lake to supply a pumping station onshore. The name crib is derived from the function of the structure—to surround and protect the intake shaft. Cities supplied with drinking water collected by water cribs include Chicago, Illinois and Cleveland, Ohio.
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Cribs in Chicago, Illinois
The City of Chicago is supplied with drinking water from Lake Michigan. The first crib, the Two-Mile Crib was constructed as part of a scheme by Ellis S. Chesbrough in 1865. Water was collected and transported through a tunnel 60 feet below the lake surface to the Chicago Avenue pumping station. This was replaced by the Carter H. Harrison crib in 1900 (located at ), which itself was intended replaced by the William E. Dever crib that was built allongside it in 1935. However increased water demand meant that the Carter H. Harrison crib continued in service until 1997. Other cribs include the Wilson Avenue crib (located at ), the Four Mile Crib (), and the 68th Street crib (). The tunnels leading from the cribs are close to 200 feet beneath the lake and vary in shape from circular to ovular and in diameter from 10 to 20 feet. Lake water enters the cribs and flows through these tunnels to pumps at purification plants located near the shore of the lake where the water is then treated. From there it is pumped to further treatment plants and through the mains to all parts of the city as well as many of the suburbs.
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