Mills County, Iowa

Silver City Community History
1879 - 1979

WATERWORKS SYSTEM

In 1954 Silver City citizens voted in favor for a complete waterworks system for the city. In the same year they hired an engineer to conduct a water survey. Then in 1955 they began laying the water pipes and putting the water tower up at the present site in the southwest of town. Laying of the water pipe was delayed because of the steel shortage.

The City will issue bonds in the amount of $26,500 for the waterworks and the remaining $8,000 of the $34,500 needed for the improvement will come from water revenues. Test wells drilled prior to the elections were found to be very satisfactory.

Silver City, a Mills County community, has eliminated itself from the list of Southwest Iowa town facing water shortages. A $35,000 municipal water system went into operation a day before Thanksgiving. It has received approval from the Iowa Health Department. The utility didn’t come too soon. Nearly 80 percent of the wells in town had gone dry.

Is the well safe from going dry? We haven’t a thing to worry about. It pumps 50 gallons a minute and is 13 feet deep. The lowest it ever has gone is 10 feet. The water goes into a 54 thousand-gallon storage tank on a hill in the west part of town.

Five tests were made before an acre of land near Silver Creek was selected for the site. The town hadn’t planned to use chlorine but was told to do so after the Health Department examined the water contents. It’s the best water we’ve had to drink in 25 years.

Irvin Huffaker has been named water superintendent. It cost Silver City 23 thousand dollars in revenue bonds. The rest of the cost will be paid out of earning. This was done when Bob Childs was Mayor.

In 1979 under Mayor Jones and his Council, Silver City acquired a new water system. They had to buy more land down by the present site near Silver Creek. They built a new building to house the new treatment plant and equipment. They dug new wells and also laid new water pipes in the town. The estimated cost from Anderson Consultants was $344,000. We received $341,000 Grants and Bond Money. We have used $289,551 so far and there is still unpaid bills. Rex Burgoin is our water superintendent.

~submitted by Roseanna Zehner & Darlene Jacoby