Happy Birthday Benson Bubblers!

  "No one has the right to die and not leave something to the public and for the public good."  ~ Simon Benson

There’s an iconic piece of Portland’s history that can be seen just about anywhere while you walk through downtown that provides the most fundamental need to all life on Earth.  You guessed it!  It’s Portland’s very own Benson Bubblers, which are turning 98 years old on April 10th.  As you are walking by one these bubblers around downtown, have you ever wondered how the drinking fountains got there?

 

Lumber baron Simon Benson proposed the drinking fountains to the City Council in hope that his workers might drink water instead of beer to quench their thirst while on the job.  On April 10, 1912, Ordinance #25070 was passed by the Portland City Council, authorizing Mr. Benson to construct 20 drinking fountains and the installation to be overseen by the City Engineer.  It wasn’t until June 18, 1912 that the first Benson Bubbler was installed at SW 5th & Washington.  The remaining 19 Benson Bubblers were installed over the following five years.

 

It is easy for us to take the availability of water for granted when we are surrounded by it, but there is a growing demand for this vital resource.  The availability for clean water has become a growing political issue around the world.  In November 2002, the United Nations Committee on Economic, Cultural and Social Rights issued a statement declaring access to water a human right.  So next time I stop and take a sip from a Benson Bubbler, I will savor the clean, cool, refreshing taste as the Bull Run water runs down my throat.  Thank you Mr. Benson for the drink!  You were ahead of your time and Happy Birthday to your bubblers!  

 

 

 

Bubbler Facts:

• Drinking fountains are called bubblers only in Portland, Wisconsin and some parts of New England.

• The bubblers flow freely from 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m

• The bubblers run 365 days per year unless a cold snap or excessively windy weather forces the

  Water Bureau to temporarily shut them down.

• In an effort to conserve water while preserving the historic bubblers, in 2000 the Water Bureau

  installed timers which shut the fountains off during low-usage periods and in 2005 the Water Bureau

  installed flow-restricting devices in the bubblers to reduce the amount of water each fountain uses.

• The bubblers are cleaned bi-monthly.

• There are 52 four-bowl Benson Bubblers and 74 one-bowl variation around town.

• 1 four-bowl bubbler can be found in Portland’s sister city, Sapporo, Japan.

• 1 bubbler is located at the Maryhill Museum of Art / Goldendale, Washington

• There is one 3-bowl bubbler named the Nellie Robinson located at SW Naito Pkwy & Ankeny

• Bubblers use less than .001% of the daily demand.  

• The bubblers serve up Bull Run drinking water!

 Posted by: SO