Vincennes Wellfield

The City of Vincennes purchased what is now the municipal water utility in 1935.  Water for the City is provided by a wellfield located on the West Side of the City just south of the Wabash River.  With the largest well out of service, the capacity of the wellfield is approximately 8,000 GPM or 11.52 MGD.  Chlorine, phosphate and fluoride are added at the wellfield.  The wells pump water through an 18-inch water main into the existing distribution system.

According to a information gathered in 2002, there are three water storage tanks providing a total of approximately 5,000,000 gallons of storage within the Vincennes water system.  Two of these tanks are ground storage tanks and it is estimated that only the top third of these tanks is usable storage.  Therefore, the total usable storage for the City is actually more like 2,340,000 gallons.  The Vincennes University tank is a 2,000,000 gallon elevated water storage tank with an overflow of approximately 594.5 feet above sea level.  The tank is located on the V.U. campus and was constructed in the 1950s.  The Hillcrest Tank is a 2,000,000 gallon standpipe with an overflow elevation of approximately 596.9 feet above sea level.  The usable storage of this tank is thought to be about 670,000 gallons.  This tank was constructed in 1978.  The Fox Ridge Tank is also a 2 million gallon standpipe with 670,000 of usable storage.   The tank was constructed in 1987 and provides storage to the high pressure zone of the City’s water system.

The average daily water consumption for Vincennes in 1999 was approximately 3,400,000 GPD and the projected average daily consumption in the year 2020 is 5,500,000 GPD.  The City took this information seriously and has been very proactive in making planning for the City’s future water needs.  In 2004, a 2 million gallon composite storage tank was built in the Bunker Hill region of the distribution system.  Several other large projects have also been conducted since 2002, they are:construction of a new 1,600 GPM booster station at the base of the Hillcrest reservoir in order to pump additional water into Zone No. 2; construction of a 16 inch transmission main from the VU tank to Hillcrest in order to provide an additional 1,600 GPM to Hillcrest while sustaining proper turnover within their existing water storage tanks were completed; construction of approximately 8,400 feet of 12-inch water main along Old US 41 from Niblack Road to Brokhage Road in order to sustain operating pressures and flows to existing customers in the region as well as sustaining proper suction pressure of Booster Station No. 1; construction of 5,000 feet of 14-inch water main along Seminary Street from 1st to 14th Street to provide added looping and circulation of water to south central area of Zone1; and the three existing water tanks were sandblasted and repainted internally and externally in order to improve the water quality that is being stored in them.

The Vincennes distribution system varies in age.  Some of the water mains are more than 75 years old. The oldest portion of the system is located in the downtown area.   The existing distribution system consists of cast iron, transite, galvanized iron, PVC, and ductile iron water mains.  The majority of these mains are 6 inch in diameter.The Water Department consists of a billing office, maintenance office and garage.  There are 23 employees on the City Water Department staff.  Each employee is instrumental in the entire water distribution process.

Indiana for the most part has an abundant supply of water.  However, pressures from population growth, industrial expansion, agriculture, and urbanization are having a detrimental effect on the quality and adequacy of surface and groundwater for various designated uses.  The activities carried out by farmers, homeowners, developers, industries, cities and towns and many other water users will determine the future condition and impact of Indiana’s water resources on the quality of life for our citizens.  There are numerous changes that we all can make in our daily routines that conserve our most precious natural resource most precious resource.