History of District Heating in the United States

| Chronological List of District Heating Systems in the United States |

District Heating in Boise, Idaho

The Boise Water Works was incorporated in June 1890 and began building a public water system. A competitor, the Artesian Water and Land Improvement Company, was incorporated a few weeks ago and began to development their own system. The two companies fought vigorously, but later in 1890, John Grumbling, a water well driller, suggested that the Boise Water Works Company drill for hot water near the penitentiary. This proved to be successful and the company began offering both hot and cold water, which led the two firms to combine under the name Artestian Hot and Cold Water Company.in March 1892.

Company directors Hosea B. Eastman and Christopher W. Moore installed hot water pipes to their new houses on Warm Springs Road in January 1892 that were used as practical advertisements for hot water service. The Water Works company also built a large natatorium that opened in May 1892. Hot water service was expanded into a large portion of Boise and has continued to offer service to the present day. Geothermal water was supplied at 176°F through a one-way piping network, with no reinjection.

The General Waterworks Corporation bought the hot and old water systems in 1946. They gave the hot water system to the Warm Springs Water District in 1974, which serves about 300 customers.

The state of Idaho built a geothermal system in 1982 to serve the state capitol complex.

Boise Geothermal started a separate geothermal system in 1983 that was bought by the city in 1988, currently heats over 90 buildings in downtown Boise.

References
1890 "Incorporation of Boise Water Works," The Idaho Statesman, June 26, 1890, Page 3.

1890 "The Artesian Water and Land Improvement Company," The Idaho Statesman, July 19, 1890, Page 3.
Organized July 6, 1890

1891 "Either Hot or Cold," The Idaho Statesman, March 29, 1891, Page 8.
The Two Water Companies Consolidate

1892 "Rules and Regulations of the Artesian Hot and Cold Water Company," The Idaho Statesman, March 20, 1892, Page 2.

1892 "Heated by Water," The Idaho Statesman, March 20, 1892, Page 8.
The flow of hot springs may warm the city.
The experiment has been successfully tried in the elegant mansion recently erected for C W Moore By means of pipes of special manufacture the boiling water is conveyed to and throughout the house which is considerably over half a mile distant from the springs. It is said that the water will retain a great percentage of its natural heat after having flowed throigh several miles of piping and it is asserted that it will perform service equal to that of any hot water system ever devised.

1892 "Our Hot Water," The Idaho Statesman, March 22, 1891, Page 4.
It is probably that that Boise people do not fully realize the value of the hot water that flows in such abundance from the artesian wells. It is understood in a general way to be a nice idea to have houses heated by such an agency, but very few whose attention has not been called to the subject appreciate what the influence of this method of heating with upon the future of the city.

1892 "Want Hot Water," The Idaho Statesman, March 30, 1892, Page 5.

1895 Facts about Pipe, by Edmund Cogswell Convers
Page 746: THE ARTESIAN HOT AND COLD WATER COMPANY, LIMITED, BOISE CITY, IDAHO, Nov. 23d, 1894.
National Tube Works Co.
Will you please give us estimate on the cost of about 3,000 feet of 10-inch pressure pipe for water having a uniform temperature of 171 degrees Fahr? We shall probably require some expansion joints and would like to have you give us the cost of them also.
Our water is conducted from the wells to town through wooden-pipe. The wooden-pipe has rotted until it is useless. Any information you will give us will be appreciated. State, also, if you please, how long you would need to fill the order should the Company decide to do this work at once. B. S. HOWE, Secretary.

1897 "Hot Water Heating Without Fuel," The Metal Worker 47:26-28 (March 20, 1897)

1913 Boise Artesian Water Co. v. Boise City, 230 U.S. 84

1916 Christopher Wilkinson Moore Jr. (30 Nov 1835 - 20 Sep 1916) grave

1920 "Real Estate Transfers," The Idaho Statesman, October 2, 1920, Page 5.
Boise Artesian Hot & Cold Water company to the Natatorium company, for consideration of one hundred fifty thousand dollars, the entire hot water system of the party of the first part, including wells, pumps, other machinery and tools, with land wells are on, which is situated as follows: southwest half of southeast quarter of southwest half of section 12, township 3 north, range 2 east, of Boise meridian. This description defines a plot of 10 acres. Water rights of several other locations are also deeded to the Natatorium company, as well as a franchise for the laying of pipes. The indenture is dater September 29.

1971 "Heat from the Earth's surface; early development of western geothermal resources," by Marle W. Wells, Journal of the West 10(1):53-71 (January 1971)

1974 "Water District Acquires Old Natatorium System," The Idaho Statesman, July 25, 1974, Page 4.
The Natatorium Co. and Boise Water Corp. are both subsidiaries of General Waterworks. The assets of the hot water system were given to the district at no cost.

1979 Geothermal Energy Systems Plan for Boise City

1982 Glad to be in Hot Water, by Dean Worbois

1992 "A century of service: The Boise warm springs water district system," by Kevin Rafferty, Geo-Heat Center Quarterly Bulletin 14(2):1-5 (August 1992)

1992 "Geothermal District Heating: A Century of Service," ASHRAE Journal 34(9):22-28 (September 1992)

1999 Stories From a Heated Earth: Our Geothermal Heritage
Pages 187-305: Chapter 18: Using Geothermal Waters in France: The District Heating System of Chaudes-Aigues from the Middle Ages. by Jean Pierre Gilbert and Florence Jaudin
Pages 307-319: Chapter 19: Historical Aspects of Geothermal Utilization in Iceland, by Ingvar birger Frideifsson

2007 Boise's Water: The Private Side Of Public Works, by Robert T. Kent
In 1890, John Grumbling, a water well driller, approached the Boise Water Works Company with the idea of drilling an artesian hot water well near the Penitentiary. It was well known that there was an area near the Penitentiary where the ground was warm and snow did not accumulate. The Water Company purchased ten acres from Robert Wilson and began exploration for hot water.
The Natatorium opened for business on May 25, 1892.
1946 Boise Water Corporation was purchased by General Water Works of Pine Bluff, Arkansas.

2015 “Right from Hades”: Water and Politics in Boise, Idaho, by Molly Lorraine May, Master's Thesis Boise State University