Liernur's Pneumatic Sewerage System, circa 1884. This system, invented by Captain Charles T. Liernur, was primarily used in Holland. It was designed as a "separate" system, with sewage and rainwater disposed of by separated systems. Pneumatic pressure delivered sewage through pipes to a collection station. See pp. 22-26 of source article for detailed information.

Samuel M. Gray, Proposed Plan for a Sewerage System, and for the Disposal of the Sewage of the City of Providence (Providence: Providence Press Company, Printers to the City, 1884), Plate 5, opposite page 22.

Street reservoir of Liernur's Sewerage System in use in Amsterdam, Holland, circa 1884.

Samuel M. Gray, Proposed Plan for a Sewerage System, and for the Disposal of the Sewage of the City of Providence (Providence: Providence Press Company, Printers to the City, 1884), Plate 6, opposite page 22.

Arrangement of Liernur's Sewerage System in private houses, circa 1884.

Samuel M. Gray, Proposed Plan for a Sewerage System, and for the Disposal of the Sewage of the City of Providence (Providence: Providence Press Company, Printers to the City, 1884), Plate 7, opposite page 24.

Details of parts of Liernur's Sewerage System, circa 1884

Samuel M. Gray, Proposed Plan for a Sewerage System, and for the Disposal of the Sewage of the City of Providence (Providence: Providence Press Company, Printers to the City, 1884), Plate 8, opposite page 24.

Patent for Pneumatic Apparatus for Removing Night Soil from Cesspools, 1882. Patented by J. B. Berlier on Oct. 24,1882. U.S. Patent No. 266,416. 6 sheets. (PDF)

Source: United States Patent and Trademark Office at http://www.uspto.gov. Thanks to Tom Bates for finding and contributing this patent.

Patent for Water Closet, Urinal, and Cesspool, 1883. Patented by J. B. Berlier on Feb. 20,1883. U.S. Patent No. 272,405. 5 sheets. (PDF)

Source: United States Patent and Trademark Office at http://www.uspto.gov. Thanks to Tom Bates for finding and contributing this patent.

Part of apparatus of J. B. Berlier's pneumatic system of drainage, circa 1884. This system was tried in Paris in the 1880s to separate sludge and draw it by pneumatic pressure to a collection station. See pp. 26-30 of source article for detailed information.

Samuel M. Gray, Proposed Plan for a Sewerage System, and for the Disposal of the Sewage of the City of Providence (Providence: Providence Press Company, Printers to the City, 1884), Plate 9, opposite page 28.

Sketch showing the arrangement of Berlier's system in public and private buildings, circa 1884 in Paris.

Samuel M. Gray, Proposed Plan for a Sewerage System, and for the Disposal of the Sewage of the City of Providence (Providence: Providence Press Company, Printers to the City, 1884), Plate 10, opposite page 28.

Details of Isaac Shone's Pneumatic Sewerage System, circa 1884. This system was successfully used in London. It is a "separate" system, with sewage and rainwater disposed of by separated systems. Gravity delivers sewage to district collectors, then pneumatic ejectors raise sewage and deliver it to disposal points. See pp. 30-33 of source article for detailed information.

Samuel M. Gray, Proposed Plan for a Sewerage System, and for the Disposal of the Sewage of the City of Providence (Providence: Providence Press Company, Printers to the City, 1884), Plate 11, opposite page 30.

Details of Isaac Shone's Pneumatic Sewerage System, circa 1884.

Samuel M. Gray, Proposed Plan for a Sewerage System, and for the Disposal of the Sewage of the City of Providence (Providence: Providence Press Company, Printers to the City, 1884), Plate 12, opposite page 32.

The Shone pneumatic system was used in London to solve the sewer problem of the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, circa 1885.

Source:"The Reconstruction of the Main Drainage System of the Houses of Parliament, London," The Sanitary Engineer and Construction Record, Volume 15, Number 18 (April 2, 1887), p. 456. Courtesy of Eran Ben-Joseph, Associate Professor, City Design and Development Group, Department of Urban Studies and Planning, MIT.