Silas Wright Titus

Silas Wright Titus (January 18, 1849 – January 7, 1922) was an engineer who discovered and patented deep water pumping technology and discovered early water supplies for New York City and other towns and cities in the United States in the late nineteenth century.

[2] He was named for a friend of his father’s, Silas Wright, a US Senator, Governor of New York, and a member of Andrew Jackson’s cabinet.

In 1861, at the age of 12, he served as a bugler in the 12th New York Volunteer Infantryduring the American Civil War.

When he was 20 years old he worked with the engineering force in the construction of the New Orleans, Mobile and Texas Railroad.

He helped to develop and construct 125 groundwater wells in the vicinity of San Angelo, Texas.

The city engineers concluded that the Jameco wells had exhausted the water supply under Long Island.

On the night of Oct. 28, 1909, twenty men from the water department went out to the pumping station to seize the plant and machinery.

[8] For a period of 15 years he worked locating and installing water plants in dry towns all throughout the U.S. and Canada.