05/04/2026
History happens all around us. The Eastern District of Michigan’s Historical Society honors that history with a museum tucked away in a corner of the courthouse. On the first Monday of every month, we will show you an artifact on display and share some fun facts. Our goal: to recognize the role people play in shaping history.
We’ve all seen a water fountain, but we may not know how they came to be. This is a fountain originally set up in the Levin Courthouse in 1933. It now sits on display at the EDMI museum. In the 1890’s, a young Halsey Taylor’s dad died due to contaminated water. When he grew up, Taylor became a plant supervisor for the Packard Motor Company. He watched dysentery spread throughout his employees. The main reason, he believed, was contaminated water. So, Taylor eventually invented what became the modern drinking fountain we know today. The water arc allows drinkers to stay several inches away from the faucet, rather than putting their mouths on the faucet, which helps reduce disease. From the 1920’s-1930’s, Taylor went on to create a company that made more than 80 percent of the water fountains in the United States.
