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Engineering Feats
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Dog Days of Summer
These late summer days in August and September can sometimes be brutally
hot. A last blast of heat before the cool of autumn takes over.
They call it the Dog Days of Summer. And it can be miserable. |
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Back before the days of HVAC
before the days of refrigerated air
in
the early twentieth century, theater patrons in Chicago were treated to
cool air as they enjoyed the show. It may have been The Last of the Red
Hot Mamas on the vaudeville stage, but in the theater, Mama (and for that
matter, Daddy too) were basking in the cool air. |
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How did the Chicago theaters get cool air on a hot night before electric
air conditioning? |
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Many large cities have underground tunnel systems running through their
business districts. Chicago is no different. The Chicago tunnels were used to transport coal and other freight from the river to various places
in the city. Thus, keeping the traffic off of the city streets and allowing free movement of the freight without the traffic gridlock. In
Chicago, tunnels were also used for mail delivery and there was even a small rail line installed to speed subterranean movement.
And, in Chicago, the tunnels were used for one other thing that made them
unique. Air shafts were cut from the tunnel into the theaters and provided a steady blast of 55-degree air even when the Dog Days of Summer
were at their worst. The depth and insulation provided by the underground
transport tunnels kept the air at a constant 55-degree temperature. Cool
enough to chill off the hottest of the Red Hot Mamas.
Constructed from 1898 through 1904, the tunnels are still in use today as
conduits for telephone and utility lines. It is said that its likely
that even the utility companies who now use the tunnels have no real idea
of the number of miles of tunnel under the city or where they all go.
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