There was a lot of ingenuity involved. In order to provide their own water supply, in 1913, the brothers built a water wheel 18 feet in diameter (near where the townhouses on the water works road are now situated.) A dam was built to ensure a constant supply of water for the wheel. The brothers first built a test wheel to be sure the operation was feasible, then built the wheel itself. They were required to lay 900 feet of pipe from the wheel to the Hudson through swampy land. A water tower constructed near the barn in 1914 ensured an adequate water supply and pressure for the farm until 1935. It was decided in 1918 to harness the water wheel to a dynamo to electrify the houses. Good idea, but it never supplied enough power, so the properties hooked up with local utility for electricity and gas.

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