1968 - 1985

The American Society of Plumbing Engineers was organized in Los Angeles, California in 1964. Members from other areas were not accepted at that time. In 1966, the Society began recruiting "members-at-large". This was the forerunner of the local chapters.

A meeting of members-at-large from the Washington, D.C. and Richmond, VA areas was held in Richmond in August, 1968. The purpose of the meeting was for the Society's Administrative Director to explain the organization of local chapters. The following month, members-at-large and other interested persons met at the Washington Gas Light building in Springfield, VA. This was the first meeting of the Washington, D.C. Chapter of the American Society of Plumbing Engineers. At this meeting there were seven members-at-large present who became the interim officers of the chapter. They were:

President Norman Schrank                                                                                                                                                            1st Vice President Robert Manfredi                                                                                                                                                 2nd Vice President George Runkle                                                                                                                                                  3rd Vice President Henry Paul Wheeler

Administrative Secretary Paul Niemiec                                                                                                                                               Correspondence Secretary Armand Laroque                                                                                                                                    Treasurer Walter Richardson

At the December, 1968 meeting the first chapter elections were held and all the interim officers became elected officers. The monthly chapter newsletter first appeared under the "ASPENEWS" heading in January of 1969.

The new chapter met monthly at various places in the Washington area until March 12, 1969 when it not only found a home, but was also presented its charter. There were twenty charter members of the chapter. The home for the general meetings was the S&W Cafeteria in Rockville, MD. The meetings were held there until February, 1974 when the cafeteria closed its doors for good. During that time the chapter grew steadily. Not only did the general meetings provide informative topics in plumbing engineering design, but in September, 1971 the chapter sponsored and provided lecturers for a plumbing design course at Prince George's Community College. In April, 1973 the first "mini-convention" was held. This was the forerunner of what is now called the Product Show. And it was in October, 1973 that members began receiving the first issues of Plumbing Engineering magazine.

With the close of the S&W Cafeteria in February, 1974, the chapter began searching for a permanent place to hold its general meetings. Meetings were held at the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Rescue Squad meeting room, Temple Israel in Silver Spring, MD and at the National Bureau of Standards in Gaithersburg, MD, where in April 1974 a joint meeting was held with the newly formed Baltimore chapter. It was also during this period that the chapter's first Roster Book was produced. This occurred in June, 1974.

In November of 1975 the chapter began meeting at the Chesapeake Seafood House in Bethesda, MD and continued holding the general meetings there until June, 1977. September 1977 began the Virginia Era for the chapter, with the meetings held at the Alexandria Holiday Inn. It had been planned to alternate meetings between Maryland and Virginia locations but this never came to be. The "min-convention" evolved into the "plumbing exposition" which was held in December, 1977 at the Ramada Inn at Tysons Corner, VA. This well planned show, with its many product displays, open bar, door prizes and hourly raffles, was a huge success and became the example for future "product shows".

In February, 1978 meetings were switched from the Alexandria Holiday Inn to the Tysons Corner Holiday Inn, which proved much more convenient to those members coming from Maryland. The "plumbing exposition" was instituted as an every other year event to alternate years with the Society's convention, with the profits from the exposition used to help defray the expenses of the chapter delegates chosen to go to the convention. The exposition was held at the Tysons Holiday Inn in January 1980 and had everything but people, thanks to an unexpected snow storm. It was readily agreed that future shows would not be held in the winter. May, 1980 saw the last general meeting at the Tysons Holiday Inn and also saw a proposal to change the name of the chapter to "Metropolitan Washington, D.C. Chapter" defeated by the chapter's board of directors.

The move from the Tysons Holiday Inn was a short one to J.R.'s Stockyard Inn, also in Tysons Corner, VA in September 1980. It was in the fall of 1980 that advertising began to appear in ASPENEWS, and has grown steadily since then. The first Holiday Social and Awards night began in December 1980. Learning from the past, the "4th Product Show" was held in March, 1982 at the Westpark Hotel and many of those displaying said it was better than many national shows they had attended.

In September of 1983 the Directory Book was issued in a completely new 3 ring binder format, and the meeting place was changed once more to the Evans Farm Inn in McLean, Virginia. The first CIPE test in October, 1983 was passed by 15 Chapter members. Notable Chapter events in 1984 included a bigger and better 5th Product Show with 46 exhibitors displaying to 456 visitors. Another highlight was the Chapter receiving the Chapter Award of Merit for 1983-1984 at the National Society Convention in Chicago in November 1984.

The Chapter has grown in numbers and influence during the past sixteen years. There are presently 168 members. The chapter provides a member to serve on the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission Plumbing Board, and provided members for the District of Columbia Plumbing Code Revision Committee.

This, as a history, must concern itself with what has been. What is added to this, is in the hands of today's and tomorrow=s members.

Robert Townsend

March 1985