Built after the 1906 earthquake, San Francisco's Municipal Pump Station No2 supplies seawater to fight fires should the necessity again arise. In 1974 its original boilers, steam system and pumps were still in operation. With little to do but periodic equipment tests, the small crew kept this dowager of 19th century technology in pristine condition, its brass polished, paintwork fresh and thousands of moving parts free of excess oil. They said that all would soon be replaced with more efficient diesel pumps. I haven't had the heart to go back.