The village purchased from the Sterling Iron & Railway Company the right to raise the dam and store additional water at Mombasha Lake. This lake affords one of the purest and finest water supplies to be found in the State. About one mile of 14 inch pipe and two miles of 10 inch pipe bring the water to the center of the village with a head of about 250 feet, and distribution is made with 8, 6 and 4 inch pipes. The water was turned on October 10, 1895. No fire has since extended beyond the building in which it originated. The cost of the works was about $46,000, which is probably about two-thirds of what it would cost at present, owing to the increased cost of labor and material. The works are now not only self-sustaining but are producing a comfortable surplus, and it is estimated that in not many years the plant will pay for itself and will then produce sufficient revenue to light and keep in repair the village streets--a splendid example of municipal ownership of public utilities. The town of Monroe has no bonded indebtedness and the village none other than its water bonds, except that Union Free School District No. 1, which includes the village, has issued $4,375, on account of the purchase of a seven acre school site on a commanding height overlooking the village. The Warwick, Monroe and Chester Building and Loan Association has been a potent factor in Monroe's development. It was organized in April, 1890. Standard Lodge No. 711 F. & A. M., instituted at Chester, N. Y., June 30, 1871, was, with consent of the Grand Lodge, moved to Monroe in 1884, and has a membership of 180. The Monroe National Bank, U. S. No. 7,563, although in its infancy, is a flourishing institution. It was chartered by the Treasury Department January 18th, 1905 and it was opened for business, March 1st, 1905. Monroe has a very excellent fire department. The Mombasha Hose Company was organized July 24th, 1895, and the Mombasha Fire Company, April 5th, 1898. The Orange and Rockland Electric Light and Power Company, which furnishes light and power to the villages and communities in the eastern end of the county, is located at Monroe and is now erecting a very large plant. The Newbury Foundry Company is also located here. Monroe has a fine telephone system, an athletic association, and is now putting down cement walks in the village, and it is confidently predicted that it will be the leading center of the eastern end of the county within a short period.