Curb box
A curb box (also known as a valve box, buffalo box, b-box, or in British English stopcock chamber) is a vertical cast iron sleeve, accessible from the public way, housing the shut-off valve (curb cock or curb stop) for a property's water service line.{{cite web |title=Service Lines |url=https://www.cityofchicagoheights.org/214/Service-Lines |website=The City of Chicago Heights, IL |accessdate=13 March 2019}}{{cite web |title=Valve Boxes and Curb Boxes Information |url=https://www.globalspec.com/learnmore/building_construction/building_materials/curb_boxes_accessories |website=Engineering 360 |publisher=IEEE GlobalSpec |accessdate=14 August 2019}}{{cite web |title=Curb Box |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/curb%20box |publisher=Merriam-Webster |accessdate=14 August 2019}} It is typically located between a building and the district's water main lines and usually consists of a metal tube with a removable or sliding lid, allowing access to the turn-key within.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ru7XupmEL3IC&dq=curb+stop+box&pg=PA141|page=141|title=Water Distribution Operator Training Handbook Third Ed |author= American Water Works Association |isbn=978-1-58321-014-7|date=2011-01-12|publisher=American Water Works Association }} It typically serves as the point denoting the separation of utility-maintained and privately maintained water facilities.
The name buffalo box, the first word often capitalized, is applied to curb boxes because they originated in Buffalo, New York.{{cite web |last1=Weiland |first1=Phil |title=No buffaloes in Hammond's buffalo boxes |url=https://www.nwitimes.com/uncategorized/no-buffaloes-in-hammond-s-buffalo-boxes/article_e81c0447-89ba-53c1-9838-6c7a8638d4ca.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20190815043959/https://www.nwitimes.com/uncategorized/no-buffaloes-in-hammond-s-buffalo-boxes/article_e81c0447-89ba-53c1-9838-6c7a8638d4ca.html |archivedate=15 August 2019 |url-status=live |website=The Times of Northwest Indiana |date=9 February 1996 |publisher=Lee Enterprises |accessdate=14 August 2019}}