A water tower is an elevated structure supporting a

water tank A water tank is a container for storing water. Water tanks are used to provide storage of water for use in many applications, drinking water, irrigation agriculture, fire suppression, agricultural farming, both for plants and livestock, chemi ...

constructed at a height sufficient to pressurize a distribution system for potable water, and to provide emergency storage for fire protection. Water towers often operate in conjunction with underground or surface service reservoirs, which store treated water close to where it will be used. Other types of water towers may only store raw (non-potable) water for fire protection or industrial purposes, and may not necessarily be connected to a public water supply. Water towers are able to supply water even during

power outages A power outage (also called a powercut, a power out, a power failure, a power blackout, a power loss, or a blackout) is the loss of the electrical power network supply to an end user. There are many causes of power failures in an electricity ...

, because they rely on

hydrostatic pressure Fluid statics or hydrostatics is the branch of fluid mechanics that studies the condition of the equilibrium of a floating body and submerged body " fluids at hydrostatic equilibrium and the pressure in a fluid, or exerted by a fluid, on an imm ...

produced by elevation of water (due to

gravity In physics, gravity () is a fundamental interaction which causes mutual attraction between all things with mass or energy. Gravity is, by far, the weakest of the four fundamental interactions, approximately 1038 times weaker than the stro ...

) to push the water into domestic and industrial water distribution systems; however, they cannot supply the water for a long time without power, because a pump is typically required to refill the tower. A water tower also serves as a reservoir to help with water needs during peak usage times. The water level in the tower typically falls during the peak usage hours of the day, and then a pump fills it back up during the night. This process also keeps the water from freezing in cold weather, since the tower is constantly being drained and refilled.

History

Although the use of elevated water storage tanks has existed since ancient times in various forms, the modern use of water towers for pressurized public water systems developed during the mid-19th century, as steam-pumping became more common, and better

pipes Pipe(s), PIPE(S) or piping may refer to: Objects * Pipe (fluid conveyance), a hollow cylinder following certain dimension rules ** Piping, the use of pipes in industry * Smoking pipe ** Tobacco pipe * Half-pipe and quarter pipe, semi-circula ...

that could handle higher pressures were developed. In the United Kingdom, standpipes consisted of tall, exposed, N-shaped pipes, used for pressure relief and to provide a fixed elevation for steam-driven pumping engines which tended to produce a pulsing flow, while the pressurized water distribution system required constant pressure. Standpipes also provided a convenient fixed location to measure flow rates. Designers typically enclosed the riser pipes in decorative masonry or wooden structures. By the late 19th century, standpipes grew to include storage tanks to meet the ever-increasing demands of growing cities. Many early water towers are now considered historically significant and have been included in various heritage listings around the world. Some are converted to apartments or exclusive penthouses. In certain areas, such as

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

in the United States, smaller water towers are constructed for individual buildings. In

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

and some other states, domestic water towers enclosed by siding (

tankhouse A tankhouse (also spelled tank house or tank-house) is a water tower enclosed by siding. Tankhouses were part of a self-contained domestic water system supplying the house and garden, developed before the advent of electricity and municipal wate ...

s) were once built (1850s–1930s) to supply individual homes;

windmills A windmill is a structure that converts wind power into rotational energy using vanes called sails or blades, specifically to mill grain (gristmills), but the term is also extended to windpumps, wind turbines, and other applications, in some par ...

pumped water from hand-dug wells up into the tank in New York. Water towers were used to supply

water stop A water stop or water station on a railroad is a place where steam trains stop to replenish water. The stopping of the train itself is also referred to as a "water stop". The term originates from the times of steam engines when large amounts of ...

s for

steam locomotives A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...

on railroad lines. Early steam locomotives required water stops every .

Design and construction

A variety of materials can be used to construct a typical water tower; steel and reinforced or

prestressed concrete Prestressed concrete is a form of concrete used in construction. It is substantially "prestressed" ( compressed) during production, in a manner that strengthens it against tensile forces which will exist when in service. Post-tensioned concreted i ...

are most often used (with wood,

fiberglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass ( Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass clo ...

, or brick also in use), incorporating an interior coating to protect the water from any effects from the lining material. The reservoir in the tower may be

spherical A sphere () is a geometrical object that is a three-dimensional analogue to a two-dimensional circle. A sphere is the set of points that are all at the same distance from a given point in three-dimensional space.. That given point is the ce ...

, cylindrical, or an ellipsoid, with a minimum height of approximately and a minimum of in diameter. A standard water tower typically has a height of approximately . Pressurization occurs through the

of the elevation of water; for every of elevation, it produces of pressure. of elevation produces roughly , which is enough pressure to operate and provide for most domestic water pressure and distribution system requirements. The height of the tower provides the pressure for the water supply system, and it may be supplemented with a pump. The volume of the

reservoir A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...

and

diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints lie on the circle. It can also be defined as the longest chord of the circle. Both definitions are also valid fo ...

of the piping provide and sustain flow rate. However, relying on a pump to provide pressure is expensive; to keep up with varying demand, the pump would have to be sized to meet peak demands. During periods of low demand,

jockey pump A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individua ...

s are used to meet these lower water flow requirements. The water tower reduces the need for electrical consumption of cycling pumps and thus the need for an expensive pump control system, as this system would have to be sized sufficiently to give the same pressure at high flow rates. Very high volumes and flow rates are needed when fighting fires. With a water tower present, pumps can be sized for average demand, not peak demand; the water tower can provide water pressure during the day and pumps will refill the water tower when demands are lower. Using

wireless sensor networks Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) refer to networks of spatially dispersed and dedicated sensors that monitor and record the physical conditions of the environment and forward the collected data to a central location. WSNs can measure environmental c ...

to monitor water levels inside the tower allows municipalities to automatically monitor and control pumps without installing and maintaining expensive data cables.

Architecture

Rooftop water towers on New York apartment buildings

The adjacent image shows three architectural approaches to incorporating these tanks in the design of a building, one on East 57th Street in New York City. From left to right, a fully enclosed and ornately decorated brick structure, a simple unadorned roofless brick structure hiding most of the tank but revealing the top of the tank, and a simple utilitarian structure that makes no effort to hide the tanks or otherwise incorporate them into the design of the building. The technology dates to at least the 19th century, and for a long time New York City required that all buildings higher than six stories be equipped with a rooftop water tower. Two companies in New York build water towers, both of which are

family business A family business is a commercial organization in which decision-making is influenced by multiple generations of a family, related by blood or marriage or adoption, who has both the ability to influence the vision of the business and the willingn ...

es in operation since the 19th century. The original water tower builders were barrel makers who expanded their craft to meet a modern need as buildings in the city grew taller in height. Even today, no sealant is used to hold the water in. The wooden walls of the water tower are held together with steel cables or straps, but water leaks through the gaps when first filled. As the water saturates the wood, it swells, the gaps close and become impermeable. The rooftop water towers store of water until it is needed in the building below. The upper portion of water is skimmed off the top for everyday use while the water in the bottom of the tower is held in reserve to fight fire. When the water drops below a certain level, a pressure switch, level switch or float valve will activate a pump or open a public water line to refill the water tower. Roihuvuori water tower - Helsinki Finland

Roihuvuori water tower - Helsinki Finland

Architects and builders have taken varied approaches to incorporating water towers into the design of their buildings. On many large commercial buildings, water towers are completely hidden behind an extension of the facade of the building. For cosmetic reasons, apartment buildings often enclose their tanks in rooftop structures, either simple unadorned rooftop boxes, or ornately decorated structures intended to enhance the visual appeal of the building. Many buildings, however, leave their water towers in plain view atop utilitarian framework structures. Water towers are common in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, where the electricity supply is erratic in most places. If the pumps fail (such as during a power outage), then water pressure will be lost, causing potential public health concerns. Many U.S. states require a "

boil-water advisory A boil-water advisory, boil-water notice, boil-water warning, boil-water order, or boil order is a public-health advisory or directive issued by governmental or other health authorities to consumers when a community's drinking water is or could b ...

" to be issued if water pressure drops below . This advisory presumes that the lower pressure might allow pathogens to enter the system. Some have been converted to serve modern purposes, as for example, the Wieża Ciśnień ( Wrocław water tower) in

Wrocław Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...

, Poland which is today a restaurant complex. Others have been converted to residential use. Historically, railroads that used steam locomotives required a means of replenishing the locomotive's tenders. Water towers were common along the railroad. The tenders were usually replenished by

water crane A water crane is a device used for delivering a large volume of water into the tank or tender of a steam locomotive. The device is also called a water column in the United States and Australia. As a steam locomotive consumes large quantities of ...

s, which were fed by a water tower. Some water towers are also used as observation towers, and some restaurants, such as the

Goldbergturm The Goldbergturm is a 51 metre high water tower on the Goldberg (''gold mountain'') at in Sindelfingen, Germany. The Goldbergturm was built in 1963 and has in its basket, besides a water reservoir, a restaurant from which a stairway runs to its ...

Sindelfingen Sindelfingen (Swabian: ''Sendlfenga'') is a city in Baden-Württemberg in south Germany. It lies near Stuttgart at the headwaters of the Schwippe (a tributary of the river Würm), and is home to a Mercedes-Benz assembly plant. History * 1155 � ...

, Germany, or the second of the three

Kuwait Towers The Kuwait Towers are a group of three thin towers in Kuwait City, standing on a promontory into the Persian Gulf. They were the sixth, and last, group in the larger Kuwait Water Towers system of 34 towers (33 store water; one stores equipment), ...

, in the State of

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...

. It is also common to use water towers as the location of transmission mechanisms in the UHF range with small power, for instance for closed rural broadcasting service, amateur radio, or cellular telephone service. In hilly regions, local topography can be substituted for structures to elevate the tanks. These tanks are often nothing more than concrete cisterns terraced into the sides of local hills or mountains, but function identically to the traditional water tower. The tops of these tanks can be landscaped or used as park space, if desired.

Spheres and spheroids

The Chicago Bridge and Iron Company has built many of the water spheres and spheroids found in the United States. The website ''World's Tallest Water Sphere'' describes the distinction between a water sphere and water

spheroid A spheroid, also known as an ellipsoid of revolution or rotational ellipsoid, is a quadric surface obtained by rotating an ellipse about one of its principal axes; in other words, an ellipsoid with two equal semi-diameters. A spheroid has ...

thus: The

Union Watersphere The Union Watersphere, also known as the Union Water Tower, is a water tower topped with a sphere-shaped water tank in Union, New Jersey, United States and characterized as the ''World's Tallest Water Sphere''. Adjacent to U.S. Route 22, New J ...

is a water tower topped with a sphere-shaped

in Union, New Jersey, and characterized as the ''World's Tallest Water Sphere''. A ''Star Ledger'' article suggested a water tower in

Erwin, North Carolina Erwin, formerly named Duke, is a town that is located in the eastern part of Harnett County, North Carolina, United States, located approximately from Dunn and approximately from Fayetteville. The city is a part of the Dunn, NC Micropolitan St ...

completed in early 2012, tall and holding , had become the World's Tallest Water Sphere. However, photographs of the Erwin water tower revealed the new tower to be a water spheroid. The water tower in

Braman, Oklahoma Braman is a town in Kay County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 217 at the 2010 census, a decline of 11.1 percent from the figure of 244 in 2000. History Braman was named for railroad developer Dwight Braman, when its post office was ...

, built by the

Kaw Nation The Kaw Nation (or Kanza or Kansa) is a federally recognized Native American tribe in Oklahoma and parts of Kansas. It comes from the central Midwestern United States. It has also been called the "People of the South wind",

and completed in 2010, is tall and can hold . Slightly taller than the Union Watersphere, it is also a spheroid. Another tower in Oklahoma, built in 1986 and billed as the "largest water tower in the country", is tall, can hold , and is located in Edmond. The ''Earthoid'', a perfectly spherical tank located in Germantown, Maryland is tall and holds of water. The name is taken from it being painted to resemble a globe of the world. The golf ball-shaped tank of the water tower at

Gonzales, California Gonzales is a city in Monterey County, California, United States. Gonzales is located southeast of Salinas, at an elevation of . The population was 8,647 at the 2020 census, up from 8,187 at the 2010 census. Gonzales is a member of the Assoc ...

is supported by three tubular legs and reaches about high. The Watertoren (or Water Towers) in Eindhoven, Netherlands contain three spherical tanks, each in diameter and capable of holding of water, on three spires were completed in 1970. File:Wasserturm Ehrang.jpg, Disused sphere-shaped railway water tower in

Trier Trier ( , ; lb, Tréier ), formerly known in English as Trèves ( ;) and Triers (see also names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle in Germany. It lies in a valley between low vine-covered hills of red sandstone in the ...

, Germany File:Pequot_Lakes_1.jpg, Paul Bunyan's Bobber Water Tower in

Pequot Lakes, Minnesota Pequot Lakes ( ) is a city in Crow Wing County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 2,162 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Brainerd Micropolitan Statistical Area. History Pequot Lakes was platted in March 1900. It was named by ...

File:East Bay Water Tower.jpg, East Bay Township Water Tower near

Traverse City, Michigan Traverse City ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Grand Traverse County, although a small portion extends into Leelanau County. It is the largest city in the 21-county Northern Michigan region. The population wa ...

File:Waterbollen Eindhoven-02.jpg, Eindhoven Water Towers File:Cocoa_water_tower_night.jpg, Oblate spheroid water tower of the City of Cocoa in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

Decoration

Water towers can be surrounded by ornate coverings including fancy

brickwork Brickwork is masonry produced by a bricklayer, using bricks and mortar. Typically, rows of bricks called ''courses'' are laid on top of one another to build up a structure such as a brick wall. Bricks may be differentiated from blocks by si ...

, a large

ivy ''Hedera'', commonly called ivy (plural ivies), is a genus of 12–15 species of evergreen climbing or ground-creeping woody plants in the family Araliaceae, native to western, central and southern Europe, Macaronesia, northwestern Africa and ...

-covered trellis or they can be simply painted. Some city water towers have the name of the city painted in large letters on the roof, as a

navigation Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navigation, ...

al aid to aviators and

motorists Driving is the controlled operation and movement of a vehicle, including cars, motorcycles, trucks, buses, and bicycles. Permission to drive on public highways is granted based on a set of conditions being met and drivers are required to fol ...

. Sometimes the decoration can be humorous. An example of this are water towers built side by side, labeled ''HOT'' and ''COLD''. Cities in the United States possessing side-by-side water towers labeled HOT and COLD include

Granger, Iowa Granger is a city in Dallas County, Iowa, Dallas and Polk County, Iowa, Polk counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 1,654 at the time of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, up 184% from 583 in 2000. It is part of the Des Moi ...

; Canton, Kansas;

Pratt, Kansas Pratt is a city in and the county seat of Pratt County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 6,603. It is home to Pratt Community College. History 19th century Pratt was founded in 1884 and named after ...

, and St. Clair, Missouri;

Eveleth, Minnesota Eveleth is a city in St. Louis County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 3,718 at the 2010 census. U.S. Highway 53 and State Highway 37 (MN 37) are two of the main routes in Eveleth. Eveleth was the site of the conflict that resu ...

at one time had two such towers, but no longer does. Many small towns in the United States use their water towers to advertise local tourism, their local high school sports teams, or other locally notable facts. A "mushroom" water tower was built in

Örebro Örebro ( , ) is the sixth-largest city in Sweden, the seat of Örebro Municipality, and capital of the Örebro County. It is situated by the Närke Plain, near the lake Hjälmaren, a few kilometers inland along the small river Svartån, and ...

, Sweden and holds almost two million gallons of water.

Tallest

Alternatives

Alternatives to water towers are simple pumps mounted on top of the water pipes to increase the water pressure. This new approach is more straightforward, but also more subject to potential public health risks; if the pumps fail, then loss of water pressure may result in entry of contaminants into the water system. Most large water utilities do not use this approach, given the potential risks.

Examples

Australia

Bankstown Reservoir Bankstown Reservoir is a heritage-protected water tower and a local landmark situated in the suburb of Bankstown, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Located west of Sydney CBD, the reservoir is elevated and was built on reinforced concrete p ...

, Sydney

Austria

* Wasserturm Amstetten * (Water tower with transmission antenna)

Belgium

* Mechelen-Zuid Watertoren

Brazil

* Nave Espacial de Varginha in Varginha

Canada

* Guaranteed Pure Milk bottle in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

, Quebec

Croatia

Vukovar water tower Vukovar water tower ( hr, Vukovarski vodotoranj) is a water tower in the Croatian city of Vukovar. It is one of the most famous symbols of Vukovar and the suffering of the city and the country in the Battle of Vukovar and the Croatian War of In ...

Vukovar Vukovar () ( sr-Cyrl, Вуковар, hu, Vukovár, german: Wukowar) is a city in Croatia, in the eastern region of Slavonia. It contains Croatia's largest river port, located at the confluence of the Vuka and the Danube. Vukovar is the seat of ...

Denmark

* Svaneke water tower

Germany

Friedrichsplatz (Mannheim) - Wasserturm (0005)

Lüneburg Water Tower Lüneburg Water Tower (german: Wasserturm Lüneburg) is a water tower in the southeastern part of the Lüneburg old town in Lower Saxony, Germany, built by the architect Franz Krüger (architect), Franz Krüger (1873–1936), from designs by Richa ...

* Heidelberg TV Tower (TV tower with water reservoir) *

Mannheim Water Tower The Water Tower (German: ''Wasserturm'') is a well-known landmark of Mannheim, Germany. The water tower was built from 1886 to 1889 on the present Frederick Square (''Friedrichsplatz'') by Gustav Halmhuber. The tower, which is 60 meters high an ...

(built 1886–1889)

Kuwait

, which include two water reservoirs, and

Kuwait Water Towers The Kuwait Water Towers are a prominent group of 31 water towers in Kuwait City, Kuwait that were completed in 1976. Design and construction In 1965, the government of Kuwait commissioned the Swedish engineering company of VBB (since 1997 Sweco) ...

(Mushroom towers in Kuwait City.

India

Tala tank The Tala tank, also spelled Tallah tank (), is a water tower in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Construction started in 1909 and it was inaugurated in May 1911 by Edward Norman Baker, the Lieutenant Governor of Bengal. The tank, which is owned by K ...

Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...

Italy

* Ginosa Water Tower, tall

Netherlands

* Amsterdamsestraatweg Water Tower in Utrecht * Eindhoven Water Towers in Eindhoven *

Poldertoren The Poldertoren is a water tower at the town center of Emmeloord, Netherlands. The Dutch name Poldertoren could be translated as Polder Tower. The 65-meter tower was built in 1959 and has a large carillon. The tower is no longer in use as a w ...

Emmeloord Emmeloord is the administrative centre of the municipality of Noordoostpolder, Flevoland, Netherlands. In 2019, it had a population of 26,055. Overview At the heart of the Noordoostpolder, where the three main drainage canals Lemstervaart, ...

* Water Tower Simpelveld in

Simpelveld Simpelveld (; li, Zumpelveld ) is a municipality and a town in the southeastern Netherlands. It is part of the municipal cooperative unit Parkstad Limburg. Simpelveld is part of the ''Mergelland'', named after the presence of chalk (mergel), hi ...

Water Tower Hellevoetsluis The Water Tower in Hellevoetsluis was designed by architect N. Biezeveld and was built in 1896. The water tower is 22 meters high and has two water reservoirs of each 60 m³. History It took many years before Hellevoetsluis got a water pipe. Befo ...

Hellevoetsluis Hellevoetsluis () is a small city and municipality in the western Netherlands. It is located in Voorne-Putten, South Holland. The municipality covers an area of of which is water and it includes the population centres Nieuw-Helvoet, Nieuwenhoo ...

Poland

* Wrocław Water Tower

Romania

* Fabric Water Tower * Iosefin Water Tower * Oltenița Water Tower * Turnu Măgurele Water Tower

Slovakia

Water Tower A water tower is an elevated structure supporting a water tank constructed at a height sufficient to pressurize a distribution system for potable water, and to provide emergency storage for fire protection. Water towers often operate in conju ...

Komárno Komárno, ( hu, Komárom, german: Komorn, sr, Коморан, translit=Komoran), colloquially also called ''Révkomárom, Öregkomárom, Észak-Komárom'' in Hungarian; is a town in Slovakia at the confluence of the Danube and the Váh rivers. ...

Trnava Trnava (, german: Tyrnau; hu, Nagyszombat, also known by other alternative names) is a city in western Slovakia, to the northeast of Bratislava, on the Trnávka river. It is the capital of a ''kraj'' ( Trnava Region) and of an '' okres'' ( T ...

Slovenia

Brežice Water Tower The Brežice Water Tower was built in 1914, together with a city sewage system and electrification. It used to serve as the water supply for Brežice until the new water house was built below Šentvid Hill above the town. It is high and it is one ...

Brežice Brežice (; german: Rann ) is a town in eastern Slovenia in the Lower Sava Valley, near the Croatian border. It is the seat of the Municipality of Brežice. It lies in the center of the Brežice Plain ( sl, Brežiško polje), which is part of the ...

Sweden

* Vanadislundens water reservoir (Stockholm) The House in the Clouds, Thorpeness

United Kingdom

* Cardiff Central Station Water Tower * Dock Tower in

Grimsby Grimsby or Great Grimsby is a port town and the administrative centre of North East Lincolnshire, Lincolnshire, England. Grimsby adjoins the town of Cleethorpes directly to the south-east forming a conurbation. Grimsby is north-east of L ...

House in the Clouds The House in the Clouds is a water tower at Thorpeness, Suffolk, England. It was built in 1923 to receive water pumped from Thorpeness Windmill and was designed to improve the looks of the water tower, disguising its tank with the appearance o ...

Thorpeness Thorpeness is a seaside village in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England, which developed in the early 20th century into an exclusive holiday village. It belongs to the parish of Aldringham cum Thorpe and lies within the Suffolk Coast ...

, Suffolk *

Jumbo Jumbo (about December 25, 1860 – September 15, 1885), also known as Jumbo the Elephant and Jumbo the Circus Elephant, was a 19th-century male African bush elephant born in Sudan. Jumbo was exported to Jardin des Plantes, a zoo in Paris, and t ...

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colch ...

, Essex * Norton Water Tower in

Norton Norton may refer to: Places Norton, meaning 'north settlement' in Old English, is a common place name. Places named Norton include: Canada * Rural Municipality of Norton No. 69, Saskatchewan *Norton Parish, New Brunswick **Norton, New Brunswick, a ...

, Cheshire * Tilehurst Water Tower in

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spelling ...

Tower Park Tower Park is a leisure and retail park, located at Mannings Heath, in Poole, Dorset, England. It was one of the first complexes of its kind in Europe when it opened in 1989. History The leisure park, which opened in 1989, was a development in ...

in Poole, Dorset *

Cranhill Cranhill is an inner city district and housing scheme in the north east of Glasgow, Scotland. Cranhill was developed from public funding in the early 1950s and was originally, chiefly composed of four-storey tenement blocks surrounding a patch ...

Garthamlock Garthamlock is a suburb in the north-east of the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated north of the River Clyde. Provanhall is the nearest neighbourhood to the east; Craigend is directly to the west with Hogganfield Park and Ruchazie beyo ...

and

Drumchapel Drumchapel ( gd, Druim a' Chapaill), known locally as 'The Drum', is a district in the north-west of the city of Glasgow, Scotland. It borders Bearsden (in East Dunbartonshire) to the north-east and Drumry (part of Clydebank, in West Dunbarton ...

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

, and

Tannochside Tannochside is a settlement approximately south-east of Glasgow, Scotland. Although historically considered part of Uddingston, it lies within a separate local authority area: Tannochside is contained within the boundaries of North Lanarkshire c ...

just outside the city

United States

* Brooks Catsup Bottle Water Tower near

Collinsville, Illinois Collinsville is a city located mainly in Madison County, and partially in St. Clair County, Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 25,579, an increase from 24,707 in 2000. Collinsville is approximately from St. Louis, Mi ...

Chicago Water Tower The Chicago Water Tower is a contributing property and landmark in the Old Chicago Water Tower District in Chicago, Illinois, United States, that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Built to enclose the tall machinery of a po ...

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

* Florence Y'all Water Tower in

Florence, Kentucky Florence is a home rule-class city in Boone County, Kentucky, United States. Florence is the second largest city located in Northern Kentucky, after Covington, and part of the Greater Cincinnati Metropolitan Area. The population was 31,946 at ...

* Lawson Tower in Scituate, Massachusetts * Leaning Water Tower in

Groom, Texas Groom is a town in Carson County, Texas, United States. The population was 574 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Amarillo, Texas Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is on Interstate Highway 40 (Historic Route 66) east of Amarillo and west o ...

* North Point Water Tower in

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

Peachoid The Peachoid is a tall water tower in Gaffney, South Carolina, U.S., that resembles a peach. The water tower holds one million U.S. gallons (3.78541 million litres) of water and is located off Peachoid Road by Interstate 85 in South Carolina, In ...

next to

I-85 Interstate 85 (I-85) is a major Interstate Highway in the Southeastern United States. Its southern terminus is at an interchange with I-65 in Montgomery, Alabama; its northern terminus is an interchange with I-95 in Petersburg, Virginia, ...

on the edge of

Gaffney, South Carolina Gaffney is a city in and the seat of Cherokee County, South Carolina, United States, in the Upstate region of South Carolina. Gaffney is known as the "Peach Capital of South Carolina". The population was 12,539 at the 2010 census, with an esti ...

Show Place Arena The Show Place Arena is a 5,800-seat multi-purpose arena in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, which is used for sporting events, concerts, boxing and professional wrestling events, consumer shows, trade shows, religious services, graduations and other eve ...

water tower in Upper Marlboro,

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

in Union Township, New Jersey * Volunteer Park Water Tower in

Capitol Hill, Seattle, Washington Capitol Hill is a densely populated residential district in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington, United States. One of the city's most popular nightlife and entertainment districts, it is home to a historic gay village and vibrant countercul ...

Warner Bros. Water Tower The Warner Bros. Water Tower is a historic water tower located at the Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California. Built in 1927, it stands tall. The tank, which had a capacity of , is no longer used to hold water and has the WB shield on eithe ...

in Burbank, California (In the animated TV series ''

Animaniacs ''Animaniacs'' is an American animated comedy musical television series created by Tom Ruegger for Fox Broadcasting Company's Fox Kids block in 1993, before moving to The WB in 1995, as part of its Kids' WB afternoon programming block, until ...

'', it was used to incarcerate the characters

Yakko, Wakko, and Dot This is a list of characters in the 1993 animated series, ''Animaniacs'', and its 2020 revival. The Warner Siblings (Animaniacs) The Warner Siblings (also known as "the Animaniacs" by fans and the media) are small, silly, mischievous, anthrop ...

, as well as to serve as their home.) * Weehawken Water Tower in

Weehawken, New Jersey Weehawken is a township in the northern part of Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is located largely on the Hudson Palisades overlooking the Hudson River. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 17,197.

Ypsilanti Water Tower The Ypsilanti Water Tower is a historic water tower in Ypsilanti, Michigan, United States. The tower was designed by William R. Coats and built as part of an elaborate city waterworks project that began in 1889. Located on the highest point in ...

Ypsilanti, Michigan Ypsilanti (), commonly shortened to Ypsi, is a city in Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 20,648. The city is bounded to the north by Superior Township and on the west, south, an ...

(Winner of the

Most Phallic Building contest Phallic architecture consciously or unconsciously creates a symbolic representation of the human penis. Buildings intentionally or unintentionally resembling the human penis are a source of amusement to locals and tourists in various places around ...

in 2003)

Standpipe

There were originally over 400 standpipe water towers in the United States, but very few remain today, including: * Belton Standpipe in Belton, South Carolina (also in Allendale and Walterboro) *Belton Standpipe in Belton, Texas *

Bellevue Standpipe Bellevue Standpipe is a historic water storage tank on Bellevue Hill at Washington Street and West Roxbury Parkway in the Stony Brook Reservation of Boston, Massachusetts. Built in 1914, it is one of three early 20th-century water tanks built ...

(actually a water tank, not a tower), in Boston, Massachusetts *

, in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

* Cochituate standpipe, in Boston, Massachusetts * Eden Park Stand Pipe, in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

* Evansville Standpipe (a steel tower), in

Evansville, Wisconsin Evansville is a city in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 5,703 at the 2020 census. History Evansville was first settled in the 1830s by New Englanders who were attracted to the area by its pristine wooded landscape an ...

* Fall River Waterworks, in

Fall River, Massachusetts Fall River is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The City of Fall River's population was 94,000 at the 2020 United States Census, making it the tenth-largest city in the state. Located along the eastern shore of Mount H ...

Forbes Hill Standpipe The Forbes Hill Standpipe is a historic water tower structure located on Reservoir Road in Quincy, Massachusetts, USA. The tower was built in 1899-1902 to contain a steel water tank. The site originally included an adjacent reservoir that supplie ...

, in Quincy, Massachusetts *

Louisville Water Tower The Louisville Water Tower, located east of downtown Louisville, Kentucky near the riverfront, is the oldest ornamental water tower in the world, having been built before the more famous Chicago Water Tower. Both the actual water tower and its pu ...

, in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

* North Point Water Tower, in

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...

* Reading Standpipe (demolished in 1999 and replaced by a modern steel tower), in

Reading, Massachusetts Reading ( ) is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, north of central Boston. The population was 25,518 at the 2020 census. History Settlement and American independence Many of the Massachusetts Bay Colony's original settle ...

* St. Louis, Missouri has three standpipe water towers which are on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

. ** Bissell Tower (also known as the Red Tower) ** Compton Hill Tower ** Grand Avenue Water Tower *

Thomas Hill Standpipe Thomas Hill Standpipe, which holds of water, is a riveted wrought iron tank with a wood frame jacket located on Thomas Hill in Bangor, Maine, United States. The metal tank is high and in diameter. Built in 1897, it is an architecturally dist ...

, in Bangor, Maine *

, in

* Bremen Water Tower, in Bremen, Indiana

Gallery

File:Wasserturm Rybnik.jpg, Water tower in

Rybnik Rybnik (Polish pronunciation: ; szl, Rybńik) is a city in southern Poland, in the Silesian Voivodeship, around 38 km (24 mi) southwest of Katowice, the region's capital, and around 19 km (11 miles) from the Czech border. It is ...

, Poland File:Viljandi vana veetorn.jpg, Water tower in

Viljandi Viljandi (, german: Fellin, sv, Fellin) is a town and municipality in southern Estonia with a population of 17,407 in 2019. It is the capital of Viljandi County and is geographically located between two major Estonian cities, Pärnu and Tartu. ...

, Estonia File:Tesoman Vesitorni.jpg, Water tower in

Tesoma Tesoma is a district in Tampere, Finland, located west of the city centre. It largely comprises Lake Tesoma with its surroundings, including the quarters: Epilänharju, Tohloppi, Haukiluoma, Lamminpää, Myllypuro, Ikuri, Ristimäki and Te ...

Tampere Tampere ( , , ; sv, Tammerfors, ) is a city in the Pirkanmaa region, located in the western part of Finland. Tampere is the most populous inland city in the Nordic countries. It has a population of 244,029; the urban area has a population o ...

, Finland File:19th century water tower in Szprotawa Poland.jpg, Water tower in

Szprotawa Szprotawa (german: Sprottau) is a town in western Poland, in Żagań County, Lubusz Voivodeship. It has 11,820 inhabitants (2019). History The region was part of Poland after the emergence of the Piast monarchy in the 10th century. The first me ...

, built

1867 Events January–March * January 1 – The Covington–Cincinnati Suspension Bridge opens between Cincinnati, Ohio, and Covington, Kentucky, in the United States, becoming the longest single-span bridge in the world. It was renamed a ...

by a company J&A Aird from

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

File:Warner Bros Studios (51212906920).jpg, The

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

Water Tower in Burbank, California. File:2017-07-25 UC Tower.jpg, Water tower in United College,

The Chinese University of Hong Kong The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) is a public research university in Ma Liu Shui, Hong Kong, formally established in 1963 by a charter granted by the Legislative Council of Hong Kong. It is the territory's second-oldest university ...

File:New Asia Water Tower 2012.jpg, Water tower in

New Asia College New Asia College is a constituent college of the Chinese University of Hong Kong located in Sha Tin, New Territories, Hong Kong. History New Asia College was founded in 1949 by Chinese scholars Ch'ien Mu (Qian Mu), Tang Junyi (Tang Chun ...

References

External links

International Watertower Archive

Website about 1000 watertowers from Poland
{{DEFAULTSORT:Water Tower Towers

History

Design and construction

Architecture

Spheres and spheroids

Decoration

Tallest

Alternatives

Examples

Australia

Austria

Belgium

Brazil

Canada

Croatia

Denmark

Germany

Kuwait

India

Italy

Netherlands

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Romania

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Standpipe

Gallery

See also

References

External links