The Sparks Shot Tower is a historic

shot tower A shot tower is a tower designed for the production of small-diameter shot balls by free fall of molten lead, which is then caught in a water basin. The shot is primarily used for projectiles in shotguns, and for ballast, radiation shielding, ...

located at 129-131 Carpenter Street in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

. Opened on July 4, 1808, it was one of the first shot towers in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, with the Jackson Ferry Shot Tower in

Wythe County, Virginia Wythe County () is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 28,290. Its county seat is Wytheville. History Wythe County was formed from Montgomery Cou ...

possibly predating it by a year or so. It was built near the

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for a ...

waterfront at

Front Front may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''The Front'' (1943 film), a 1943 Soviet drama film * '' The Front'', 1976 film Music * The Front (band), an American rock band signed to Columbia Records and active in the 1980s and ...

and Carpenter Streets, just west of

Gloria Dei (Old Swedes') Church Gloria Dei Church, known locally as Old Swedes, is a historic church located in the Southwark, Philadelphia, Southwark neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at 929 South Water Street, bounded by Christian Street on the north, South Chris ...

History

Supplies of lead shot were imported from Europe before the

Embargo Act of 1807 The Embargo Act of 1807 was a general trade embargo on all foreign nations that was enacted by the United States Congress. Much broader than the ineffectual 1806 Non-importation Act, it represented an escalation of attempts to persuade Br ...

. Plumbers Thomas Sparks, John Bishop, and James Clement built the tower to take advantage of the limited available supply. At the start of the War of 1812, the federal government became their major customer, buying war munitions, and

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...

John Bishop sold his part of the company to Thomas Sparks.Sparks Shot Tower, 1808
in John Mayer, ''Workshop of the World'' (Oliver Evans Press, 1990) Before the use of shot towers, shot was made in wooden molds, which resulted in unevenly formed, low quality shot. Shot towers work on the principle that molten lead forms perfectly round balls when poured from a high place. Molten lead at the top of the tower was poured through a sieve or mesh, forming uniform spherical shot before falling into a large vat of water at the bottom of the tower. The tall brick tower is in diameter at its base, tapering to at the top. Originally used to produce

shot Shot may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Shot'' (album), by The Jesus Lizard *''Shot, Illusion, New God'', an EP by Gruntruck *'' Shot Rev 2.0'', a video album by The Sisters of Mercy * "Shot" (song), by The Rasmus * ''Shot'' (2017 ...

for hunters, the tower produced ammunition during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

and the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

. The tower operated for over a century, closing in 1913. Four generations of the Sparks family owned the tower until 1903, when they sold it to the United Lead Company of Pennsylvania. The City of Philadelphia bought the site in 1913. The tower is now managed by the Philadelphia Department of Parks and Recreation and is surrounded by a public recreation center and playground. It can be seen looking west from

I-95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...

. 1870 Panorama from Sparks Shot Tower.jpg, 1870 photo from the top of the tower toward the

1880 survey Sparks Shot Tower.png, 1880 Hexamer General Survey page on the tower Sparks Shot Tower2.jpg, 1973 Historic American Buildings Survey photo Sparks Shot Tower Historical Marker 129-131 Carpenter St Philadelphia PA (DSC 3814).jpg, Historical Marker

References

External links

* *{{Philadelphia Architects and Buildings , pj=35467 , Sparks Shot Tower
Sparks Shot Tower
at USHistory.org
Waymark
Buildings and structures in Philadelphia Historic American Buildings Survey in Philadelphia Industrial buildings completed in 1808 Towers completed in 1808 Shot towers South Philadelphia

History

See also

References

External links