Louisville Water Tower
Encyclopedia
The Water Tower of Louisville, Kentucky
(1856), 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 pumping station
are on the National Register of Historic Places
. As with the Fairmount Water Works
of Philadelphia (designed 1812, built 1819-22), the industrial nature of its pumping station was disguised in the form of a Greek temple
complex.
, who merged "architectural beauty with industrial efficiency".
After the arrival of the second cholera pandemic
in the United States (1832), Louisville in the 1830s and 40s gained the nickname "graveyard of the west", due to the polluted local water giving Louisville residents cholera
and typhoid at epidemic levels. This was because residents used the water of tainted private wells. The decision was made by the Kentucky Legislature
to form the Louisville Water Company
on March 6, 1854.
It was purposely decided to render the water station an ornament to the city, to make dubious Louisvillians more accepting of a water company. Theodore Scowden and his assistant Charles Hermany were the architects of the structures. They chose an area just outside of town, on a hill overlooking the Ohio River
, which provided excellent elevation. The location also meant that coal boats could easily deliver the coal
necessary to operate the station. The main column, of the Doric order
, rises 183 feet (55.8 m) out of a Corinthian portico
surrounding its base. The portico is surmounted by a wooden balustrade with ten pedestals also constructed of wood, originally supporting painted cast-zinc statues from J. W. Fiske & Company
, ornamental cast-iron manufacturers of New York, which depicted Greco-Roman deities, the four season
s, and an Indian hunter with his dog. Even the reservoir's gatehouse
on the riverfront invoked the castles along the Rhine.
The water tower began operations on October 16, 1860. The tower was not just pretty; it was effective. In 24 hours the station could produce 12 million US gallons (45,000 m³) of water. This water, in turn, flowed through 26 miles (42 km) of pipe.
A tornado
on March 27, 1890 irreparably changed the Water Tower. The original water tower had an iron pipe protected by a wood-paneled shaft, but after the tornado destroyed it, it was replaced with cast iron
. The tornado also destroyed all but two of the ten statues that were on the pedestals. Shortly thereafter, a new pumping station and reservoir
s were built in Crescent Hill
, and the original water tower ceased pumping operations in 1909. The pumping station was last renovated in 2010.
. Other annual events include an art auction and contemporary art dinner plates.
The National Historic Landmarks program currently considers the pumping station, as well as the boiler house, to be "deteriorated". There is also concern that the Ohio River Bridges Project
might further endanger the property.
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
(1856), is the oldest ornamental water tower in the world, having been built before the more famous Chicago Water Tower
Chicago Water Tower
The Chicago Water Tower is a contributing property in the Old Chicago Water Tower District landmark district. It is located at 806 North Michigan Avenue along the Magnificent Mile shopping district in the Near North Side community area of Chicago, Illinois...
. Both the actual water tower
Water tower
A water tower or elevated water tower is a large elevated drinking water storage container constructed to hold a water supply at a height sufficient to pressurize a water distribution system....
and its pumping station
Pumping station
Pumping stations are facilities including pumps and equipment for pumping fluids from one place to another. They are used for a variety of infrastructure systems, such as the supply of water to canals, the drainage of low-lying land, and the removal of sewage to processing sites.A pumping station...
are on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
. As with the Fairmount Water Works
Fairmount Water Works
The Fairmount Water Works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was Philadelphia's second municipal waterworks. Designed in 1812 by Frederick Graff and built between 1812 and 1872, it operated until 1909, winning praise for its design and becoming a popular tourist attraction...
of Philadelphia (designed 1812, built 1819-22), the industrial nature of its pumping station was disguised in the form of a Greek temple
Greek temple
Greek temples were structures built to house deity statues within Greek sanctuaries in Greek paganism. The temples themselves did usually not directly serve a cult purpose, since the sacrifices and rituals dedicated to the respective deity took place outside them...
complex.
History
The inspiration for the architecture of Louisville's Water Tower came from the French architect Claude Nicolas LedouxClaude Nicolas Ledoux
Claude-Nicolas Ledoux was one of the earliest exponents of French Neoclassical architecture. He used his knowledge of architectural theory to design not only in domestic architecture but town planning; as a consequence of his visionary plan for the Ideal City of Chaux, he became known as a utopian...
, who merged "architectural beauty with industrial efficiency".
After the arrival of the second cholera pandemic
Second cholera pandemic
The second cholera pandemic also known as the Asiatic Cholera Pandemic was a Cholera pandemic from 1829-1849.-History:This pandemic began, like the first, with outbreaks along the Ganges River delta. From there the disease spread along trade routes to cover most of India. By 1828 the disease had...
in the United States (1832), Louisville in the 1830s and 40s gained the nickname "graveyard of the west", due to the polluted local water giving Louisville residents cholera
Cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
and typhoid at epidemic levels. This was because residents used the water of tainted private wells. The decision was made by the Kentucky Legislature
Kentucky General Assembly
The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky.The General Assembly meets annually in the state capitol building in Frankfort, Kentucky, convening on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in January...
to form the Louisville Water Company
Louisville Water Company
Louisville Water Company is a municipal water company which provides water to the more than 800,000 people in Louisville, Kentucky as well as parts of Oldham and Bullitt counties. Additionally, they provide wholesale water to the outlying counties of Shelby, Spencer, and Nelson counties...
on March 6, 1854.
It was purposely decided to render the water station an ornament to the city, to make dubious Louisvillians more accepting of a water company. Theodore Scowden and his assistant Charles Hermany were the architects of the structures. They chose an area just outside of town, on a hill overlooking the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
, which provided excellent elevation. The location also meant that coal boats could easily deliver the coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
necessary to operate the station. The main column, of the Doric order
Doric order
The Doric order was one of the three orders or organizational systems of ancient Greek or classical architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian.-History:...
, rises 183 feet (55.8 m) out of a Corinthian portico
Corinthian order
The Corinthian order is one of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric and Ionic. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order...
surrounding its base. The portico is surmounted by a wooden balustrade with ten pedestals also constructed of wood, originally supporting painted cast-zinc statues from J. W. Fiske & Company
J. W. Fiske & Company
J. W. Fiske & Company of New York City was the most prominent American manufacturer of decorative cast iron and cast zinc in the second half of the nineteenth century...
, ornamental cast-iron manufacturers of New York, which depicted Greco-Roman deities, the four season
Season
A season is a division of the year, marked by changes in weather, ecology, and hours of daylight.Seasons result from the yearly revolution of the Earth around the Sun and the tilt of the Earth's axis relative to the plane of revolution...
s, and an Indian hunter with his dog. Even the reservoir's gatehouse
Gatehouse (waterworks)
A gatehouse, gate house, or valve house for a dam is a structure housing sluice gates, valves, or pumps . Many gatehouses are strictly utilitarian, but especially in the nineteenth century, some were very elaborate....
on the riverfront invoked the castles along the Rhine.
The water tower began operations on October 16, 1860. The tower was not just pretty; it was effective. In 24 hours the station could produce 12 million US gallons (45,000 m³) of water. This water, in turn, flowed through 26 miles (42 km) of pipe.
A tornado
Tornado
A tornado is a violent, dangerous, rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. They are often referred to as a twister or a cyclone, although the word cyclone is used in meteorology in a wider...
on March 27, 1890 irreparably changed the Water Tower. The original water tower had an iron pipe protected by a wood-paneled shaft, but after the tornado destroyed it, it was replaced with cast iron
Cast iron
Cast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...
. The tornado also destroyed all but two of the ten statues that were on the pedestals. Shortly thereafter, a new pumping station and reservoir
Reservoir
A reservoir , artificial lake or dam is used to store water.Reservoirs may be created in river valleys by the construction of a dam or may be built by excavation in the ground or by conventional construction techniques such as brickwork or cast concrete.The term reservoir may also be used to...
s were built in Crescent Hill
Crescent Hill, Louisville
Crescent Hill is a neighborhood four miles east of downtown Louisville, Kentucky USA. Area was originally called "Beargrass" because it sits on a ridge between two forks of Beargrass Creek....
, and the original water tower ceased pumping operations in 1909. The pumping station was last renovated in 2010.
Today
The tower has been leased since 1977 by the Louisville Visual Arts Association, who offer art displays inside, and hold an annual party during the Great Steamboat RaceGreat Steamboat Race
The Great Steamboat Race is an annual event, taking place the Wednesday before the first Saturday of May, three days before the Kentucky Derby as part of the Kentucky Derby Festival. The race was first run in 1963 and it takes place on the Ohio River in the span that runs between Louisville,...
. Other annual events include an art auction and contemporary art dinner plates.
The National Historic Landmarks program currently considers the pumping station, as well as the boiler house, to be "deteriorated". There is also concern that the Ohio River Bridges Project
Ohio River Bridges Project
The Ohio River Bridges Project is a controversial Louisville metropolitan area transportation project involving the reconstruction of the Kennedy Interchange , the completion of two new Ohio River bridges and the reconstruction of ramps on Interstate 65 between I-264 and downtown.One bridge will be...
might further endanger the property.