Chicago Water Tower, one of the few buildings to survive the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Completed in 1869, the limestone structure with its ornate castellated Gothic Revival style is one of the most iconic buildings along Chicago’s famed “Magnificent Mile” of Michigan Avenue, and it is the namesake of neighbouring Water Tower Place, a 74-story skyscraper and shopping mall. |
By the 1860s Chicago’s water supply was inadequate for its growing population. Engineer Ellis S. Chesbrough considered Lake Michigan, but nearshore lake water was too polluted to be used, because of inflow from the Chicago River. Chesbrough’s innovative solution was to design a water-supply tunnel system running nearly two miles offshore to an intake crib. When the tunnel was completed in 1867, lake water was sent back to shore through a pumping station. Because the original pumps produced pressure surges and pulsation in the water, a standpipe system was added in 1869. |
