The Westgate Water Tower, also known as the Lincoln Water Tower is a historic
water tower
A water tower is an elevated structure supporting a water tank constructed at a height sufficient to pressurize a water distribution system, distribution system for potable water, and to provide emergency storage for fire protection. Water towe ...
, dating to AD 1911. It is located on Westgate, in
Lincoln, England
Lincoln () is a cathedral city, a non-metropolitan district, and the county town of Lincolnshire, England. In the 2021 Census, the Lincoln district had a population of 103,813. The 2011 census gave the Lincoln Urban Area, urban area of Lincoln, ...
.
It is a
grade II listed
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
building.
History
It was designed by
Reginald Blomfield
Sir Reginald Theodore Blomfield (20 December 1856 – 27 December 1942) was a prolific British architect, garden designer and author of the Victorian and Edwardian period.
Early life and career
Blomfield was born at Bow rectory in Devon, w ...
in the
Baroque revival
The Baroque Revival, also known as Neo-Baroque (or Second Empire architecture in France and Wilhelminism in Germany), was an architectural style of the late 19th century. The term is used to describe architecture and architectural sculptur ...
style.
The tower is square in plan and measures in height.
It was commissioned by the Lincoln Corporation in response to an outbreak of
typhoid
Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...
in the city in
1904-1905 which killed 113 people and drew water from the reservoir at
Bracebridge Heath
Bracebridge Heath is a village and civil parish located approximately south of the city of Lincoln, in Lincolnshire, England. It lies at the junction of two major roads the A15 to Sleaford and the A607 to Grantham, and was (until modern sy ...
rather than from the polluted supplies at Hartsholme Lake and the
River Witham
The River Witham is a river almost entirely in the county of Lincolnshire in the east of England. It rises south of Grantham close to South Witham at , passes through the centre of Grantham (where it may be closely followed using the Riversid ...
.
The tank inside the tower measures in diameter and can hold 1.356 million litres of water. It is still in use and is operated by
Anglian Water
Anglian Water is a water company that operates in the East of England. It was formed in 1989 under the partial Water privatisation in England and Wales, privatisation of the water industry. It provides water supply, sewerage and sewage treatment ...
.
References
Grade II listed buildings in Lincolnshire
Towers in Lincolnshire
Towers completed in 1911
Water towers in the United Kingdom
Buildings and structures in Lincoln, England
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