![]() Sightseers and pop culture fans traveling along I-85 between Charlotte, North Carolina, and Atlanta, Georgia, will often pose to take a selfie with the Peachoid - an orange and yellow spheroid water tower that resembles a peach. Single pedestal tanks can support either a sphere or spheroid water storage container, and spheroids became more popular in the 1960s (Kempe, 2006). Spheres are perfectly round, like a golf ball or basketball, while spheroids or ellipsoids are more football shaped. His design was intended to revolutionize supplying water to railway engines, but the design’s functionality proved beneficial for other types of water tanks as well. ![]() His design combined the best attributes of hemispherical bottom tanks and flat bottom tanks, which were the two types that had dominated the industry (Mathis, 2012). Horton patented an ellipsoidal bottom tank in 1907. Welding metal gives it a much smoother appearance as opposed to riveting. Welding overtook riveting after WWII and is still the most common practice. ![]() Studios Water Tower is a riveted witch’s hat built in 1927. Commonplace in the early 20 th century, riveted tanks are reminiscent of the Tin Man’s head from The Wizard of Oz. These eye-catching structures have hemispherical bottoms and conical roofs that resemble the hats worn by sorcerers. Perhaps the most whimsically nicknamed type of steel tank is the Witch’s Hat. This architectural marvel is now a Chicago Office of Tourism art gallery, displaying works of local artists, photographers and filmmakers.Īs the 19 th century ended, improvements in steel construction made metal the material of choice to construct water tanks. Mixing art and functionality, engineers started designing standpipes that would blend in with the landscape, and ornate designs also were fashionable.Ī prominent example is the Chicago Water Tower, which was built in 1869 to house a water pump that drew water from Lake Michigan. The standpipes helped supply sufficient water pressure to deliver the liquid for fire protection or drinking water. These long, skinny and legless towers were adjacent to pump stations in the old days. Standpipes were popular water storage structures in the latter half of the 1800s through the early 1900s, and that type is still in use today. Older styles of water towers still dot the American landscape, although, as with the Model T, some of those older styles are no longer fabricated.Įarly tanks were elevated, harnessing gravity to provide enough water pressure for potable use or fire protection. ![]() Much like automobiles, the shapes and styles of water tanks and towers have changed over the years as technology advanced. As influential as the Model T was in the 20 th century, the classic car just doesn’t share the roads with Toyota Corollas or Ford F-150s. Get Tanks articles, news and videos right in your inbox! Sign up now.įor the most part, you don’t see too many automobiles that are more than 20 years old unless you come across a Frog Follies show. ![]()
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