The Pullman Palace Car Works: Water Tower, Engine House, and Smokestack

Last crawled date: 2 years, 11 months ago

This 200-foot-tall water tower was built in 1886 after a designed by Solon Spencer Beman. At the time, it was the tallest (occupiable) building in the United States outside of New York City; the first eight levels provided space for the manufacture of curtains, tassels, and cushions to outfit Pullman cars. (By the 1920s, this space was being devoted to records retention.) Due to the unique 'cage-frame' technology employed in its construction, the tower had the highest load-bearing capacity (and weight per square foot) in the country. A 40-foot subbasement contained the 300,000-gallon sewerage system, while the 500,000 gallon potable water tank was maintained in the octagonal portion of the building. The building behind it was one of the boiler houses; the smokestack attached to it ultimately caused the water tower's downfall. The stack was brought down in 1957 through burning, but this ignited the roof and interior of the tower. The tower was later taken down to grade; however, its foundations are still present and may be used to build a replica of the structure if/when the complex is thoroughly restored. (Request building be added for architectural importance and engineering relevance.) #1800s #America #arson #Beman #boiler #Calumet #car #Chicago #cistern #collapse #Cottage_Grove #demolition #destroy #diesel #District #engine #Express #fire #Gothic #Illinois #Lake #Lincoln #Michigan #Midwest #North #Palace #Polar #Pole #Pullman #rail #railroad #railway #raze #razed #renovation #restoration #revival #road #Romanesque #sewage #sewerage #smoke #smokestack #stack #States #steam #strike #tank #train #union #United #Victorian #water