Monroe Water Tower

The Monroe Water Tower is a historic water tower built in 1889 in Monroe, Wisconsin. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. The first settlers came to Monroe in the 1830s. The community grew, adding a sawmill and other small industries. The railroad came in 1858, and Monroe incorporated as a village the same year. In 1870 a fire department was organized - a major public service - but its source of water wasn't much better than a bucket brigade. In 1888 the Monroe Electric Light Company began providing electricity to homes and street lights. In the same year, the Wisconsin Telephone Company began offering limited telephone service. In May 1889, W.H. Wheeler of Beloit offered to drill a well and build a "water works" for Monroe. The city council approved the project, agreeing to fund it if Wheeler would operate the system. Work commenced, but after some snags, Wheeler took on the city's responsibilities in exchange for a 20-year franchise to operate the water system. The project accelerated and by the end of 1889, the well was drilled, the water tower was up, and water lines were laid. A successful test was conducted on New Year's Day of 1890. The tower was built much as it appears today. From a limestone foundation, cream brick walls rise 80 feet, forming a cylinder 28 feet across. On top of the brick walls sits a steel tank which holds 100,000 gallons

Building data from Wikidata (CC0); heights normalised. Summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).