Ransom Water Tower

Last updated
Ransom Water Tower
Ransom IL Ransom Water Tower1.jpg
USA Illinois location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
LocationPlumb St. between Cartier and Columbus, Ransom, Illinois
Coordinates 41°9′24″N88°38′57″W / 41.15667°N 88.64917°W / 41.15667; -88.64917 Coordinates: 41°9′24″N88°38′57″W / 41.15667°N 88.64917°W / 41.15667; -88.64917
Arealess than one acre
Built1896
Architectural styleBarrel-type water tower
NRHP reference No. 90001723 [1]
Added to NRHPNovember 2, 1990

The Ransom Water Tower is a former water tower in the LaSalle County, Illinois, village of Ransom. It was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1990.

Contents

History

After a fire in the early 1890s the village of Ransom decided to construct a public waterworks with a central water tower. The first meetings were held in 1893 and 1894. After some controversy over the size of the tank and tower a 45,00050,000 gallon tank was constructed atop a brick water tower in 1896. The tower served the village from its construction until July 19, 1990. [2]

Design

The Ransom Water Tower is located atop a hill, what was the highest point in the then-center of town. Upon its construction, a 40 foot brick tower was topped with a 28-foot-tall (8.5 m) wooden water tank. The brick tower is a round, "barrel", tower. At its base it has a diameter of 29 feet 4 inches which tapers as the tower rises to a diameter of about 24 feet. [2]

Historic significance

The tower is locally significant to the settlement of Ransom. It helped the village flourish after a devastating fire and attracted settlers and business growth to Ransom. [2] The Ransom Water Tower was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on November 2, 1990. [1]

Related Research Articles

Thomas Hill Standpipe United States historic place

Thomas Hill Standpipe, which holds 1,750,000 US gallons (6,600,000 L) of water, is a riveted wrought iron tank with a wood frame jacket located on Thomas Hill in Bangor, Maine, United States. The metal tank is 50 feet (15 m) high and 75 feet (23 m) in diameter. Built in 1897, it is an architecturally distinctive city landmark, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.

Greens Ledge Light Lighthouse in Connecticut, U.S. (1902)

{{Infobox lighthouse

Buffalo Grove Lime Kiln United States historic place

Buffalo Grove Lime Kiln is one of two old lime kilns in Illinois listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The other is the Griggsville Landing Lime Kiln in Pike County. Buffalo Grove Lime Kiln is located near the Ogle County city of Polo. When in use, the kiln would have produced raw quicklime. The lime kiln was added to the National Register in 2002.

St. Clair Flats Front and Rear Range Light United States historic place

St. Clair Flats Front and Rear Range Light are two lighthouse structures situated off the southeastern tip of Harsens Island at Lake St. Clair.

Lena Water Tower United States historic place

The Lena Water Tower is a water tower located in the village of Lena, Illinois, United States. It was built in 1896 following two decades of problems with structure fires in the village. The current water tower is the result of a second attempt after the first structure proved to be unstable. The tower stands 122.5 feet (37.3 m) tall and is built of limestone and red brick. The current stainless steel water tank holds 50,000 gallons and replaced the original wooden tank in 1984. The site has two other structures, an old power plant building and a 100,000 US gallon reservoir. The Lena Electric Plant Building was constructed in 1905 and the reservoir completed in 1907. The Lena Water Tower was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1997; the reservoir was included as a contributing property to the listing.

John R. Oughton House United States historic place

The John R. Oughton House, commonly known as The Lodge or the Keeley Estate, is a Victorian mansion located in the village of Dwight, Illinois, United States. The grounds remain mostly unchanged since the house was moved from its original site in 1894 and remodeled a year later. John R. Oughton occupied the house until his death in 1925, and in 1930, the house became a boarding home for patients of the internationally known Keeley Institute. The Keeley Institute was founded in 1879, in part by Oughton, and utilized a new form of treatment for alcoholism. The estate grounds feature two outbuildings, a carriage house and a windmill, as well as a pond. Since 1978, the Oughton House has been occupied by a private restaurant, but the windmill is owned by the Village of Dwight, and the carriage house is a public library. The Oughton House and its outbuildings were added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1980.

Central House (Orangeville, Illinois) United States historic place

Central House is an 1860s hotel building located in the 800-person village of Orangeville, in Stephenson County, Illinois, United States. The building was built by Orangeville founder John Bower and operated as a hotel from its construction until the 1930s, when it was converted for use as a single family residence. The three-story building was the first commercial brick structure in downtown Orangeville. Architecturally, the building is cast in a mid-19th-century Italianate style. Central House was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1999.

Fairbury City Hall United States historic place

Fairbury City Hall is a historic city hall in Fairbury, Illinois, United States. It was constructed in 1892 with a clock tower that was added in 1912 as a gift from local business owners. The building was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1996.

First Congregational Church of Sterling United States historic place

The First Congregational Church of Sterling is a historic church in Sterling, Illinois, United States. The church was built in 1897 and 1898 and is an example of Richardsonian Romanesque architecture. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1995.

Forbes Hill Standpipe United States historic place

The Forbes Hill Standpipe is a historic water tower structure located on Reservoir Road in Quincy, Massachusetts, USA. The tower was built in 1899-1902 to contain a 330,000 US gallons steel water tank. The site originally included an adjacent reservoir that supplied the Quincy with water from the Metropolitan Boston Water System. The standpipe was taken out of service in 1955 and the reservoir was filled in.

Remington Water Tower and Town Hall United States historic place

The Water Tower was built in 1897 by Challenge Wind and Feed mill Company of Batavia, Illinois. This is a rare wooden tank atop a brick tower type of water tower. Built on a limestone foundation, it is 140 feet (43 m) tall and about 20 feet (6.1 m) in diameter. The brick walls are 2 feet (0.61 m) thick.

Western Springs Water Tower United States historic place

The Western Springs Water Tower is a museum and former water tower in Western Springs, Illinois. The stone tower is 112.5 feet (34.3 m) tall and 36.5 feet (11.1 m) in diameter. Construction on the tower began in 1892 and finished in 1893. Civil engineers Benzette Williams, Edgar Williams, and Ethan Philbrick designed the tower. In addition to holding water, the tower originally held the Western Springs police department, jail, and municipal offices. The village services all left the tower in 1968, and the Western Springs Historical Society opened a village museum in the tower two years later. In 1991, a lightning strike set the tower on fire, destroying the water tank; the museum reopened in 1993 after extensive rehabilitation efforts. The water tower is considered a symbol of Western Springs by residents, and multiple businesses and local organizations have taken their names from the tower.

Benson Water Tower United States historic place

The Benson Water Tower was a water tower located on Clayton Street in Benson, Illinois. The tower was built in 1891, in response to several serious fires in Benson; it supplied the village with water until 1985. The tall brick tower had a large wooden water tank on top. The tower was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1987. It has since been demolished, and was delisted in 2020.

Pipestone Water Tower United States historic place

The Pipestone Water Tower is a 132-foot-tall (40 m) concrete water tower in Pipestone, Minnesota, United States, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Unreliable rainfall and a lack of glacial lakes in the area necessitate the use of a tower to pump and store water from an underground reservoir.

State Farm Downtown Building United States historic place

The State Farm Downtown Building, variously known as the State Farm Insurance Building or the State Farm Fire Building, is an Art Deco building in downtown Bloomington, Illinois. It served as the corporate headquarters for State Farm Insurance from its construction until 1974.

Monroe Water Tower United States historic place

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.

Grand Mound Town Hall and Waterworks Historic District United States historic place

Grand Mound Town Hall and Waterworks Historic District, also known as Hose house, pump house, is a historic district located in Grand Mound, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001. The district is composed of two buildings and the town's water tower.

West Water Tower and Ground Storage Tank United States historic place

The West Water Tower and Ground Storage Tank are a historic water tower and storage tank located at 310 11th Avenue in Orion, Illinois. The tower and tank were built in 1928 as part of the village's new water system, which had been approved the previous year. The water system was introduced both as a response to several fires which had plagued the village and as an effort to bring modern technology and progress, among other civic concerns. The water tower consists of a steel tank with a hemispherical bottom supported by a steel trestle; the structure is 136.5 feet (41.6 m) tall. The ground storage tank, located at the base of the tower, is made of redwood and holds 30,000 US gallons of water.

Ogilvie Watertower United States historic place

The Ogilvie Watertower is a historic water tower in Ogilvie, Minnesota, United States, built in 1918. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 for having local significance in the themes of engineering and social history. It was nominated for being a rare surviving example of Minnesota's earliest reinforced concrete water towers and a symbol of the local infrastructure improvements that enabled the organization of Ogilvie's fire department.

Highland Park Water Tower United States historic place

The Highland Park Water Tower is a historic water tower on the west side of Green Bay Road in Highland Park, Illinois. Built in 1929–30, the brick water tower is 125 feet (38 m) tall, making it the tallest structure in Highland Park. The tower is Highland Park's third water tower and serves as a visual and symbolic landmark for the city. Its design features tall brick arches on its eight sides and a classical pediment above its entrance. The tower's water tank is capable of holding 500,000 U.S. gallons (1,900,000 L).

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 Cahill, Marianne. "Ransom Water Tower", (PDF), August 1, 1990, Illinois Historic Preservation Agency , accessed May 11, 2008.

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Ransom Water Tower at Wikimedia Commons