York Buildings Water Tower | |
---|---|
General information | |
Status | Demolished |
Type | Water tower |
Architectural style | Octagonal |
Address | Villiers Street |
Town or city | London |
Country | UK |
Coordinates | 51°30′28″N0°07′23″W / 51.507904°N 0.123049°W |
Completed | Late 17th century |
Height | 70 feet (21 m) |
Technical details | |
Material | Wood |
The York Buildings Waterworks' Water Tower was a water tower on the north bank of the River Thames and a dominant feature of the 18th century London skyline. It was built by the York Buildings Company, who operated the waterworks there.
The water tower was a wooden structure, 70 feet (21 m) high [1] and with an octagonal cross-section. It was erected in the late 17th century on a site at the end of Villiers Street, by the York Watergate, now part of the Victoria Embankment Gardens. The Survey of London includes a drawing (plate 31 [2] in volume 18 [3] ) showing the building.
The prominent position and height of the water tower meant it appeared in many paintings and drawings of London's north bank at the time. These include:
Artist | Title (date) | Gallery/Collection | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
John Boydell | Westminster and the York Buildings Waterworks | Palace of Westminster | [4] |
Canaletto | London Seen Through an Arch of Westminster Bridge (1746–47) | Syon House | [5] |
Canaletto | London: The Old Horse Guards from St James's Park | Tate Gallery L02305 from The Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation | [6] |
Canaletto | "The Thames at Westminster, London" | National Trust, Penrhyn Castle | [7] |
Joseph Farington | The Old Water Tower at York Buildings, Whitehall | Victoria and Albert Museum | |
James Peller Malcolm | York Buildings looking towards Westminster with a View of the Water Tower | [8] | |
James Malton | The River Thames Looking Towards Westminster with York Water Gate and the York Building Water Works (1797) | Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums | [9] |
William Marlow | The London Riverfront from Westminster to the Adelphi (1971–72) | Museum of London | [10] |
Samuel Scott | An Arch of Westminster Bridge (c.1750) | Tate Gallery T01193 | [11] |
Samuel Scott | An Arch of Old Westminster Bridge (c.1750) | Tate Gallery N01223 | [12] |
After Samuel Scott | A View of the Thames with the York Buildings Water Tower | Tate Gallery N01328 | [13] |
After Samuel Scott | The Thames with the York Buildings Water Tower | National Museums Liverpool, Walker Art Gallery | [14] |
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