Boston Water Works, Roxbury Standpipe, Fort Avenue, Highland Park, Boston, Suffolk County, MA. Surveyed as HAER MASS,13-BOST,76-, with 1 photograph and a 446-word written history.
“The annexation of Roxbury to Boston on January 6, rendered a high-service water supply system necessary.”
Written record, HAER MASS,13-BOST,76- survey. Machine-read text.
surveyed by the federal HAER program as HAER MASS,13-BOST,76- · the record runs 446 words · one of 264 surveyed structures published for this county.
1 photograph from the federal survey record, Library of Congress.
Source document Quoted word for word from HAER MASS,13-BOST,76-. Not written, edited or summarised by this site.
The annexation of Roxbury to Boston on January 6, rendered a high-service water supply system necessary. Previously, Boston had been supplied by a gravity-flow system from the Brookline Reservoir. Based on an examination of other city water supplies, the Water Board decided to adopt the "Stand-pipe System." Standpipes were still relatively uncommon among city water-supply systems, and the 8 0-foot iron water tower erected in Highland Park was probably the earliest standpipe to be erected in the Boston area, if not in the state. The "Old Fort Lot," so called, of Revoluntionary War fame, was chosen as the site, despite the protests of a number of citizens that the place should be preserved as an historic relic.
The works, including a pumping station at Elmwood and Roxbury Streets, were put into operation on February 25, 18 70. Success of the system led to applications for high service from South Boston and Dorchester. Future annexations, it was expected, would greatly increase the high-service area. To serve these needs, the City Engineer proposed a new high-service pumping station at Chestnut Hill. With the completion of the new station, Boston Water Works: Roxbury Standpipe HAER No. MA-25 (Page 2) the Roxbury Standpipe was abandoned after only ten years of service. The standpipe consists of a boiler-plate iron shell, 5 feet in diameter and 80 feet in height. The pipe was enclosed in an elaborate brick tower in the Gothic style designed by Standish and Woodbury.
Between the interior pipe and the outer wall, there is a 3-foot space occupied by a spiral staircase leading to a lookout at the top. In an iron balcony, now removed, was added to the standpipe, and for several years, it was a popular observation tower. References: NR; FitzGerald, Desmond, History of the Boston Water Works from to (Boston: Rockwell & Churchill, pp. Transmitted by Jean P. Yearby, from data compiled by Peter Stott ADDENDUM TO HAER No. MA-25 BOSTON WATER WORKS, ROXBURY STANDPIPE fl Fort Avenue, Highland Park Boston Suffolk County /3~&OST, Massachusetts O/ w XEROGRAPHIC COPIES OF COLOR TRANSPARENCIES HISTORIC AMERICAN ENGINEERING RECORD National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Washington,
| Boston, Massachusetts | The place record: every map, photograph and survey of this town. |
| Suffolk County, Massachusetts | 165 topographic sheets across the county. |
| Library of Congress record | The original filed report, and the sheets the survey produced. Those published here appear above. |
The federal surveyors worked through Boston building by building. These are the other structures they measured and filed a report on, longest report first.
| Sheet | Structure | Survey | Report |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Boston Elevated Railway | HAER MASS,13-BOST,127- | 34,555 words |
| Charlestown Navy Yard | HAER MA-90-3 | 26,428 words | |
| Boston Government Service Center | HABS MA-1356 | 24,952 words | |
 | B. F. Keith Memorial Theatre | HABS MASS,13-BOST,69- | 23,514 words |
 | East Boston Steam Pump Station | HAER MASS,13-BOST,138- | 19,247 words |
 | Harvard Bridge | HAER MASS,13-BOST,79- | 14,362 words |
 | Fenway Court | HABS MA-1334 | 13,845 words |
 | Charles Street Jail Complex | HABS MASS,13-BOST,143A- | 11,650 words |
 | Deer Island Pumping Station | HAER MASS,13-BOST,137- | 9,553 words |
 | Deer Island Pumping Station | HABS MASS,13-BOST,132- | 9,107 words |
 | Northern Avenue Swing Bridge | HAER MASS,13-BOST,84- | 8,275 words |
 | Summer Street Retractile Bridge | HAER MASS,13-BOST,87- | 8,144 words |
 | Charlestown Navy Yard | HAER MA-90-30 | 7,907 words |
 | Broadway Bridge | HAER MASS,13-BOST,135- | 7,746 words |
 | New York | HAER MASS,13-BOST,82- | 7,687 words |
 | Deer Island House of Correction | HABS MASS,13-BOST,144A- | 7,466 words |
 | Deer Island House of Correction | HABS MASS,13-BOST,144B- | 6,420 words |
 | Franklin Park Zoo | HABS MA-1316 | 6,293 words |
 | South Station Tower No. 1 & Interlocking System | HAER MASS,13-BOST,86- | 5,502 words |
 | Summer Street Bridge | HAER MASS,13-BOST,139- | 5,482 words |
 | Congress Street Bascule Bridge | HAER MASS,13-BOST,77- | 5,232 words |
 | Anderson Electric Company | HABS MASS,13-BOST,142- | 4,832 words |
 | 72 Marlborough Street | HAER MASS,13-BOST,72- | 4,792 words |
 | Charlestown Navy Yard | HAER MA-90-69 | 4,488 words |
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