Centre Square Water Works

Centre Square Water Works. . , As Philadelphia's population grew in the late 18th century, and following a series of Yellow Fever epidemics, city leaders saw a compelling need for a clean water supply. The Water Works erected at Centre Square revolutionized urban water management and represented the first large-scale public works infrastructure project in the nation's history., In 1797, a group of prominent citizens petitioned the City Council to establish a "Watering Committee"–the precursor to the Philadelphia Water Department. The following year, Benjamin H. Latrobe, the nation's leading architect, submitted a plan for water to be pumped from the Schuylkill River to Centre Square using the newly invented steam engine., The pump house that opened at Centre Square in 1801 was designed in neoclassical style and stood at the center of a circular recreational garden, ringed by carriage and foot paths. It quickly became a popular locale for civic gatherings. Inside the building, a second steam engine pumped water to a 16,000-gallon holding tank on the second floor. Gravity allowed the water to flow to the rest of the city through wooden pipes installed in the street grid. Residents could access the water by paying a "water rent" and building a connector pipe., The first large-scale public works project in America, the Philadelphia water system represented a leap in the way water was managed and provided in an urban setting. Erecting the Water Works at Centre Square was a demonstration of confidence that, through thoughtful investment, the city would continue to grow west from the Delaware riverfront to the Schuylkill, completing the grid planned by William Penn., The Centre Square Water Works remained in operation for just over a decade until it was replaced by the much larger Fairmount Water Works in 1815. The square remained a public park and a site for lively gatherings and celebrations, while the pump house continued to serve as a distribution tank until 1828. Continued growth of the city prompted the division of the square into four quadrants to allow Broad and Market Streets to cross through it by 1829., [Captions:] , 1. The marble engine house, which resembled a Greek temple, became an architectural destination and the centerpiece of a recreational garden. The foundation visible in front of the building is believed to be the first publicly funded decorative fountain in the nation., 2. As the city grew westward, lively public celebrations converged on the open parkland at Centre Square., 3. Benjamin H. Latrobe's 1798 design employed the newly invented technology of the steam engine-powered pump to draw water from the Schuylkill River and distribute it to the city.