A Remnant of the SPRR Settling Tanks

A Remnant of the SPRR Settling Tanks. . , In 1877, the Southern. Pacific Railroad (SPRR) was the first railroad to arrive in the Arizona Territory, crossing the Colorado River from California and arriving in Yuma. Traveling through the scorching desert, the locomotives arrived in Yuma "thirsty." Since Colorado River water was too muddy to put into the steam engines, the Southern Pacific Railroad Water Settling Reservoir was constructed in 1882 on a hill directly west of the Madison Avenue railroad tracks. , Sturdily constructed of brick, using Portland cement for mortar, this four-chambered facility was the first water works in Arizona to provide treated (settled) water to locomotives. , Bringing Clean Water to the Community , In 1882 the benefit of treated water was extended to the residents and businesses of Yuma by pumping water from the selling reservoir through twenty-six-inch-diameter redwood pipe. In 1893, the Yuma Water and Light Company (YWLC) began purchasing settled water from the SPRR for sale to Yuma residents in 1906. YWLC built its own water treatment plant with an advanced filtration system, which SPRR used to fill its reservoir. In 1926, SPRR relocated its tracks to their current location, ending its use of the selling reservoir. , A Modern Day Successor , The Main Street Water Treatment Plant, located just to the east of this location, is a direct descendent of the SPRR Settling Tanks, and continues to provide clean and drinkable water from the Colorado River to the Yuma Community. , Preserving the Legacy , Additional remnants of the settling tanks are incorporated into the riverfront development. You will see two of these pieces at the riverfront hotel. To the let is a picture that illustrates the creative reuse of a remnant as a park entryway sign.