The headquarters most distinguishing feature, the red brick Weehawken Water Tower, was built in 1883. Designed by Frederick Clarke Withers, it was modeled after the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, Italy. The tower was capable of holding 165,000 gallons of water and stands 175 feet high, 300 feet above sea level at the Hudson River.
The tower was connected to a Reservoir No.1 atop the Hudson Palisades to which water was pumped from the Hackensack River, approximately 14 miles away. While the reservoir at the site could provide adequate pressure for water users in Hoboken, located just above sea level, water pressure was inadequate for customers atop the Palisades.
The tower was designed to accomplish two separate purposes in one structure. The tower housed the local headquarters of the Hackensack Water Company, and allowed clean water to be stored in a tank at the top of the structure, stored under pressure for use by residents, businesses and for fighting fires. The opening of the facility on September 29, 1883 was a major event, with Withers recognized by professional journals for the innovation of his design. The "Red Tower" is listed on the Federal Maritime Chart as a landmark for ships heading south on the Hudson River to let them know that they are approaching New York Harbor.
The site was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. Entin Associates, a real-estate developer, purchased the complex in 1981 for $1.6 million. The gatehouse and reservoir were razed for the construction of a supermarket and parking. The tower was spared demolition and structurally maintained.
The township of Weehawken took over the property in 2000, and began a restoration project for Water Tower Park. Paragon Restoration Corporation completed eight months of restoration on the site's exteriors in September 2004, with slate replaced on the roof, stonework fixed at the base and windows replaced. New steel supports and wood floors were installed in the interior, and space was left to accommodate an elevator and fire staircase. In October 2005, a plaza park was created at the base of the tower. Restoration of the interior of the tower has begun. In 2010, as part of the town's 150th anniversary, interior brickwork was cleaned while maintaining its historical appearance.
Read more about this topic: Hackensack Water Company Complex
Famous quotes containing the words water and/or tower:
“Man is but a reed, the feeblest one in nature; but he is a thinking reed. The entire universe need not arm itself to crush him—a vapor, a drop of water suffices to kill him. But if the universe were to crush him, man would still be nobler than that which killed him, because he knows that he dies and the advantage which the universe has over him; the universe knows nothing of this.”
—Blaise Pascal (1623–1662)
“Out in Hollywood, where the streets are paved with Goldwyn, the word “sophisticate” means, very simply, “obscene.” A sophisticated story is a dirty story. Some of that meaning was wafted eastward and got itself mixed up into the present definition. So that a “sophisticate” means: one who dwells in a tower made of a DuPont substitute for ivory and holds a glass of flat champagne in one hand and an album of dirty post cards in the other.”
—Dorothy Parker (1893–1967)