Norton Water Tower
Norton Water Tower is a water tower in Norton, Runcorn, Cheshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.[1]
| Norton Water Tower | |
|---|---|
 Norton Water Tower | |
| Location | Norton, Runcorn, Cheshire, England |
| Coordinates | 53.3295°N 2.6714°W |
| OS grid reference | SJ 553 816 |
| Built | 1892 |
Listed Building – Grade II | |
| Designated | 31 October 1983 |
| Reference no. | 1335884 |
  Location in Cheshire | |
History
It was built between 1888 and 1892 on the water pipeline between Lake Vyrnwy in North Wales and Liverpool to act as a balancing reservoir in the process of supplying water to Runcorn and Liverpool. Water is carried to Liverpool through a tunnel 10 feet (3 m) wide under the River Mersey.[2] It is the largest UK tromboned pressure relief device currently in operation. The tower was designed by George F. Deacon, the Chief Engineer of the Liverpool Corporation Waterworks Department.[3]
Description
It is built in red sandstone in the shape of a cylinder 99 feet (30 m) high with a diameter of 82 feet (25 m). On its top is a cast iron tank with a capacity of 650,000 gallons.[3] Ten pilasters rise from a rock-faced base and between them are round-headed arches. Above these is a frieze with a Latin inscription and over this is a cornice. On the top is the iron tank with a decorated exterior.[1] Translated, the inscription on the frieze reads:
This water, derived from the sources of the Severn, is brought to the City of Liverpool, a distance of eighty miles, through the mountains and over the plains of Wales and the intervening country, at the cost of the municipality, in the year of Our Lord 1892.[2]
References
- Historic England. "Norton Water Tower, Runcorn (1335884)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 16 August 2012.
- Starkey, H. F. (1990), Old Runcorn, Halton Borough Council, p. 162
- Ritchie, J. O. C. (1957), "Water Towers", The Structural Engineer: 2, retrieved 1 January 2009