Former water towers in Webb City

Water towers tend to stand out as you enter a town. They loom over the area and can be a bit intimidating. Some greet visitors with an announcement of the name of the town. Some towns have unusual shaped water towers to represent a major industry that has made a name for the town, such as ketchup bottles, pineapples, etc.

Webb City’s main water tower displays the name of our city and our “So Proudly We Hail” respect for the flag. But we have had other water towers in our city that are long gone, and once again we are reminded of the old saying, “Out of sight, out of mind,” so let us just refresh our memories of days gone by.

Before our big water tower, there was the standpipe that stored water drawn and pumped from the waterworks plant at Center Creek. The standpipe was built in 1890 and served the city until the current water system was approved by voters in 1969. It was 145 feet tall and 12 feet in diameter. It held 120,000 gallons of water.

The standpipe was located at Tracy and Hall streets, in the exact same location as our present day water tower, which holds 1,000,000 gallons. That location was considered the highest point in the city before the hill beneath the Praying Hands was formed by piling overburden from the nearby Sucker Flat mine pit.

There was a more picturesque tower that stood on another high piece of ground, in Mount Hope Cemetery, which was established in 1905. The tower served Mt. Hope’s former three-story lodge and office – besides the flowers and shrubs that decorated the grounds.