Skip to main content
Menu Close Menu

Historic Columbia

Donate
  • FAQs
Upcoming Events

Navigation

  • Tours
    • House Tours
      • Robert Mills House and Gardens
      • Hampton-Preston Mansion and Gardens
      • Mann-Simons Site
      • The Museum of the Reconstruction Era
      • Modjeska Monteith Simkins House
      • Hours and Pricing
    • Garden Tours
      • Garden Database
    • Offsite Tours
      • Walking Tours
    • African American History Tours
    • Online Tours
  • Education
    • Field Trips
      • House Tours
    • Traveling Trunk
    • Summer Camp
    • Adult Education
  • Preservation
    • Current Projects and Initiatives
      • Bull Street Campus 
      • Columbia's Green Book Sites
      • Veterans Administration Regional Office
      • Women’s Club of Columbia
    • Preservation Awards
    • Resources for the Public
      • For Property Owners
      • For Neighborhoods
      • Take Action!
    • LGBTQ Columbia
  • Support
    • Corporate Support
    • Donate
    • Membership
    • Volunteer
    • Partners and Donors
  • Rent a Venue
    • Gardens of the Hampton-Preston Mansion
    • Seibels House and Garden
    • Robert Mills Carriage House and Gardens
    • Gardens of the Woodrow Wilson Family Home
    • Weddings
    • Photoshoots
    • Recommended Vendors
    • Contact Us
  • About
    • Blog
    • Board Members
    • Careers
    • Contact Us
    • Gift Shop at Robert Mills
      • Online Store
    • Local History
      • Columbia Jewish Heritage Initiative
    • Newsletter
    • Staff Directory

Donate

Northwest Corner of Laurel and Park Streets

Site of Municipal Water Works

In 1819, city officials contract with Abraham Blanding to construct the foundation for Columbia's earliest water service. Blanding's gravity-fed system involved a 12-horsepower English-made steam engine that pumped water from a natural spring on the land that later became Sidney Park into a reservoir at the top of Arsenal Hill. From there, a series of pipes led to fire hydrants, hotels, and public buildings within the central downtown. This facility remained in operation until shortly after 1855, when a new plant was erected closer to the Congaree River.

  • waterworks 1940s

    Postcard of Municipal Water Works in Columbia, circa 1945. Historic Columbia collection

By 1855, city officials established a new waterworks closer to the Congaree River. Forty years later, a more modern complex was established beside Irwin (Riverfront) Park; however, this effort failed to produce potable water. In 1906, their efforts resulted in establishing the basis for today's main plant downtown. Depicted in this early 1940s postcard is one of the waterworks' treated water holding tanks in the foreground and its filter building, built in 1906 and enlarged in 1916 and 1941. Today, the waterworks is again situated by a public green space – Riverfront Park, which has helped establish the banks of the Congaree River as a destination for recreation and entertainment.

34.0082913, -81.0405019

Newsletter Signup

newsletter signup

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter for events, news, and updates from Historic Columbia!

  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Flickr
Historic Columbia

© 2023 Historic Columbia

Administrative Offices
1601 Richland Street
Columbia, SC 29201

Tours
All historic house and garden tours start at the Gift Shop at Robert Mills.
1616 Blanding Street
Columbia, SC 29201

Questions? Call (803) 252-7742.

Website by Cyberwoven