All-But-Extinct by Chipka
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Description
There were hundreds of them—once upon a time—and they stood as proud silhouettes against the Chicago skyline. Up close, they seemed to peer down with some disdain. As a child, I always imagined that water towers were alive in some strange way and that they were largely parasitic life forms, intent on drinking the life-essences out of warehouses and vast, cubical department stores. I’d imagined—as children often do—that these parasitic life forms were actually domesticated by Chicago architects in order to maintain a kind of…well…I guess you’d call it architectural ecology. The thick pipe extending from the belly of the water tower to the roof of the building, was always the means by which the creature fed. It, like the proboscis of a butterfly, was a delicate, sensitive organ.
There are fewer of them now, and I no longer think of water towers as strange life forms. I suppose they could be, but my normal lines of thought have moved into other directions.
Perhaps, it is because I see so few of these now.
Where—once—there were hundreds of water towers, only a few dozen remain. Many of them are dark and sullen, their coats of advertisement-paint long flaked into nothing. They don’t drip (as a few of them did) feeding beds of moss on flat, tar-scented roofs. Birds no longer poop on them, leaving impressionistic dabs in all the flagrant colors of avian metabolism.
I find it odd that this water tower remains. It lives in Chicago’s Boystown neighborhood and it must possess a rather powerful breed of mojo as so much of Chicago’s Boystown has been stripped of its original structure. How this one remains, I don’t know, but I’m glad it’s there. It looks quite striking, quite ominous, quite defiant.
As always, thank you for viewing, reading, and commenting, and I hope you’re all having a fantastic week.
Comments (29)
MagikUnicorn
Still have a lots of this everywhere ;-) Great capture and light
Richardphotos
during my trips to the Philippines I was drinking water from one until one day, a relative told me do not drink it because it is not safe any more. get a drink at his sister's home right behind the main house.well, I never got sick, but it is a wonder why.it was in a province. Manila people do not drink the water there at all unless it is filtered
eekdog
an old place that could speak a thousnd stories. nice capture.
Faemike55
So amazing to see this still standing tall
brewgirlca
I like the choice of monochrome color here. The rusty red adds another layer to the feeling of metalic decay which you so well convey. I smirked when I read your phrase "my normal lines of thought" because much of the charm of what you write and how you see the world is that it is not at all normal. A bit of an unintended oxymoron, at least I think so :-) This looks like you got off the streets and were doing some back lot exploring.
charpix
We still have a couple of these here, and one in our neighborhood, which is close to town. I think the city is planning on removing the one by us because it is in a park area. Going to miss it because it is shaped like a UFO. Maybe some pictures of it for posterity would be in order. Great capture. They are a dying breed, alive or not. :c)
photosynthesis
Love the shadows in this shot & great choice of sepia to give it a vintage look. When I was in NYC last year, I began noticing water towers on the rooftops of many old buildings. I asked my friend, who has been a Manhattan resident for most of his life, about it & he said that in the past, they were required for buildings over a certain height. Apparently, the pressure required to drive water above a certain height was a problem & water tanks were the best solution at the time. But I like your parasitic aliens explanation better...
blinkings
Yeah they always remind me of something from "War Of The Worlds".
kgb224
Stunning capture my friend. God Bless.
auntietk
They've moved, as so many do. Out of the City into the suburbs, and out again, farther and farther into the country. I captured many of them as you have captured this one, sentinals of place, time and essence. As we drove through the flat, corn-covered countryside of Illinois and Iowa, Kansas and Missouri, they showed themselves and claimed their ground. Perhaps one day I'll show them to you ... a private collection, country cousins to yours ... and we will nod and smile at them and at each other, knowing they'll be part of what's essential for a long, long time to come.
Crabbycabby
Wonderful narrative. The towers remind me a little of War Of The Worlds.
bmac62
I suspect there are a few of these still in place where nobody wants to pay the price of pulling them down. Fine photo...sepia making it look like you just picked this up as a new print from the corner drug store in 1920 or so:) Very atmospheric...
whaleman
That spurs a story of mine! When my kids were young in the early 80s Edmonto9n had just one of these left, a bit larger than yours and quite imposing. We passed within sight of it whenever we went out to my sister's place and I told my daughter it was a space ship that had landed some time ago and still no one had come out and I assured her that it was surrounded but no one could get in either so they were all just waiting. She loved the story and by the time she realized what it was, my son was just getting to the right age to repeat all of it for him. My son fell asleep in the car very quickly, except when he knew we would be passing that 'space ship' in which case he fought off sleep courageously and drifted off immediately after he saw it again. One can only imagine what they were thinking at those times, but I can tell you they both have great imaginations to this day!
fallen21
Fantastic capture!
durleybeachbum
It would be a listed 'building' if it were here. I love your narrative!
treasureprints
Love the vintage look...the tower is so imposing. I especially like your description of how you used to think of them, and agree with Brewgirlca regarding your 'normal lines of thought'...haha.:)
MrsRatbag
They do seem sentient, in the same way that oil wells in Southern California did to me when I was a kid. The water tower thing never made much sense to me, though; water is HEAVY, why put it up high when it would be simpler to use a pump to produce water pressure? I'm sure I know nothing of their intent or design, except that they are large and visible! Great treatment of this shot, it looks like something leftover from the 1940s...
thecytron
A very good photo!
Sea_Dog
I really love this shot - it has a '40's atmosphere - at least to me. The sepia coloring is a great choice
wotan
I really love these old towers and buildings with visual riched by sepia tones... and your text is a joy of ideas explanation...
helanker
Superb shot of this old Water containter. Your story makes me think back to when I was a little girl and our South West Harbour of Copenhagen yet was so full of life and movement. The Huge screeming Cranes were transporting Coal from the ships to the land or trucks and they moved like a big dinosaurus and I imagined them as they were alive. I lived a couple of Kilometers from the cranes, but we could hear their roars and screems every day. It was part of our life, simply. If I stood on a certain place in the building where I grew up I could see these cranes above the landscape turning and moving and working. Havent thought about this for many years. And why could a little girls think about dinosaurus at that time, because my father gave me a book about how life began. In that book I saw the most fantastic, gigantic reptiles of the past. Thanks for taking me back to my wonderful childhood. :-)
flavia49
magnificent pic
tibet2004uk
I've just discovered what a water tower looks like! Thx to you for that :)
Orinoor
I love this shot, so full of memory. In my childhood it was a molasses tower that held my imagination, but not nearly as imposing as this!
RodS
I love these old water towers - and I'm not exactly sure why... Most people look at them as an eyesore, but I think they look cool! I've always thought it would be extremely cool to put a larger tube where the central pipe is, put an elevator in it, and remodel the inside of the tank as a house.
sandra46
IMPRESSIVE CAPTURE CHIP
NefariousDrO
I remember when I used to see these scattered about the city, even when I visited my brother in NY city. I kinda miss them. Very cool shot, nice postwork, too!
CoreyBlack
This is a fantastic shot and the sepia only adds to the proceedings. If it wasn't for the few (and almost unnoticeable)modern details I would think this shot was from the Thirties or Forties. Great work.
danapommet
very rare indeed and in fact, the flat nature of south Florida dictates large pumping stations to maintain acceptable water pressure for its elderly residents. I like the sepia look!