The Water Tower

The water tower has become a symbol of Ekaterinburg. It is illustrated on greeting cards and souvenir magnets, people arrange meets and rallies
at the base of it, and tourists and youth are constantly taking photos by it.
Originally, the tower provided the railroad workshops with water, which were
built in 1886 at the venue of the Mint and engineering factory. The workshops
connected with the main railroad branch by way of special outshoots extended
through the city’s entire downtown area.
In 1946, the former workshops moved, the water storage tank was unmounted, and the facility on the second floor of the tower became a dedicated photo studio. But it went belly up when the city needed square meters. Two families moved
into the tower. There was electricity in the tower; however, the conveniences were
only in the courtyard. People had to make the trip to the pump to collect drinking water. The tower was heated with the help of a factory steam pipe situated
on the outside.
Then, after the factory constructions were practically fully removed, a Historic
Square was organized in its place, the tower was restored, and it was turned into
a souvenir shop.
A new stage in its biography involved the Ekaterinburg history museum.
Starting in 1995, the Metal Shop exposition was situated in the tower, which introduced visitors to the everyday and artistic metal of past centuries. Artist Viktor
Makhotin became the first tower “guard” and artefacts collector.
The next transformation of the tower awaits in the near future – of its functions and purposes. History goes on…
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