# Enclosed Water Towers -- Looking for Ideas



## xo18thfa (Jan 2, 2008)

Looking for some pictures, ideas or sources for enclosed water towers found on Maine 2 foot Gauge. 

Many thanks in advance, Bob


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

The East Broad Top was another big user of enclosed water tanks. Most looked very similar to this one, based on the enclosed water tower at Shade Gap, PA. Siding varied from board-and-batten to clapboard, and many were later covered with asphalt "brick" siding, which was essentially large sheets of asphalt shingle material with a faux brick pattern on it. 

Later, 

K


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## xo18thfa (Jan 2, 2008)

Thanks Kevin. That looks nice. It appears that the spout swings from side-to-side, rather then up-n-down. Another picture I have shows a side-to-side spout. Is that a common feature?


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

The prototype would swing up and down. My hinge mechanism is a bit simplified, so it swings to the side as well. The original idea was to replace the spout with a proper one that looks a bit more prototypical. That's still the idea, but it's slipped down the list of priorities.  

Later, 

K


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## Torby (Jan 2, 2008)

They enclosed them to keep them from freezing?


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

Exactly. In the EBT's cases, the water towers were located next to stations. It was part of the station agent's responsibility to tend to a small coal stove in each water tower to keep things from freezing up. I would suspect the same to be true for the Maine RRs. Unlike the western railroads, the towns in the east were close enough to where you could justify having a station at each water tower. 

In the west, I believe they combated freezing by leaving the water running, so to speak. That's why you'll often see photos of water tanks with these huge ice flows under the spouts. I don't know how heavy the flow needed to be to keep the plumbing operational, but I suspect that--like our ponds--it doesn't really take a whole lot of movement to keep the ice in check. 

Later, 

K


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## Big65Dude (Jan 2, 2008)

Here's a shot of what I believe is the last standing (and now obviously abandoned) enclosed water tower on the East Broad Top, taken this spring. (The spout is long gone, of course.)










and here's a shot of the interior upper level, where the tank is:









You can see how effective the exterior sheathe is in protecting and preserving the wooden water tank inside.

Hope this helps...


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## Richard Smith (Jan 2, 2008)

Here's the url for an octagon enclosed water tank I built based on those used by the Sumpter Valley in eastern Oregon. 

http://www.mylargescale.com/Community/Forums/tabid/56/aff/7/aft/56859/afv/topic/Default.aspx


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## Big65Dude (Jan 2, 2008)

I just remembered... (I must admit that I'm starting to suffer from "CRS" -- an age-related malady) I've also got some shots of an enclosed water tower on the _Wiscasset, Waterville & Farmington Railway_, one of the Maine two-footers. (Taken three years ago when we were up in Maine for the Nat'l Narrow Gauge Convention in Portland.)









It's a reproduction, as I remember, of the original at the depot in Alna, still under construction -- you can see part of the plastic (fiberglass?) tank through the open door.









Here's No. 10 "getting a drink" -- the spout was still temporary, put in place by hand just for the operation. 

Once again, I hope you find this useful.


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## Torby (Jan 2, 2008)

Wow! Check out that stub switch!


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## SE18 (Feb 21, 2008)

Jack, great photos! Didn't know about those towers. Would it be OCD to model the inside water tank which you normally wouldn't see?


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## Scottychaos (Jan 2, 2008)

yeah, that stub switch is amazing!  
I plan to model it someday in On2 scale.. 
Its patterned after a historic 3-way stub switch that was once in the SR&RL Phillips yard: 










Top photo above is Phillips, Maine in about 1900.
Bottom photo is the same location today.)

Two more photos of the modern WW&F switch: 



















more pics: 

http://gold.mylargescale.com/Scottychaos/maine2005.html 

http://gold.mylargescale.com/scottychaos/On2-SRRL9/Phillips-yard.html 

Scot


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## jebouck (Jan 2, 2008)

Some plans here:

http://www.brewerplans.com/index.htm

click on structures.


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## xo18thfa (Jan 2, 2008)

Thanks for the input guys. I am ready to go. The WW&F tower is very appealing.

I've ordered several plans from Mr Brewer. All are great, highly recopmmended.


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## Scottychaos (Jan 2, 2008)

A photo of a model of the WW&F Sanders tank: 

http://www.raggstoriches.biz/STsidepage.html 

Scot


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