Today we are outraged when water is cut off and we take for granted uninterrupted water supply in apartments. But only 150 years ago, our ancestors did not have such benefits of civilization.
Short story
Residents of Vladimir constantly experienced difficulties in supplying water. Its main sources were extremely meager wells and the Klyazma River, the path to which ran along long, steep slopes. The Lybed River, flowing among potholes and gorges, had already turned into a stream by the middle of the 19th century, and it became inconvenient to draw water from it with a bucket.
Bird's-eye view of the water tower
The two public ponds are almost dry. In 1857, the governor of Vladimir, Yegor Sergeevich Tilicheev, announced a fundraiser for the construction of a water supply system. By 1861, about 9 thousand rubles were collected in donations, and 5.7 thousand were allocated from the city budget. But the fixed capital (35 thousand rubles) was obtained from the sale of a plot of urban land for the construction of a railway. Thus, the amount of 50 thousand rubles made it possible to start the construction of a water supply system.
Northwest side of the tower. Tower entrance
German hydraulic engineer Karl Karlovich Dill has developed a project for a water supply systemthreatening destruction To the golden gate... The German planned to arrange a tank with a capacity of 8000 buckets in the gate church of the gate. The city authorities approved this "smart project, significantly reducing the cost of building a new tower."
In the report to the head of the Vladimir province, it was noted that "The Golden Gate seemed to have been erected specifically in order to place a reservoir in them for supplying the city with water." When the construction plan began to be carried out, disaster struck.
Southeast side of the tower
On the road near the Golden Gate, where the water pipes were laid, the earth collapsed. In the ditch, the driver and two laborers were crushed, one of whom died an hour later. The provincial administration canceled the project, as it found it possible to build a reservoir on a shaft located near the Golden Gate, called Kozlov. In 1866, 8 water taps were erected in different parts of the city, and a stone pool with a reservoir and a fountain was placed in the center of Vladimir. The water supply system was serviced by a 25 horsepower steam engine imported from England. A water tower with a reservoir for 8,000 buckets was built on Kozlovy Val. On September 11, 1866, the grand opening of the Vladimir water supply system took place.
Northeast side of the tower
The first water supply system in Vladimir was laid from the river. Klyazma Street Letneperezinskaya to the Golden Gate. For each citizen of Vladimir, there were about 5 buckets of water per day. It was from here, from the water tower on Kozlovy Val, that water spread throughout the city. That the tower, which has survived to this day, appeared already in 1912... It is a three-tiered building built of red brick in the "pseudo-Russian" style. Each tier is decorated with windows. In the lower tier, they are high arched, framed by lancet platbands; in the second - also arched; in the third - and completely rectangular. In appearance, the structure resembles a fortress tower, expanding upward. Currently, the water tower in Vladimir has lost its utilitarian meaning. On its top floor, where the reservoir was located, there was an observation deck with a low tent.
Ladder to the observation deck of the water tower
A magnificent panorama of the city opens up from here. The lower floors of the tower are occupied by the exhibition "Old Vladimir", which tells about the origin of the water supply, on the construction of standpipes and treatment facilities. The exposition is based on materials obtained from the funds of the Vladimir-Suzdal Museum-Reserve, the regional archive and the Vladimirvodokanal enterprise. Visiting exhibition "Old Vladimir", residents of Vladimir and guests of the city will learn how clean water appears in their taps.
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