Sonoma County's Signature 'Agri-tectural' Features: Old, Wooden Watertowers (photo-essay)

Hello to all my wonderful Gather friends!

In a photo-essay that I published (or "shared", if you absolutely MUST...) a few weeks ago on Gather about some of the rustic, vintage redwood barns to be found here in Sonoma County (structures which serve as reminders of our area's long and successful traditional association with agriculture -- access that photo-essay HERE) -- I pledged to prepare a future article for you on another type of agricultural structure built (for the most part) around the same time period as most of the old barns around here.

These other structures are such common sights in so many different areas of the local landscape that one could refer to them collectively as "the signature 'agri-tectural' features of Sonoma County"...

I am refering to the multitude of quaint, old, wooden watertowers to be found on the sites of many present-day (and former) farms and ranches hereabouts. In some cases, the watertowers -- in various states of repair, disrepair and refurbishment -- have been all but swallowed up by the encroachment of new dwellings and commercial buildings which have virtually erased their former agricultural associations...

Most of the towers having been constructed in the mid-to-late 1800s, the sheer number of surviving examples, alone, make them a popular topic of conversation among new visitors to the area, who -- judging from the amount of questions I've been asked about them over the many years of my association with local historical societies -- seem to share a lively sense of curiosity as to just what the original purpose could have been of these odd, tall wooden buildings which seem to be everywhere around Sonoma County...

Originally built to contain large, barrel-like, wooden watertanks on the upper floors which took advantage of the law of gravity in order to supply nearby farmhouses, agricultural crops and/or animal-stock troughs with much-needed water, most of the watertowers have long since been divested of the tanks they once contained.

As farm or ranch outbuildings, however, they were usually deemed simply too valuable or useful to simply destroy; therefore, down through the years (and from property owner to property owner), many of the structures surrounding the watertanks were pressed into service as storage sheds, automobile/farm vehicle garages, poultry coops and horse-stalls... Many more were saved because of their value as additional housing for family members and/or ranch/farm workers.

As you might surmise, the historical significance of their traditional, local-agricultural roles combined with the sheer diversity and variety of their "second incarnation" uses -- make these watertower structures almost irresistible as photographic and narrative subjects.

So, I invite you to come along with me, if you will, to peruse some of these unique structures -- "Sonoma County's Signature 'Agri-tectural' Features: Old, Wooden Watertowers":

As mentioned, one can find these relics of a bygone agricultural era in various states of repair... Such as this "updated" and carefully refurbished one in the Sonoma County town of Geyserville:

And in various states of DISrepair such as this example from Sonoma County's Russian River District:

Some watertowers seem to possess all the aristocracy and nobility of chess pieces -- prominently displayed for all to admire as in this example (which reminds me of a "rook") on a hillside overlooking a vineyard near where I live in the Cloverdale/Asti area of Sonoma County:

Others are hidden away behind larger (just as antique) structures as in the case of this watertower and gigantic redwood barn also in the Russian River District:

Some watertowers -- like this one in the Wine Country town of Healdsburg -- have, over the years, been hemmed by the encroachment of the construction of more recent buildings and roads:

While others -- such as the one pictured below, located in the coastal district of "Two Rock"  near Petaluma in southern Sonoma County -- stand as lone sentries in vast, rolling fields:

Even commercial real-estate promoters are beginning to appreciate the "eye appeal" of the old watertowers such as the owners of this large commercial plaza (off Hwy. 101 in the town of Windsor) apparently have :

Strangely, however, it seems at least a few local commercial interests have somehow managed to turn the concept of "watertower preservation" "inside out" -- utilizing the "guts", rather than the "housings" of the old watertowers such as in this example in the town of Sebastopol, Sonoma County:

Wherever in Sonoma County they stand, however, there is no question that our old, wooden watertowers add an additional dimension to the unique sense of "place" we share here in our little corner of Northern California...

 ...and, for that, we are ever grateful... :o)

Well, friends...

 I hope you enjoyed these glimpses of some of our old, wooden watertowers here in Sonoma County... As always, I thank you all so MUCH for the great company! :o)

luv,

jean