Philadelphia's Waterworks: Fairmount

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Because of limited capacity of the Centre Square Waterworks, as the city continued to grow it was determined that a new waterworks system should be built at Fair Mount, located along the banks of the Schuylkill River to the northwest of the city. In 1812, an engine house was built at the foot of the hill to house two steam engines which were to pump the water up to a reservoir on the top of Fair Mount. The engines went into regular service in 1815. Between 1819 and 1822, a dam and mill house designed by Frederick Graff were built, and the system was changed from steam to water power. Through these improvements, Philadelphia's water system became the most advanced municipal system in the world, drawing visitors from around the country and the world to marvel at this technological wonder.

The period between about 1830 and 1850 was a golden age for the Fairmount Waterworks. The waterworks had been designed to provide aesthetic appeal as well as to serve practical ends. The buildings had been artistically designed and the setting made into a park. A garden was completed to the south, and paths, fountains, and an esplanade were built around and up to the top of Fair Mount. This created a beautiful natural setting for the waterworks and corresponded with the period's romantic belief that man could harness nature in a benign manner.

In 1855, Fairmount Park was established, extending the park-like setting to the north and protecting the water supply. Beginning in 1859, a new mill house was built with a wide patio on top, and the next year saw the beginning of the establishment of permanent boat houses to take advantage of the navigable and calm waters above the waterworks dam. Improvements continued to be made, but as the nineteenth century progressed the usefulness of this system waned, until it was decommissioned as a water pump station in 1911. At this time the old mill house was turned into an Aquarium and in 1919, construction began on the present Museum of Art, located on top of the old reservoir. Though the Fairmount Waterworks has not been used for its original purpose for almost a century, the superb appearance of the buildings and their setting has maintained it as one of the most popular Philadelphia sites to this day.

Report of the Watering Committee, to the Select & Common Councils of the City of Philadelphia Relative to the Fair Mount Water Works. Philadelphia, 1823. Octavo pamphlet with original paper cover. Complete with two plates. Some minor internal spotting, but overall very good condition.

The report of the Philadelphia watering committee given to the city councils on January 9, 1823 concerning the state of the Fairmount waterworks. This waterworks, which replaced the Centre Square waterworks, was built in 1812, with two steam engines to raise the water from the river to the reservoir at the top of Fair Mount. This process was costly and inefficient, so in 1822, the system was changed to water power, with a dam and mill house built. This report was explaining the changes, costs and benefits of the new system. It includes two engraved plates with some of the mechanics of the system. $65

Thomas Birch. [Ground Plan and Elevation of the Fairmount Dam and Waterworks.] From Report of the Watering Committee…Relative to the Fair Mount Water Works. Philadelphia, 1823. Engraving by Robert Tiller. 14 x 18 7/8. Very good condition. Jane Mork Gibson, Fairmount Waterworks, p. 17.

Thomas Birch gained prominence as an artist when he worked with his father on the prints for The City of Philadelphia. But this was only the beginning of his career and his accomplishments. Continuing to work in Philadelphia until his death in 1851, he created a rich and varied group of images of the city and its watery surroundings, including this view and plan of the Fairmount Waterworks. Though the Fairmount Waterworks began operation in 1812 to 1815, very few printed images appeared of the site before the system was converted from steam to water power between 1819 and 1822. With its impressive size, neoclassical appearance, and riverside setting, the waterworks soon became the most popular Philadelphia subject for local and visiting artists. In January 1823, the Joint Committee on Supplying the City with Water, known as the "Watering Committee," made their report on the converted system to the Select & Common Councils of Philadelphia, with its newly constructed mill house and dam across the Schuylkill River. To accompany that report, the committee commissioned Thomas Birch to draw a plan and view of the water works. The lower two thirds of the resulting print, engraved by Robert Tiller, lays out the water system with a lettered key to identify its parts. The top third of the print is a charming view of water works in place. On the right is the engine house and mill house set at the base of Fair Mount. Stretching across the river, on the opposite side of which is shown the canal locks, is the dam, above which, in the distance, Birch shows Lemon Hil and other houses in the Fairmount Park. This view was used later as a separate print, but this is the very rare first issue from the Watering Committee's report. $1,800

Thomas Doughty. “...This View of Fair Mount Works,..." Philadelphia: C.G. Childs, ca. 1826. 13 x 19 1/4. Etched and engraved by C.G. Childs. Old water stains on back. Short tears professionally repaired. Hand color. Strong impression. Deák: 333; Prints of Philadelphia, 58.

A second print of the waterworks by Thomas Doughty, this time in combination with another Philadelphia printmaker. The apparent lack of success of the Doughty-Hill print (first entry above) did not discourage Doughty, and within a few years he combined with Cephas G. Childs to produce this somewhat smaller but still impressive engraving. Childs, a native of Bucks county, was an expert engraver and publisher, and later ran an important early lithographic firm. Despite his energy, skill and popularity, Childs never made much money from printmaking, and so in 1834 he abandoned the business to become a newspaper publisher.

Beginning in 1824, Childs had engraved several of Doughty's images of the Fairmount Waterworks, of which this is the finest. It is probably the best example of Child's engraving ability, which was equal to Doughty's painterly skills. The view shows the waterworks from across the Schuylkill River, a vantage point that Doughty had used for a number of his paintings of Fairmount. The print includes a dedication to Joseph S. Lewis, a local merchant who provided significant financial support for the completion of the waterworks a few years previously. The buildings are depicted about a year after William Rush's carved allegorical figures were mounted over the entrances to the mill house. $3,600

Thomas Doughty. “...This View of Fair Mount Works,..." Philadelphia: C.G. Childs, ca. 1826. 13 x 19 1/4. Etched and engraved by C.G. Childs. With two tears into image and wear at lower edge, professionally repaired and nearly invisible. Strong impression. Deák: 333; Prints of Philadelphia, 58.

Another fine example of the Doughty/Childs view of the waterworks, this one uncolored. $3,200

Jacques-Gerard Milbert. “Walet [sic] works on the Schuylkill river.” From Itineraire Pittoresque du Fleuve Hudson et des Parties Laterales. Paris: H. Gaugain, 1828-29. 7 7/8 x 11 5/8. Lithograph by Armout. On India paper, mounted on backing sheet, as originally issued. Very good condition.Deák: 299.

Many Europeans visited the United States in the early decades of the nineteenth century. One of the most prominent was Jacques-Gerard Milbert, who came to the United States on a scientific fact finding mission in 1815, staying until 1822. Interested in the topography of the United States, as well as its natural and social history, Milbert made drawings of most of the places he visited. This resulted, upon his return to Paris, in the publication of the Itineraire Pittoresque, comprising 53 prints of the United States. These views form one of the most comprehensive and accurate depictions of the northeast in the period. They are also important early examples of the use of the relatively new medium of lithography for topographical prints; this is one of the first lithographic views made of Philadelphia. The image shows the waterworks at the transitional stage when it had just been converted from steam to water power. The dam, mill house, and water race are interestingly rendered using a perspective from the edge of the reservoir at the top of Fairmount Hill. One of the two steam engines, soon to be retired from service, is shown sending smoke out the chimney. The bucolic setting of the works is evident, with cows grazing just beyond the race, and only a few buildings seen in the distance. $575

"Fairmount Water Works." From Sherman Day's Historical Collections of the State of Pennsylvania. Philadelphia: George W. Gorton 1843. Wood engraving.

During the middle of the nineteenth century, Pennsylvania's economy experienced new, state-wide growth, sparking new interest in previously lesser-known areas of the state. Prompting travel to new communities, this economic growth also sparked publication of new books to satisfy curiosity about all parts of Pennsylvania. One of the most important such works, Sherman Day's Historical Collections is noted for its individual county histories, well-illustrated with charming wood-engravings. Covering larger cities like Philadelphia and Reading, the images also display the Keystone state's smaller towns and rural sites. Relying on first-hand sketches, the printer translated the images into wood-engraving, which allowed for mass printing and distribution of this important early set of state-wide illustrations. In some cases, Day's views comprise the only mid-nineteenth century views of Pennsylvania's smaller communities. From the well-known views of Philadelphia to the obscure country landscapes, prints from Day's volume are treasured documents of state history. $75

J. Hamilton. "Fairmount." Philadelphia, ca. 1850. Engraving by J. Sartain. 4 1/4 x 7 1/4. Some minor blemishes in margins. Very good condition.

One of the most attractive and scarcest of the small views of the Fairmount Waterworks. When built in the early nineteenth century, the waterworks provided Philadelphia with the most sophisticated water system of any city in the world. From the 1830s to before the Civil War, the golden age for Fairmount, the waterworks and surroundings were developed into a technological marvel and a beauty spot for visitors. It became one of the premier recreational spots to visit for citizens and visitors from America and overseas. This was partly due to the romantic concepts of the day, where it was believed that man could control nature in a pure and benign manner. This romantic theme is emphasized in this lovely print, where the gleaming neo-classical buildings of the waterworks stand out in shining contrast to the glowering and stormy sky and the dark mass of Fair Mount. $325

[Fairmount Water Works] From Eli Bowen's The Pictorial Sketch-Book of Pennsylvania. Philadelphia: William Bromwell, 1853. Wood-engraving.

A Philadelphia image from an excellent series of views of Pennsylvania from a guide book of Pennsylvania's "Scenery, Internal Improvements, Resources, and Agriculture, Popularly Described." The volume included descriptions of all parts of Pennsylvania, but its feature of most note was the inclusion of numerous engraved illustrations of scenes of all parts of the state. Another series of excellent images of Pennsylvania communities, both large and small. $45

Prints from John H. Hinton's The History and Topography of the United States of North America. Published in London and Boston, various publisher: 1830-1855. Octavo. Steel engraving. Very good condition. Uncolored unless noted otherwise.

Lovely examples of steel engravings from one of the more popular nineteenth century view books, Hinton's History and Topography. This work contained text and numerous illustrations documenting the history and topography of the United States. Hinton used many different artists, all the engravings being made from drawings made on the spot. For their wide coverage, accurate detail, and pleasing appearance, these are amongst the finest small images of early nineteenth century America to be found anywhere.

• "Upper Ferry Bridge and Fair Mount Waterworks, Philadelphia." $75

• "The Race Bridge, Fair Mount Water Works, Philadelphia." $70

This print illustrates the formal gardens around Fairmount Waterworks near the beginning of its 'golden age.' These gardens were built in the early 1830s, with landscaped paths and a fountain installed to the southeast of the old Engine House. This building was converted into a public saloon, and other paths and a gazebo were built on the hill behind it. The gardens were completed in 1835, and became a very popular recreational spot for Philadelphia locals and tourists. This popularity was a reflection of the romantic concepts of the day, for the Waterworks embodied a superb union of natural beauty enhanced by technological mastery.

Music-making was a much greater part of nineteenth century American life than it is today. There was a huge demand for lithographic song sheets, which issued forth from small publishers around the country from 1826 until the end of the century. Many of these song sheets had small scenes on the cover, some of them city views. A number of these views, including this one, were not printed in any other format. This print depicts the gardens from the "first Landing" on the path leading up the hill. The Upper Ferry Bridge is shown in the distance, spanning the Schuylkill River. On the far side of the river, Harding's Hotel, a popular resort, can be seen The print was drawn by lithographer John H. Bufford shortly after he moved to New York from Boston. Bufford drew quite a number of music covers, primarily for New York and Boston publishers, though this print was published by John F. Nunns in Philadelphia. It is perhaps the earliest view of the Fairmount gardens, and certainly one of the most charming. $375

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