Hankou Water Tower broke ground in Guangxu 34th year (1908) and was completed in Xuantongyuan year (1909). It was designed and supervised by British engineer Moore. The water tower is now located in the downtown area of Qianjin Fifth Road, Zhongshan Avenue, Hankou. The water tower was originally a major supporting facility of Zongguan Water Plant of Han Zhen Jiji Hydropower Co., Ltd., and it is a regular octagonal seven-story building: the main body has six floors, and there is a bell tower above the stairwell protruding in the southwest, which is the seventh floor outside the main body. There is a wooden revolving door in the stairwell, and you can climb the bell tower (observation deck), which is 4.58 meters high.
The water tower is a modern fire-fighting landmark building in Hankou. For a long time, it has undertaken the dual tasks of fire water supply and fire lookout. After the completion of the water tower, fire doors were installed in the main streets and alleys of Hankou, which effectively improved the problem of fire water source. In the last century, fire doors experienced the development process of Taiping Watergate and fire hydrant.
In case of fire, pull the rope and sound the alarm.
The fire observation platform at the top of the water tower is patrolled day and night by four people from Qinghe Security Council, a local folk fire organization. There is an alarm bell on the observation deck, which weighs 2240 pounds (10 18.2kg) and costs Yang Long 2 102.5438+06 yuan. Now the whereabouts of this alarm bell is unknown.
At that time, the clock was hung on the bearing beam of the steel beam of the observation deck, and one end of the beam was equipped with a rocking wheel, which was connected by a thick rope. Pulling the rope will make the alarm bell shake back and forth and make noise. Every time there is a fire, ring the alarm and you can hear it from a distance. After the bell rings 30 times, notify the fire area according to the number of rings: ring once, and the foreign goods yard will go to Huajing Street; Second ring road, xinsheng road to the front and back flower building; Third Ring Road, from Hualou to Dikou; Fourth Ring Road, Dikou to Siguan Hall; Fifth Ring Road, Siguan Hall to Shenjia Temple; Liuxiang Shenjia Temple to Dawang Temple; At seven o'clock, the King Temple arrives at Wuxian Temple; Eighth Ring Road, Wuxian Temple to Renyi Division; Nine rings, Renyi division arrives at the bridge. In addition, the top of the tower hangs a red flag during the day and a red light at night, indicating a fire.
As a witness of history, the water tower silently observes the historical changes of Wuhan fire protection in the past 100 years. 1949, after the liberation of Wuhan, the water tower returned to the people's arms. 1On May 27th, 998, the water tower was listed as a cultural relic protection unit in Wuhan by the Wuhan Municipal People's Government. The water tower, a landmark building standing near Jianghan Road on Zhongshan Avenue after 95 years of vicissitudes, was originally named Hankou Water Tower of Jiji Hydropower Company. It is the earliest high-rise building, excellent historical building and first-class protected building in Wuhan.
1906, Zhejiang businessman Song invited 10 businessmen from Zhejiang, Hubei and Jiangxi to form a hydropower company. Taking the meaning of "fire and water are auspicious", it was named "Han Zhen Jiji Hydropower Co., Ltd". The water tower and water plant were completed in August of 1909 and put into operation in September of the same year, with a daily water supply capacity of 5 million gallons (27,330 tons) and a water supply population of about 654.38+million. The establishment of waterworks was in a leading position in China, and its scale was eagerly awaited, which was once the pride of Wuhan people.
Before the 1970s, the water tower was one of the few high-rise buildings in Wuhan, with a height of 4 1.3m, which was on the same side as Jianghan Pass and Binjiang Flood Control Monument. When I was a child, whenever I came to its feet, I would stop and look up involuntarily. Its posture is lofty and amiable, and its color is simple and attractive. Through the gate facing the street in the yard, you can see that there are "fire fighting dragons (fire engines)" parked inside, as well as fire fighters wearing raincoats (waterproof clothes) and overshoes (rain boots). Watching them put on their helmets when they went out to the police, the ringing alarm bell mixed with the harsh whistle quickly opened the way, and the tension, admiration and safety echoed like a symphony melody.
During the Cultural Revolution, the water tower once became the news information source of the whole city. At that time, few newspapers stopped publishing one after another, and all the broadcasts were in the same tune. More sensitive information often comes from the poster column under the water tower first. Zhongshan Avenue near the water tower used to be a Little Square. There, I enjoyed countless cartoons, large calligraphy slogans and brush calligraphy, and also felt the pulse of that era sharply. The water tower is still silently watching everything that people are sometimes happy and sometimes angry. Just like an old man who witnessed the rise and fall of the city.
I have lived in Wuhan for 48 spring and autumn years, but I have never had the opportunity to climb the top of the tower in person, touch the rich history of science, technology and culture, and overlook the ever-changing bustling urban landscape of Jiangcheng. According to the data, the water tower was designed by British engineer Moore, and the construction of the building factory was glorious. Mixed structure, 7 floors. The main plane is a regular octagon (or the book of changes and eight diagrams), each side is 8.2 meters long, and the stairwell protruding in the southwest is square and 4 meters long. Covering an area of 350 square meters, the building area is 2 120 square meters. The tower has six floors (the stairwell is 7 floors outside the main body), the first to fifth floors are rooms, and the sixth floor is for water tanks. Because it is built in a lake and swamp, the tower foundation is about 15 meters deep and is poured with concrete. The shell of the tower body, the first floor is granite block, and the second floor and above are all red brick drywall. There are two wooden windows on each floor, 2.44 meters high and 1. 18 meters wide, and the window brows are decorated with brick lines. Each floor is covered with wooden floors supported by steel frames. At the center of the tower is a special flange pipe column, the lower end of which is buried under the foundation and the upper end is supported by the water tank on the sixth floor. Barrel water tank, bottom diameter17.2m, wall height 6.5m, riveted by two half-inch steel plates, water tank capacity 1477 tons. The main function of the water tower is to adjust the water supply pressure in the city center. The tower spirals around three iron pipes by wooden turnstiles with steps of 198, and can climb to the top of the bell tower. There is a copper alarm bell in the original bell tower. In case of fire, report the fire area with the number of alarm bells, and hang red flags during the day and red lights at night.
Looking at the aging water tower, I wonder: if people can't appreciate the elegance inside the water tower in person, how can this "excellent historical building" be embodied? The original functions of the water storage tower and the observation deck have been replaced by new technologies, and its historical, humanistic and architectural artistic values are rejuvenating. When will it become a new tourist attraction in Wuhan? Isn't it the best of both worlds to develop and utilize in protection and protect in development and utilization?
Hankou Water Tower has left an immortal memory in the hearts of Wuhan people.
The water tower was still a propaganda position during the Anti-Japanese War. Before the fall of Wuhan, the anti-Japanese volunteers from North Korea used the "height advantage" of the main building of the water tower to brush and write a big anti-Japanese slogan on it, which can be seen clearly at a distance from Hankou. Experts suggest that Hankou water tower be built into a fire museum.
(2007-0 1- 10 07:48: 14)
Jingchu Net News (Hubei Daily) (Reporter, Tu, correspondent Li Zhen) The water tower on Zhongshan Avenue in Hankou was once the first facade of old Wuhan. Yesterday, Wu Shengjia, director of Wuhan Literature and History Museum, submitted a proposal to transform Hankou Water Tower into Wuhan Fire Museum.
Hankou Water Tower was completed at 1909, with a height of about 41.32m.. It used to be the tallest building in Wuhan. At that time, it undertook the dual tasks of fire water supply and fire observation, and was the earliest observation platform in Wuhan dedicated to fire observation. 1On May 27th, 998, the water tower was listed as a cultural relic protection unit by Wuhan Municipal People's Government. "The water tower is a landmark building of modern fire protection in Hankou, which witnessed the historical changes of Wuhan fire protection in the past 100 years." Member Wu Shengjia believes that today, the water tower is located in the compound of Wuhan Public Security Fire Bureau, in the downtown area of Jianghan District where historical and cultural buildings are concentrated. Building a high-level professional museum here can further enhance the cultural taste of this area.
According to Wu Shengjia, Wu Hanyou is rich in fire-fighting historical relics. Not long ago, more than 700 pieces of Wuhan fire protection historical relics were exhibited in Hong Kong, all of which need to be displayed and protected by venues.
The proposal suggests that Wuhan fire protection historical relics should be collected and sorted out as soon as possible, and alarm bells and other fire protection historical relics originally located on the observation deck at the top of the water tower should be collected from the society. In addition, the proposal also proposes to carry out unified planning and renovation of the shops in the water tower and podium, reproduce the historical features in accordance with the principle of preserving the old as before, and build the exhibition hall into a national first-class characteristic museum.