Storm Highway by Dan Robinson
Weather, photography and the open roadClick for an important message
Storm Highway by Dan RobinsonClick for an important message
Home | Blog Index | Blog Archives | Christianity & Faith Essays | Storm Chasing Essays

                   Saturday, July 9, 2011 - 10:24PM CDT

STL Grand Avenue scenes: Waterworks Standpipe, "Flying Saucer"

By DAN ROBINSON
Editor/Photographer
Important Message 30 Years of Storm Chasing & Photography Dan's YouTube Video Channel Dan's RSS/XML feed

Thankful to not be in northern Nebraska right now under stormless skies, I made a short trip into downtown to get a few shots of landmarks I haven't yet had a chance to cover. Clouds on the western horizon ended the good direct sunlight early, so I only had a short window for frontlit + blue sky lighting. Weather permitting, I might go back for another afternoon of shooting tomorrow.

This is the Compton Hill water tower (also called a 'standpipe') on Grand Avenue near I-44, part of the old St. Louis Waterworks infrastructure. They were designed to be part of a water pressure regulation system, using the vertical pipe to allow overflow. They were surrounded with the ornate architecture simply for aesthetics, as opposed to a just a huge plain pipe towering over the neighborhoods. This is one of only seven such structures left in the USA, two others are also in St. Louis (I plan to get to those also sometime soon).

click to enlarge:
St. Louis Waterworks Standpipe - Compton Hill

St. Louis Waterworks Standpipe - Compton Hill St. Louis Waterworks Standpipe - Compton Hill St. Louis Waterworks Standpipe - Compton Hill

30 Years of Storm Chasing & Photography
Important Message
Dan's YouTube Video Channel
Dan's Twitter feed
Dan's RSS/XML feed

GO: Home | Storm Expeditions | Photography | Extreme Weather Library | Stock Footage | Blog

Featured Weather Library Article:

Lightning & towers, skyscrapers
See how lightning really does strike the same place twice!
More Library Articles

All content © Dan Robinson. All usage requires a paid license - please contact Dan for inquiries.

Web Site Design and Internet Marketing by CIS Internet