Swedish Museum To Break Down Old Water Tower, Replaced With Replica
By Chuck Sudo in News on Nov 17, 2014 5:30PM
The water tower that stood for decades atop Andersonville’s Swedish American Museum and helped symbolize the neighborhood’s Swedish roots will be broken down and replaced with a replica, the museum announced over the weekend.
The water tower, built in 1927, became a victim of the brutal winter of 2013-14 when water inside it froze, expanded and cracked the 16-foot structure’s base. Thawing ice from the 20,000 gallon tank eventually leaked into the museum. Since the tower was removed from atop the building in March, it’s been sitting in the museum’s parking lot while museum officials put together an ongoing fundraising campaign to repair or replace the structure.
Due to the structure’s age the damage it suffered has made repairing it an untenable option, so the Swedish American Museum will replace it with a replica. Officials hope to raise $150,000 toward the replacement efforts and have already amassed over $70,000. The timbers of the original tank, meanwhile, will be used for commemorative uses.