LARRY'S RAMBLE: A lot of shingles and water

Sunday, March 3, 2013

A lot of shingles and water

The Thomas Hill Standpipe Bangor Maine - click to enlarge
Photo: Linda Coan O'kresik via Bangor Daily News

The Standpipe, on the National Historic Register, stands on the highest hill in Bangor, Thomas Hill. It is open to the public a couple of times each years and those who climb the many steps can see quite a distance, on a clear day.
Built in 1897 by a crew who worked six months, and included 22 men, a blacksmith shop and a portable sawmill. The frame work consists of 24 posts 12" by 12" 48 foot sections of good Maine white pine, and the structure is covered with 220,000 cedar shingles. The interior tank is made of iron sheets riveted one end over the other, it holds 1.75 million gallons of water. The interior steps wind around the iron tank. The base is nine feet high and is made of Maine granite. The structure is 110 feet high and 85 feet in diameter.
It was originally painted gray but during World War Two it was painted olive drab because of the close proximity of Dow Army Airfield, later Dow Air Force Base and now Bangor International Airport and Bangor Air National Guard Base. It was painted white in 1947.