Development of design form of reinforced concrete water towers

This paper looks at the development of design form of reinforced concrete (RC) water towers in Britain and Ireland where free-standing towers have been used since the nineteenth century. Although brick was used up to the 1930s, after 1900 RC became common. Following a brief look at early designs, the paper goes on to discuss various aspects of water tower development, including multi-legged designs, solid-sided towers, shafts with fins, single-stem towers. It concludes with a comment on recent developments.