Fairmount Park Conservancy

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The Water Works from the Eagle Pavilion by Graydon Wood.

Water Works

That was Then.....

  • From the moment the Fairmount Park Water Works opened in the early 1800’s, it was hailed as an engineering marvel and an architectural masterpiece.
  • The Water Works’ South Garden was considered one of Philadelphia’s most beautiful places and formed the basis for what would be become the Fairmount Park system.
  • The original Cliffside Paths, carved into the stone face of “Faire Mount,” ascended from the Water Works to an elevated reservoir, offering visitors breathtaking views of the Schuylkill River and the surrounding area.
  • Unfortunately, the decommissioning of the Water Works in 1911 reduced the popularity of the South Garden, and the entire site subsequently fell into despair.
  • The Women for the Water Works continued the important work that was started by the Junior League of Philadelphia in 1974, when it began raising the funds needed to restore the neoclassical buildings of the Water Works.
  • Ernesta Ballard, a founding member of the Fairmount Park Conservancy and a former Park Commissioner, began working with the Junior League to continue the necessary fundraising for the restoration and helped raise $23 million over the course of a decade.

 

This is Now…

  • In 2006, Women for the Water Works, a committee of The Fairmount Park Conservancy, launched a campaign to raise money to complete the South Garden and Cliffside renovations.
  • In 2008, the Women for the Water Works reached their goal of $5 million dollars raised, bringing the total monies collected to more than $28 million since renovations first began thirty years ago.
  • Monies raised are not only restoring the site for today – they are also ensuring that generations to come will be able to enjoy the restored Water Works through establishment of a maintenance fund for the site.
  • Both the Central Cliffs Path and the South Garden were completed in Spring 2007.
  • The final phase of the project was the restoration of the North and South Cliff Paths, the Mercury Pavilion and the Rustic Pavilion, all of which is slated was completed in late 2008. 
  • Just as in the 19th century, pavilions, paths, statuary, and a dazzling fountain again attract visitors to this National Historic Landmark.

 

For more information on the Water Works project, please see our brochure (PDF)