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Historic Downtown Dothan Walking Tour
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Dothan Dixie Standpipe

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

This 100-foot tall metal pillar that stands near the center of Dothan Alabama is now over 120 years old and can hold a maximum of 180,000 gallons of water coming from a natural spring under Dothan. This tower, called the Dothan Dixie Standpipe, was built in April of 1897 by the City of Dothan to help the young city grow with a stable clean water supply. Constructed of industrial age steel and thousands of riveted bolts this tank is a prime example of early industrial engineering. To build the tower the mayor at the time, Mayor J. R. Young sold municipal bonds to fund construction. This is notable because Mayor Young sold the bonds in increments of $1,000, meaning that he could only sell the bonds to wealthy investors, having to negotiate large buy-ins. On December 13th, 2016, the Dothan Dixie Standpipe was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

Images

Dothan Dixie Standpipe

An image depicting the Dothan Dixie Standpipe. It is a White, 100ft tall, metal tower with the words "CITY OF DOTHAN" painted on the tower near the top.

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

Built on April 5th, 1897, the Dothan Dixie Standpipe is situated in the center point for what used to be Dothan’s original downtown center. Constructed by Guild and White of Chattanooga Tennessee, the tower is built with industrial age steel and thousands of rivets that hold the tower together. It stands at 100 feet tall and 16 feet in diameter, able to hold a maximum of 180,000 gallons of water. Beneath the tower is the well that supplies the town with fresh water, dug by C.A. Ray of Providence of Rhode Island the well is 625 feet.

To construct the tower Mayor J. R. Young needed to raise funds for costs. Mayor Young sold around $20,000 in municipal bonds, each bond being sold at increments of $1,000. This large increment size is notable since Mayor Young had to negotiate large buy-ins from wealthy members of the local community. After funds were raised there was concern about the upkeep of the new water tower and the Mayor set aside $4,775 to establish a Water Supply and Fire Protection Fund to staff the tower and keep it maintained. Once constructed the tower became a part of the first water service in Dothan and to this day still provides water for the city.

In 2013 the Dothan utility company gained an award for the tower in 2013, the nationally-ranked “Steel Water Pipe Century Club” award for maintaining the Dothan Dixie Standpipe for more than 100 years. This award, when given, made Dothan one of just 24 cities or utility companies to receive the award and made it the first in Alabama to receive the honor.

Later in 2017, the City of Dothan placed a historical marker next to the tower. On December 13, 2016, the Dothan Dixie Standpipe was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

Sources

Hare, Jay. Dothan Utilities receives award for water tower, Dothan Eagle. August 6th 2013. Accessed November 23rd 2020. https://dothaneagle.com/news/article_c98a762a-fee1-11e2-bb62-0019bb30f31a.html.

Hilton, Mark. Dothan Dixie Standpipe, Historical Marker Database. March 14th 2018. Accessed November 23rd 2020. https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=115022.

Wilkerson, Bob. Water Works Standpipe, National Register of Historic Places. December 13th 2016. Accessed November 23rd 2020. https://www.nps.gov/nr/feature/places/pdfs/16000835.pdf.

Image Sources(Click to expand)

Image gathered from the National Register of Historic Places: https://www.nps.gov/nr/feature/places/pdfs/16000835.pdf

Additional Information