Trudeau Sanatorium Historic District, Reference Number 23
Year built: 1909
Other names: American Management Association's Water Storage Tank (inactive)
The old reservoir is an octagonal stone tank with a capacity of 75,000 gallons. It was originally used to store and boost the pressure of water from the village system both for domestic use and for fire protection. The structure is sided in wood shingles and surmounted by an asphalt roof. The reservoir is sited high on a ledge above the Ludington Infirmary. There is virtually no access to this feature today, as there is no longer a path to the site. However, the reservoir can be seen from the parking lot below and it appears to retain integrity.
Samuel Inslee paid for the engineering of the original water-works and fire protection system in 1895, sending his own engineer to oversee the work. This involved digging a trench six feet deep for nearly a mile, often through hardpan and rock, to connect the Sanitarium with the village waterworks, for which Mr. Inslee paid over $10,000. 1 In 1899 the hydrants and vertical pipes were shown on the Sanborn map as connected with the "City Water Works" by a 6" main; by 1908 the map notes, but does not show, that it was also connected to a 75,000 gallon reservoir. By 1931 two private reservoirs were in use, one of 75,000 gallons and the new reservoir of 100,000 gallons. The American Management Association uses only the new, larger one.
Sources:
- Mary B. Hotaling, Draft nomination for the National Register of Historic Places, January 1993.
- National Register of Historic Places Registration Form
Comments
Footnotes
1. E. L. Trudeau, Autobiography, 264-65.
