{"nrhp_refnum":"02000847","name":"Brooks Catsup Bottle Water Tower","other_names":[],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"800 Morrison Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Collinsville","county":"Madison County","state":"IL","lat":38.678710022000075,"lon":-89.98589766299995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2002-08-13","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Commerce"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A 170-foot steel water tower shaped like a giant catsup bottle, built in 1949 on the grounds of the former Brooks catsup factory at 800 South Morrison Avenue in Collinsville, Madison County, Illinois.","why_significant":"The nomination argues statewide significance under Criterion A for commerce, since the tower advertises a product, and under Criterion C as an example of programmatic (mimetic) architecture. Its unusual shape and size make it a roadside attraction in its own right. It was built by Caldwell Tanks, Inc. for the Suppiger Company, which owned the Brooks brand.","narrative":"Rising 170 feet above the grounds of a former catsup factory in Collinsville, Illinois, this steel water tower was built in 1949 in the shape of a Brooks catsup bottle. A 100,000-gallon riveted tank, painted red, white and blue with a bottle cap and label, sits atop a 100-foot lattice tower. Caldwell Tanks of Louisville, Kentucky built it for the Suppiger Company, whose president asked for a tank that looked like a catsup bottle. The tower supplied water for plant operations and a fire sprinkler system. After the company left Collinsville, it sat idle until 1993, when local residents raised $80,000 to restore its original look. It is recognized for its role in commercial advertising and as an example of programmatic architecture, in which a structure takes the form of the product it promotes. It also draws visitors travelling to nearby Cahokia Mounds. Only the tower is included, since the surrounding factory buildings lack integrity.","period_of_significance":"1949-1952","architect_builder":"Caldwell Tanks, Inc.","architectural_style":"OTHER: Water Tower (programmatic/mimetic architecture)","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Listed as not in use. The tower sat idle and decaying after the factory closed, and local residents restored it to its 1949 appearance in 1993.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:37.79714-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/50/8935/28893550/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/02000847.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02000847/d75cf4b66f-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/02000847/d75cf4b66f-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Andrew Keith","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Catsup_bottle_5_27_2006_171.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Andrew Keith</a>, <a href=\"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Catsup_bottle_5_27_2006_171.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28893550","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brooks_Catsup_Bottle_water_tower","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4974984"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/madison-county/brooks-catsup-bottle-water-tower-02000847/"}