{"nrhp_refnum":"98001355","name":"Illinois Central Railroad Water Tower and Pump House","other_names":["Water Pump House"],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"SW of jct. of I.C.& C. and E.I. R.Rs.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Kinmundy","county":"Marion County","state":"IL","lat":38.76324018200006,"lon":-88.85802504999998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1998-11-12","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Transportation","Engineering"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A wooden cypress-stave railroad water tank and a small brick pump house southwest of Kinmundy, Marion County, Illinois, built in 1885 by the Illinois Central Railroad to supply water to steam locomotives.","why_significant":"The nomination argues local significance under Criterion A for transportation, because the 1885 tower let the railroad drop watering stops at Farina and Tonti and shorten train running times. It also cites Criterion C for engineering, as one of the few surviving historic cypress stave tanks in Illinois. The tower and pump house are described as the last historic railroad resources in Kinmundy.","narrative":"Southwest of Kinmundy, Illinois, a 100,000 gallon wooden water tank and a small brick pump house recall the days of steam railroading. The Illinois Central Railroad built the tank in 1885 under its engineering department. It is a cylinder 30 feet across and 30 feet deep, made of vertical cypress staves held by 25 steel rods and raised 18 feet on wooden standards. The pump house, ten feet square with a concrete roof, moved water from a nearby 28 acre lake into the tank. Pumps there changed over time from steam to gasoline to electric. The tower let the railroad end water stops at Farina and Tonti, which shortened running times on the line. It is also one of the few remaining cypress stave tanks of its kind in Illinois. Today the tank is roofless and damaged, but the pump house remains sound. Together they are the last historic railroad resources in the town.","period_of_significance":"1885-1948","architect_builder":"Illinois Central Railroad","architectural_style":"other: water tank","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"The site is overgrown with weeds, brush and timber. The tank has lost its roof and has a hole in its side, and its steel bands have slipped down. The brick pump house is in good condition with its roof intact and pumping equipment still inside.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:37.762303-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/0/8936/28893600/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/98001355.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/98001355/302b9dc446-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/98001355/302b9dc446-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:IL_Central_RR_Water_Tower,_Kinmundy.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:IL_Central_RR_Water_Tower,_Kinmundy.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28893600","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illinois_Central_Railroad_Water_Tower_and_Pump_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5999389"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/marion-county/illinois-central-railroad-water-tower-and-pump-house-98001355/"}