Croton Distributing Reservoir

Granite walls surrounded the above-ground reservoir

The Croton Distributing Reservoir, also known as the Murray Hill Reservoir, was an above-ground reservoir at 42nd Street and Fifth Avenue in the New York City borough of Manhattan. Covering 4-acre (16,000 m2) and holding 20 million US gallons (76,000 m3),[1] it supplied the city with drinking water during the 19th century. Its massive 50-foot-high (15 m) granite walls, which presented a vaguely Egyptian-style facade, were 25 feet (7.6 m) thick.[2] Atop the walls was a public promenade offering panoramic views; Edgar Allan Poe enjoyed walking there.[3][4]

  1. ^ "Croton Water Supply System". ASCE Metropolitan Section. Retrieved 2016-11-12.
  2. ^ "History: Reservoir Square". Bryant Park Corporation. Archived from the original on 2015-10-15. Retrieved 2015-10-11.
  3. ^ "New York Public Library at 42nd Street and Adjacent Bryant Park". Archived from the original on 2017-05-24. Retrieved 2010-03-13.
  4. ^ "New York Public Library". New York Architecture Images. Retrieved 2010-03-13.