Reservoir & Pump Houses

Built-in 1914

The Reservoir and Pump Houses are highly intact and stand on sloping ground to the east of Ellerton Drive.

There are two timber pump houses, a water reservoir to their immediate southwest, and associated remnant pipe and pump infrastructure. Built to facilitate the distribution of mains water throughout the site, they pumped water to the elevated water tower (demolished in c2000) that stood on the grounds of the former residences to the east.

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Features of the Reservoir of state-level cultural heritage significance also include:

• Form, scale, and materials: circular in-ground rendered brick reservoir, with a banked earth surround and a low curved perimeter retaining wall; octagonal-shaped single-storey enclosure, with cast iron columns supporting an open, lattice-framed perimeter truss, timber-framed and corrugated metal-clad roof with finial, and metal-framed and corrugated metal-clad walls

• Metal ladder accessing the interior.

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Features of the Pump Houses of state-level cultural heritage significance also include:

• Form, scale, and materials: single-storey, symmetrically composed, timber-framed and -clad structures; Dutch-gable (larger) and gable (smaller) roofs clad with corrugated metal sheets; concrete floors

• Timber joinery: (larger) vented semi-circular openings above its front door (west) and multi-pane casement windows, wide door opening to rear (east) with sliding double door, coved timber-boarded ceiling; (smaller) centred boarded doors centred on its long sides flanked by multi-pane casement windows, small end windows with decorative metal hoods

• Early pumping machinery, partly recessed into the concrete floor of the larger pump house

• Original and early metal (cast iron) water pipes, concrete supports and brick-lined connection pits

• Early electrical fixtures

• Low timber wall retaining wall on the north and west sides of the larger pump house.

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Research Note 

Water Supply Reportedly the first Asylum buildings had no bathrooms or toilets and for decades there was insufficient fresh water for proper cleaning throughout the Asylum. In 1878, Dr Smith had a space in the river bend fenced off to allow up to 40 patients to bathe in fresh water. Dams were created on the Asylum property - the earliest enlarging the waterholes of Simpson's time to collect run-off, the largest up near Cockatoo Island: these are evident today. Eventually, the Asylum was connected to the Mt Crosby water main water supply. An 1885 Hydraulics map shows a pipeline running down the road on Priors Pocket and crossing the river (presumably by inverted siphon) to the Asylum with a branch to Goodna. In 1896, another siphon was reported crossing on the riverbed at Pullen Creek and thence to the Asylum. 35 In 1885 there was a pressure tank on what is now Termination Hill and in 1913 a water tower was built to provide sufficient pressure for emergencies.