The Water Fountain

Made of rock and iron, the fountain was the first in the nation powered by electricity at a time when streets and homes were still gaslit. The electricity was generated by the trolley line’s power station using the Farmington River. Colored lights hanging from the two central disks reflected onto water sprayed into the air. Square fern-filled planters adorned the fountain wall, and more ferns were planted in the central disk which was supported by three decorative columns. Once a year, two to three hundred fish in the pond were caught and moved into the fountain.

Farmington, Connecticut · United States