Palatka Waterworks

Whitewater Branch was the primary water source for Palatka, and in 1886-87 Wheeler and Parks Company of Boston, Mass., built the Palatka Waterworks. Its steam pumping machinery delivered one million gallons of water in 24 hours, and in 1947 the spring flow was still sufficient to fill the normal needs of the city. The Waterworks continued to operate until 1986. Construction of the Waterworks east of the ravines modified Whitewater Branch, whose water ran through a brick-lined channel toward the Waterworks; part poured into a reservoir to be pumped to Palatka citizens, while the rest flowed into the marshes and the St. Johns River. Whitewater Branch, fed by numerous small springs and seeps within the ravines, has clear waters that have provided water to people for thousands of years.

Palatka, Florida · United States