R.C. HARRIS WATER TREATMENT PLANT 1941
Title
R.C. HARRIS WATER TREATMENT PLANT 1941
Description
The R.C. Harris Water Treatment Plant is Toronto’s largest-capacity water treatment facility and its greatest collection of Art Deco buildings. Built in the 1930s, it entered service in 1941 and was expanded in 1957. Known as the “Palace of Purification,” it is an architectural and engineering landmark celebrated for its blend of form and function.
The facility was built as part of a vast city-wide improvement to the drinking water system masterminded by Roland Caldwell Harris, Toronto’s first Commissioner of Works from 1912 until his death in 1945, when the plant was renamed for him.
Using the latest technology, the plant chlorinated and filtered lake water through gravel and sand, making it safe to drink and helping to eliminate diseases such as typhoid. The 19-acre site consists of the Filter Building, the Service Building, and the Pumping Station, arranged in a stepped terrace facing the lake.
The plant has been regularly upgraded and expanded to meet the needs of the growing city. In 2020 its capacity was 950 million litres a day and it produced about 33 percent of Toronto’s drinking water.
Designated under the Ontario Heritage Act, 1998
HERITAGE TORONTO 2020
The facility was built as part of a vast city-wide improvement to the drinking water system masterminded by Roland Caldwell Harris, Toronto’s first Commissioner of Works from 1912 until his death in 1945, when the plant was renamed for him.
Using the latest technology, the plant chlorinated and filtered lake water through gravel and sand, making it safe to drink and helping to eliminate diseases such as typhoid. The 19-acre site consists of the Filter Building, the Service Building, and the Pumping Station, arranged in a stepped terrace facing the lake.
The plant has been regularly upgraded and expanded to meet the needs of the growing city. In 2020 its capacity was 950 million litres a day and it produced about 33 percent of Toronto’s drinking water.
Designated under the Ontario Heritage Act, 1998
HERITAGE TORONTO 2020
Creator
Sarah J. McCabe
Date
October 2, 2022
Files
Collection
Citation
Sarah J. McCabe, “R.C. HARRIS WATER TREATMENT PLANT 1941,” Historic Plaques of Ontario: An Omeka Demo Site, accessed April 27, 2024, https://ontarioplaques.omeka.net/items/show/700.