Plzeň's Black (Water) Tower: A Witness to the City's First Waterworks from 1532

In the historic centre of Plzeň stands a six-storey water tower — the Vodárenská věž, better known as the Black Tower. Built in 1532, it was part of the city's very first waterworks and remained in service until 1889, when a new municipal pumping station opened at Homolka.

Back in the 16th century, water in Plzeň didn't travel through the pipes we're used to today, but through a network of wooden channels. At first, it reached just a single public fountain on what is now Republic Square (náměstí Republiky); only over time did the network spread to other parts of the city. The water was pumped by a mechanism powered by a waterwheel on the Mill Stream (Mlýnská strouha). A tank sat on the tower's top floor, from where water flowed by gravity to homes and fountains across Plzeň.

What you can see today

The tower wasn't built as a lookout point — its purpose was to raise the water tank as high as possible, creating the pressure needed to keep the whole water system running. The underground section of the tower is now part of the Plzeň Historical Underground tour, where visitors can see an exact replica of the unique waterwheel mechanism once used here.

The upper floors are closed to the public, but the ground floor still serves as the entrance to the neighbouring building, home today to the Škoda Family Museum.

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Source: kudyznudy.cz