Led by Aaron Goldstein

This walk reconstructs a once ubiquitous but now largely forgotten piece of the circa-1900 Berkeley landscape. Back then, windmill-topped water towers stood on nearly every city block, pulling up water from wells into elevated water tanks and providing pressurized water for domestic use. Of the hundreds of “tank houses” that once existed in Berkelely, only a handful remain. We’ll visit six surviving examples in North and West Berkeley and learn about what people had to do to get water in the pre-EBMUD East Bay. 2.75 miles, flat terrain. 

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Tours start at 10:00 am and end at approximately 12:00 noon.  Sometimes they are slightly longer, so some extra time should be allowed in case the walk meets an informative passerby or dwells at an interesting site. Tours are limited to 30 paying participants unless noted otherwise. Pre-paid reservations are required and tickets are not refundable. Tours are conducted in rain, shine or Berkeley fog and are wheelchair accessible unless otherwise noted. 

Tours are $10 for non-members, $8 for members. Please sign up by mailing in or dropping off this form. Keep a record of your order.  E-mail addresses and telephone numbers are very important for last-minute changes and confirmations. You will be sent an e-mail or we will phone confirmations with starting points. 

For last-minute reservations, call 510-848-0181 between 1 and 4 pm on the Thursday or Friday before the tour to learn the meeting place and sign up if there is an opening. 

If you have suggestions for future walking tours, please email us or leave a message at 510-848-0181.