Mendocino, CA and its Water Towers

Mendocino lies on a 'peninsular bump' about three-plus hours north of San Francisco, and is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean. Remote and charming, Mendocino is a collection of bed & breakfast properties, shops and galleries. Established in the mid-nineteenth century, it began as a lumber town settled by people from New England - and the architecture shows it.

With scarce drinking water and low-producing wells, townspeople erected water towers. Not just one for the town, but nearly one for each house! Some are very simple. Yet others, having 'invested' in the cost/effort of its construction, chose to enclose them and make use of the newly found interior spaces.

These towers create fun vertical elements and add greatly to the charm of this 'California New England' town.