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Historic Homes
Historic Home Detail | 362
Historic Name
Lemon Heights Water Company Pump House
Address
16th Street
Upland, CA 91786
Evaluation
Building
5/7/2007
Construction Date
1930
Current Owner
West End Liquidation Trust
Current Owner Address
139 N. Euclid Ave. P.O.Box 877
Upland, CA 91786
Description
Occupying the southern corner of Benson Avenue and 16th Street this is a one-story pump house. The barn-like building is entirely of cobblestone construction and is capped by a side-gabled, corrugated tin roof which is oriented towards Benson. At the northern corner, a smokestack-like tower is also composed of tin. Beneath it, a tall doorway is made of weathered, vertical wood planks. Most of the other openings, a combination of doors and windows widely and irregularly spaced, have been boarded up with planking. The apertures have wood sills and are outlined by co soldier^ courses of stone. An eye-catching structure, it remains substantially intact, although apparently no longer serving its original purpose. Not much is known about this remarkable building, located at the intersection of the streets formerly known as Orange Grove and Baseline. It was probably built in 1930 when the two wells it encloses were drilled. The Vowerw was used to house the block and tackle required to insert the pipes. At the time of construction the pump house was part of the Lemon eights Water Company system which supplied irrigation water to the groves in the vicinity. Later the company was acquired by the West End Consolidated Water Company. The building is notable for its stone construction and barn form. It is the only pump house in Upland which is stone; at least one other one is located over the county line in Claremont. Stone buildings and street features are especially associated with the west end of San Bernardino County and the eastern portions of LOS Angeles County. According to an article in the July 3, 1979 Dailv Re~ort stone was used not only because it was plentiful but also because it was prized for its aesthetic qualities. Stone masonry became a valuable skill in the region, observable on houses, retaining walls, chimneys, gutters, gates curbs, and, like this example, barns. Other landmark stone buildings in the region include the Waiting Station on Mountain and the power station in San Antonio Heights.