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Axel Water tower

Axel Water tower

High and dry: Axel water tower

Of the more than 260 water towers that have appeared in the Dutch landscape since 1856, 175 remain, including the water tower in Axel in Zeeland.

The concrete structure of this dodecagonal construction was built in 1936. The outside of the tower was bricked up with red bricks. A year later, the tower supplied drinking water to Axel and the surrounding area. The three separate barrels fit 1,300 cubic meters of drinking water.

One of the highest water towers in the Netherlands

About 60 years later, in 1995, the drinking water supply was closed. The municipality of Axel bought the monument, which is 60.6 meters high. It maintained it as a young industrial national monument you can visit, thanks to the Dutch Water Tower Foundation, which strives to preserve water towers.

Concrete construction

The entrance hall has a height of 28 meters, and you can clearly see the reinforced concrete supporting structure. The tower is supported by 12 concrete pillars, four in the middle.

The 242 stairs lead you to a height of 50 meters along the reservoirs, where from under the dome, you have a beautiful view of the Doel nuclear power station and the port of Antwerp in Belgium, Zeeuws-Vlaanderen, etc.

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