There are three large water towers brooding over the Cranhill district of Glasgow. It’s hard not to look at them and be reminded of something from H.G. Wells’s The War of the Worlds but rest assured: these aren’t alien aircraft, they’re extremely functional water towers.  

Top Places in Glasgow

Glasgow, Scotland

Fossil Grove

Hidden in a Scotland museum is a copse of extinct tree stumps.

55.8744, -4.3310

Added by duncanchappell

Glasgow, Scotland

Govan Stones

Early Medieval stones sit on display at the beautiful Govan Old Church in Glasgow.

55.8646, -4.3129

Added by duncanchappell

Glasgow, Scotland

St. Mungo Museum of Religious Life and Art

This Scottish museum is the only one in the world to focus not on one religion but all of them.

55.8625, -4.2364

Added by leannewrightson

See more things to do in Glasgow »

One water tower in particular is rather unique due to its unusual square shape. It was built in 1951 by FA Macdonald and partners to pump water from nearby Loch Katrine into the tower, which is then released into local homes via gravity. 

As it is such a prominent feature, a project to artfully illuminate the structure at night successfully ran from 1999 to 2002, but was too expensive to continue. A new scheme to light the tower up again was switched on by Bob Winter, Lord Provost of Glasgow, in 2009 using low energy LED bulbs that run through a system of colors.

At the base of the tower are some water-related sculptures by artist Andy Scott. Three sirens, Poseidon, and a mermaid add to this unusual attraction.