Tank Hill Park

Tank Hill Park owes its name to a massive five hundred thousand gallon water tank built at its summit by the Spring Valley Water Company in the mid eighteen nineties. This reservoir was a critical piece of infrastructure for the growing city, but it was also a conspicuous landmark on the bare hilltop. During the Second World War, authorities feared the tank would be an easy target for enemy bombers, so they planted a thick grove of blue gum eucalyptus trees around it to hide the structure from the sky. The bombers never arrived, and the tank itself was finally removed in nineteen fifty-seven, leaving behind the circular concrete foundation you can still see today.