Once the heart of the water system, the historic Palmer Water Tower now stands as a proud sentinel of the city’s New Deal roots.
By Gina Hill | Alaska Headline Living | October 2025
PALMER, Alaska – Rising above the heart of downtown, the Palmer Water Tower is more than a piece of old plumbing, it’s a monument to the town’s beginnings and the grit of the Matanuska Colony settlers who built it.
Constructed in the mid-1930s as part of the New Deal-era Matanuska Colony Project, the steel tower once served as the community’s main water storage and pressure system. It’s now retired from service but remains a defining landmark, a familiar sight to anyone driving through Palmer’s compact downtown.
A Tower That Tells Palmer’s Story
The tower’s skeletal frame and faded steel tank are inseparable from Palmer’s identity. According to the City of Palmer’s capital project reports, the water tower stands within the Matanuska Colony Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
City planners describe it as “a key component of Palmer’s history”, that connects generations … from the colonists who first settled the valley to modern residents who see it as a symbol of home.
From Utility to Icon
Once crucial to Palmer’s municipal water system, the tower has long since been decommissioned.
Today:
- The structure is no longer in use,
- It remains privately owned, and
- The city hopes to purchase and preserve it as a protected historic landmark.
“The purchase of the water tower property will ensure preservation of the icon,” city documents state.
Though the tank has gone dry, its value to Palmer hasn’t. Locals see it as part of their shared identity, a relic worth keeping upright.
Ownership & Preservation
The City of Palmer has identified the “Historic Palmer Water Tower Purchase” as a legislative and capital project priority, signaling intent to bring the tower under public ownership.
Once acquired, officials hope to stabilize and maintain it as both a heritage structure and community landmark, a testament to Palmer’s early self-sufficiency and architectural endurance.
A Look Back in Photos
A set of historical and modern images reveals how the tower evolved alongside the community:
(Archival sources: Matanuska Valley Historical Photo Project, City of Palmer, Flickr/auvet)
📸 1935: A wooden and steel temporary water tower serves early Matanuska Colony operations — one of the first major infrastructure efforts in the area.
📸 1936: Workers construct the permanent steel structure that still defines downtown today.
📸 1950s–1980s: The tower becomes a familiar sight, labeled “PALMER,” anchoring the skyline for generations.
📸 Today: The aging but proud tower stands as a nostalgic focal point of the historic district, visible from nearly every direction.
Why It Still Matters
Preserving the tower means keeping a visible link to Palmer’s past, when settlers built a self-sustaining agricultural community out of wild Alaskan terrain.
It’s a symbol of resilience, a local landmark, and, perhaps most importantly, a reminder that even utilitarian things can become beloved monuments when they’re part of a shared story.
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