In 1880 the Shanghai Waterworks Co. Ltd were founded in London, United Kingdom. British and Chinese engineers provided expertise with British investors providing the funds, to build a waterworks in Shanghai in what was at that time the
Shanghai International Settlement, a merging of the previous British and American settlement areas which had existed before 1863. Building started in August 1881 and the design was carried out by the British architect J.W. Hart (赫德), in the style of an English castle. The plant received a raw water intake from the Huangpu River, two settling reservoirs, a service tank, four filter-beds, and a pure water reservoir. On 29 June 1883,
Li Hongzhang the
Viceroy of Zhili of the Qing Dynasty, opened the water gate valve and thus opened the waterworks. It was the first waterworks to be built in China, and at the time of its construction the largest in East Asia. Chinese businessmen who had quickly seen the benefits of the waterworks soon after completion played an important part in the development of similar waterworks in Tianjin, Hankou and Guangzhou. During the 1930s the site was much larger spanning 64 acres. At the beginning of its construction, the plant was able to satisfy the daily water needs of 170,000 people in the Shanghai International Settlement and
Shanghai French Concession in the first year of operation, the total water output of the plant reached 556,000 cubic meters. Since the beginning of 1902, when the Shanghai French Concession got its own waterworks, the Yangshupu Waterworks gradually stopped supplying water to the area within one month. In 1911, Zhabei Waterworks (闸北水厂) was built to the west of Yangshupu Waterworks on Hengfeng Road. It supplied water to residents and factories on that side of the city, decreasing the usage of the Yangshupu Waterworks. In 1926 the waterworks in Zhabei were moved to their present location on Zhayin Road. By the 1950s, the waterworks was providing around 300,000 cubic metres of water a day. For 151 days between 1 October 1978 and 31 May 1979, the waterworks were affected by
saltwater intrusion from the Changjiang River. Nearby waterworks in Wusong and Minhang were also affected. A similar incursion occurred briefly in 1988.
Jiang Zemin in his role as Mayor of Shanghai, visited the waterworks in 1985. On 10 March 2001, for the first time in its history the waterworks opened its gates to the general public. Several thousand Shanghai residents applied for tickets. File:Shanghai. Water works Yangtzefoo Road (NYPL Hades-2359414-4043770).jpg File:Tcitp d401 shanghai waterworks co.jpg File:Tcitp d402 shanghai waterworks.jpg ==Architecture==