Whitewater is the home of the University of Wisconsin Whitewater. Next to the campus is Starin Park that is home to one of the oldest water towers in the Dairy State. It is a stone tower with a metal tank sitting on the top. It was built in 1889 along with the Morris Pratt Institute. Pratt was a leading spiritualist, and he gained considerable wealth investing in iron mines in northern Illinois. He used his wealth to build an institute for teaching spiritualism. Spiritualists believe that the deceased can interact with the living. They believe a medium can communicate with the dead. It was popular in the late 1800s; the author of the series of Sherlock Holmes novels, Arthur Conan Doyle was a devout Spiritualist.
The Morris Pratt Institute attracted many spiritualists to the town of Whitewater, and it got the nickname of “Second Salem.” At some point, rumors began swirling around it that it was haunted by several spirits. The points on the iron fence point inward instead of outward. They say this is to keep the spirits from escaping the old tower. College students also say that it is not safe to walk by the old water tower at night and are warned not to walk past it alone. I am not sure about it being haunted or possessed, but it is an interesting old water tower that has the look of an old castle tower. A new water tower was recently constructed, replacing the historic one, and it is no longer needed. The city has discussed possibly demolishing the old tower because of maintenance costs, but I hope that they will see the historical value of such a beautiful old tower and save it from the wrecking ball.
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