PARADISE

Paradise, KS, in Russell County,
is located on Hwy 18 in northwestern
Kansas.
Paradise was originally named Iva Mar, but when settlers came along and stopped on top of the hill they renamed the town Paradise because that is where they
thought they were, with its beauty and the creek that ran through the area.

Paradise Water Tower Paradise-Russell County-Paradise, KS

The Paradise Water Tower was constructed in 1938 as part of a larger water work improvement project sponsored by the Works Progress Administration.

The project employed some thirty-five men, who quarried the stone from the Welling Ranch south of Paradise and built the structure in about four months. Common laborers were paid 25 cents per hour, and carpenters and masons received 50 cents an hour. This cylindrical structure is made of rusticated limestone blocks, and is 17 feet in diameter, 35 feet tall, and has a capacity of 58,000 gallons. It features a double-door entrance with an Art Deco-inspired limestone surround.