BNHA Eastern Avenue Pumping Station

Designed by architect Henry Brauns and completed in 1912, the Eastern Avenue Pumping Station was the architectural crown jewel in the city’s ambitious plan to provide its citizens with modern-day sanitary sewage system.

Baltimore’s topography dictated the location, essentially allowing gravity to transport wastewater created in downtown directly to the station. The station’s close proximity to water and railway lines was a natural fit for the delivery of large amounts of coal. A conveyer moved the coal to the top of the building where it was stored in four bins. When burned, the coal generated steam that powered the station’s pumps.

Today’s wastewater is pumped using modern electric pumps to its final destination at the Back River Wastewater Treatment Plan approximately six miles east of the station.