Water Tower , Chester The Water Tower ( originally known as the New Tower ) is a 14th - century tower in Chester , Cheshire , England , which is attached by a spur wall to Bonewaldesthorne ' s Tower on the city walls . The tower , together with its spur wall , is designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building . The original name of the tower was New Tower but in the 17th century it became known as the Water Tower , although the City Assembly tried to insist on the usage of its correct name . History . The tower was built between 1322 and 1325 , at which time it stood in the River Dee . It is attached to Bonewaldesthorne ' s Tower by a spur wall . The architect was John ( de ) Helpston who had also designed castles for King Edward II in North Wales . Its prime purpose was to defend the port of Chester , and it was also used to monitor the movements of shipping and to ensure that the custom dues were paid . The cost of the tower and the spur wall was £100 ( £ as of 2018 ) . By the end of the 16th century the river had silted up and the tower was landlocked . In 1639 the tower was renovated at the city ' s expense and during the following decade embrasure s in the spur wall were made into gun ports . During the Civil War the tower was attacked and damaged . From 1671 it was leased as a storehouse but in 1728 it was described as " useless and neglected " . The Chester Mechanics ' Institution was founded in 1835 . The Institution wished to open a museum to show its artifacts and the city council leased the Water Tower and Bonewaldesthorne ' s Tower at a nominal rent for this purpose . The museum opened in 1838 . The Institution closed in 1876 and the exhibits came into the possession of the city council . Although it was recognised that the tower was not suitable as a museum , there was at the time nowhere else to show all the exhibits . The tower closed as a museum in 1901 – 02 while the city walls were rebuilt , and re - opened in 1903 , attracting 12 , 000 visitors that season . The towers were closed to the public in 1916 and in the 1920s they were let for non - museum use . In 1954 they were bought by the Grosvenor Museum which reopened them to the public in 1962 . The tower is now some inland from the river , and is probably the least - altered of Chester ' s medieval towers . Architecture . The tower and spur wall are built in sandstone rubble . The tower is about high , and the wall is long , just over wide and about high . An archway in the city walls leads to 44 stone steps on the way down to the tower . The wall is crenellated ; this may be the only surviving example of medieval crenellation on the city walls . The tower is circular at its base with a square turret above , in two stages containing octagonal chambers , one above the other . A pointed archway leads from the wall into the lower chamber . In the angle between the tower and the wall was a small latrine . Five stone steps lead down from the archway through the wall ( about thick ) to the lower chamber . Formerly in its walls were embrasure s , but these have been blocked and are only visible from the exterior . A circular staircase of 23 steps leads to the upper chamber , which has four embrasures in its walls . Above this is a raised fighting platform overlooking the entrance to the tower . The top of the tower is crenellated .