Roman aqueduct
Rome's first aqueduct was built in 312 BC, and supplied a water fountain at the city's cattle market. By the 3rd century AD, the city had eleven aqueducts, sustaining a population of over a million in a water-extravagant economy; most of the water supplied the city's many public baths. Cities and towns throughout the Roman Empire emulated this model, and funded aqueducts as objects of public interest and civic pride, "an expensive yet necessary luxury to which all could, and did, aspire".
District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority
In 1852, Congress commissioned the construction of an aqueduct system to provide a reliable supply of drinking water to the city from the Potomac River. The US Army Corps of Engineers designed and built the Washington Aqueduct, which began full operation in 1864. Filtration plants were added to the system in the 20th century.