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Water
Fresh water was carried by hand before the aqueduct was built
Early Rio was surrounded by swamps with water of bad quality, and fresh water had to be carried manually from streams located relatively far from the city. Plans for canals to bring water from the Carioca river existed since at least 1602.
The first one
The first aqueduct was finished in 1723, and by 1744 it was in bad shape
Construction of the first aqueduct was finished in 1723, and clean water flowed to a decorative Baroque fountain in Santo Antônio Square. By 1744 it was already in bad shape, and governor Gomes Freire de Andrade ordered a new, larger structure.
The arches
The present aqueduct has 42 arches on two storeys and opened in 1750
The works went to the Portuguese military engineer José Fernandes Pinto Alpoim, inspired by the Águas Livres Aqueduct in Lisbon. It was inaugurated in 1750. The stretch between the two hills spans 270 metres, with arches up to 17.6 metres high.
42arches on two storeys
The tram
In 1896 the aqueduct became a viaduct for the Santa Teresa tram
The aqueduct was deactivated at the end of the 19th century as new ways to supply water were developed. In 1896 it was adapted to carry the Santa Teresa Tramway between the centre of Rio and the hilly Santa Teresa neighbourhood.
2011
An accident in 2011 stopped the tram, and limited service returned in 2015
In August 2011 an accident occurred when brakes apparently failed and left five people dead. All service was suspended. Limited service on a portion of the line, including across the former aqueduct, began again in July 2015.
Day 4, afternoon
It comes after Selarón Steps. Then Lapa.
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The words are a retelling of the Wikipedia article Carioca Aqueduct, and are shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. They are checked against those articles, and a fact that is not in them is left out.