Nestled among the quiet refuge of the Toronto Islands, an unassuming and completely vacant ring-shaped island now home to a calm, picturesque pond is all that remains of a failed engineering project to bring fresh drinking water to a growing city. The small island's official and somewhat utilitarian name, the Settling Basin, hints at its fascinating past: a story of ambition, urgency, and ultimately, failure. The fascinating history of this engineering project is laid out in a Dec. 1929 issue of the Journal of the American Water Works Association, in an article by R.C. Demand for a City-operated water system was growing in the mid-19th century, as Toronto experienced unprecedented population growth. But there was some debate over where to source the city's drinking water.