National Latin Exam Study Guide: A Journey Through Ancient Rome

By the late 4th century, when the Romans were engaged in the second Samnite War, they urgently needed an alternate water supply. Not only was the water supply no longer reliable for the growing Roman population, it was also possible that enemies of Rome could poison the supply. As these needs began to present themselves, the Romans saw the urgency of an alternate water source. All around Rome one found vibrant springs and rivers. In 312 BC the Adile Appius Claudius undertook construction on the first aqueduct,appropriately named Aqua Appia. This was a simple underground channel. Next came the Aqua Anio Vetus in 272 B.C. Again, this was primarily an underground channel. By 140 B.C. the Aqua Marcia was completed bringing water from the Anio Valley. Eventually there were 11 aqueducts that supplied potable water to Rome, and it is estimated that these aqueducts provided Rome with twelve hundred million liters of water a day.