Paul Steane's Photography Pages

Home / 2018 / Thirlmere Aqueduct - January 2018 12

Search in this set

The Thirlmere Aqueduct is a 96-mile long water supply system built by the Manchester Corporation Water Works between 1890 and 1925. The aqueduct was built to carry approximately 55,000,000 imperial gallons per day of water from Thirlmere Reservoir in the Lake District to Manchester.
The majority of the aqueduct was built by cut-and-cover and so is only just below ground level. To ensure continuous access by maintenance staff, in most places where the route crossed a road or field boundary, a gate was built. These have a characteristic construction with stone stoops and iron gate, with spiked staves.
There are also a large number of valve houses, each built of stone and with a green painted door.
The MCWW TA (as displayed on pretty much every piece of hardware) also has some interesting engineering structures on the route, but some are in very out-of-the-way places such as this bridge which is a mile from the nearest road, only accessible today via muddy footpaths!
Though carried across this bridge in pipes, the main run of the aqueduct is either in tunnel or, mostly, cut-and-cover.
All photos taken by myself on Thursday 11 January 2018.