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Erdington Reservoir And Pumping Station

  • Thread starter Thread starter jay
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hi mar and welcome...i have often passed the house as i live quite near ...hopefully some of our members can dig out a bit of history for you..i see pedro has already started by posting you an old map..would you happen to know when the house was built ?

lyn
 
The origional waterworks was a stunning building sadly lost in the 50's. The heritage of the modem water industry is almost entirely absent despite its unarguable relevance to human development, so I hope you will as much as practically possibly conserve the house as it was part of the original waterwork infrastructure. Quite often when heritage assets are preserved, there is a tendency to grandstand the main parts and forget all about the lives of the people who lived, worked and maintained these places.


Witton WEll Pumping Station Shortheath Rd 1927.jpg
 
the station did look a fine example mort....just looking at below st view...i know that you know a lot about pumping stations and i noticed a structure on the same spot as the old pumping station...would this be the modern station ?

lyn

www.google.com

Short Heath Rd · Birmingham

Birmingham
www.google.com www.google.com
 
Astoness said:
the station did look a fine example mort....just looking at below st view...i know that you know a lot about pumping stations and i noticed a structure on the same spot as the old pumping station...would this be the modern station ?

lyn

www.google.com

Short Heath Rd · Birmingham

Birmingham
www.google.com www.google.com
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Thats right Lyn, these were the electric standby pumps mentioned in the thread. As a kid there were always lots of large diameter castiron water mains stored on the site too.
 
Looking at the 1802 Inclosure it seems to suggest that the road being struck from Turf Pit Lane would go westward, below the Bleak Hills and to the south of heather Mill Pool. Would this be Perry Common Road and therefore Leather Mill Pool would I be to the north of the future Upper Wilton Reservoir.
Later in 1854 The Birmingham Water Company were empowered to make and maintain a reservoir to be situate on Witton Upper Pools and on the site of the mill, mill house lands, and premises in the township of Erdington and Witton belonging to Worley Burch Esquire
 
In December 1857 the embankment of Witton Pool, which had been enlarged a few months earlier, burst. Some navvy wagons were swept away, some a distance of half a mile.
 
Morturn said:
The origional waterworks was a stunning building sadly lost in the 50's. The heritage of the modem water industry is almost entirely absent despite its unarguable relevance to human development, so I hope you will as much as practically possibly conserve the house as it was part of the original waterwork infrastructure. Quite often when heritage assets are preserved, there is a tendency to grandstand the main parts and forget all about the lives of the people who lived, worked and maintained these places.


View attachment 197592
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Yes. We will be doing some works but will definitely be preserving the architecture and style of the building. There’s another building exactly identical to it somewhere in Birmingham. I’ve been trying to locate it to see how the new owners have preserved it.
 
November 1865 the proposal for a well or shaft, and pumping engine or engines on certain lands in the townships of Endington and Witton, lying eastward of the Upper Wilton Reservoir and extending the public highway at a certain place called Turf Pits, which belong to the trustees of the late Henry Hope.
 
mar said:
Yes. We will be doing some works but will definitely be preserving the architecture and style of the building. There’s another building exactly identical to it somewhere in Birmingham. I’ve been trying to locate it to see how the new owners have preserved it.
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That’s good news and a win win for you too. Building with a past have an enhanced value and are far better than if taken alone if the temporal, the local and the historical references are missing. We were quite quick of the mark where I live and took the opportunity of forming a conservation area. We have never looked back.

Building history’s and stories are also very useful as you have already started researching here. Buildings work well when they have stories to tell. The story of clean water in the west midlands is quite significant one. In fact, myself and MikeG, another mod recently attended a full days lecture on the subject. Good luck with the project, maybe you could post an occasional update.

We are also more than happy to support any research you may be considering.
 
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