History of the Huddersfield Water Supplies
By T. W. Woodhead

CHAPTER II - EARLY WATER SUPPLIES

BRADLEY SPOUT AND THE MARKET PLACE SCHEME

"Native" in the article above mentioned ("Huddersfield Examiner," May, 1878) gives the following account of an abortive attempt to provide an increased supply of water to the town in the early years of the last century. "The inhabitants of Huddersfield were then badly supplied with water of very inferior quality. Godfrey Berry, a malster and miller of New Street, a leading man in the town and one of the Board of Commissioners of the Lighting, Watching and Cleansing Act of 1820, proposed a scheme whereby a larger supply of water might be obtained. His project was as follows. A large reservoir was to be constructed in the Old Market Place, into which the Bradley Sprout water was to be brought. Then there were four pumps, one at each corner of the Market Place, from which the people might fetch water. Well, Godfrey and his colleagues set to work with a right good will at the new Waterworks. A large hole was dug, which might be, I dare say, thirty yards by seven. Then they built round and arched over (See Figure 17 below), and when all was over, they made the astounding discovery that water would not run up-hill. The project was therefore dropped. A considerable amount of public money had been spent and nothing accomplished. The large vault is still there, and when Huddersfield becomes a bonding town it may come in useful."

Figure 17. Market Place "Water Works" Arches Excavated 1906

Another use, however, has been found for the site, and when excavations were made in March 1906, for the underground lavatories, the arched vault referred to by "Native" was revealed. An account in the "Huddersfield Examiner" at the time says, "Yesterday morning about 9-30….workmen discovered two enormous arched tanks containing about 3 feet of water. They run side by side parallel with New Street, their length being 25 feet., width 8ft., and depth 9ft., from the base of the arch, which is 7ft., 6ins., spare from the centre inside measure. There are three accesses from one tank to the other, the walls being 3ft. thick, and very strongly built, the masonry being exceptionally firmly held together with the finest white lime." (See Figure 18 below)

Figure 18. Market Place "Water Works" Uncovered 1906

The original Bradley Spout, which was to have supplied the market place tanks was, as shown above, not in John William Street, but at a site now overlapped by the railway takings.

In 1837, William White in his "History and Gazetteer of the West Riding" says, "Huddersfield is by nature extremely ill supplied with water for domestic purposes, having but few springs the water from which is hard and unwholesome, its source being the termination of drains connected with the deserted coalworks which intersect the ground under the town."

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