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

CHAPTER I - GEOLOGY, TOPOGRAPHY AND RAINFALL

SUPERFICIAL DEPOSITS

The beds forming the solid geology of the district are masked over a large area at the lower levels and valleys by superficial deposits of boulder clay, sand and gravel. These deposits area revealed during excavations for drains, water mains, and foundations for buildings in the town up to an altitude of 400 ft. O.D. and patches occur at higher levels on the clough sides. Many sections were exposed during the Great War and some were then described and illustrated. These facts together with details brought out the recent Survey Memoirs, provide an explanation of these deposits and show that they belong to the last Ice Age and phenomena succeeding that period. Put briefly, deposits on the west of the Pennines show that an enormous sea of ice crossed the Irish Sea, invaded the Lancashire plain and pushed its way up the Pennine slopes to near the head waters of the River Colne, but in our district does not seem to have crossed the ridge and invaded our valleys on the east. It is probable, however, that there would be small lobes of ice on the eastern fringe of the plateau and that corrie glaciers would form in the deep hollows at the head of the Colne and Holme, the melt-waters from which and the downhill flow of ice, snow and mud, would account for many of these deposits which contain only local material. The extensive flooding of our narrow valleys would tend to remove traces of local glaciation.

On the eastern side, in Lower Calderdale, at the period of maximum glaciation, the great ice sheet filling the Vale of York reached as far as the Dearne Valley in a westerly direction and, closing the outlet of the Calder up to 405 ft. O.D., produced a Lake Calderdale which extended far up the valleys of the Colne and Holme and completely submerged the centre of Huddersfield.

It is probable we have here an explanation of the origin of the extensive local deposits of clay and boulders. A good section is seen at Hillhouse Brick and Tile Works, and much was exposed during the recent excavations of the Cloth Hall Site.

Our present river flats are covered by a more recent thick bed of alluvian composed of sandy clay, loam and gravel.

The eastern slope of the Pennines with which we are specially concerned, may be conveniently divided into three zones of altitude:- (1) The Summit Plateau ; (2) Foothills and Spurs ; and (3) Lowlands (See Figure 5 below).

Figure 5. Topography. Three Zones of Altitude

1) The summit plateau may be regarded as the zone from the 1,200 ft. contour line upwards to 1,909 ft. at Black Hill, the highest point in the district. This irregular tract consists almost entirely of moorland and is covered by extensive deposits of deep, wet peat, formed by the Cottongrass (Eriophorum vaginatum), the dominant plant on these moors. Nowhere in Europe can so extensive Cottongrass association be seen as on the central Pennines. This elevates zone runs from south-east to north-west and along the summit is the Pennine water-parting, the main divide of the north of England.
The rivers draining to the west, the Roche, Tame and Etherow – are tributaries of the Mersey and drain into the Irish Sea.
On the eastern side of the divide, the Calder and its tributaries – the Ryburn and Black Brook – drain from the northern boundary of our district.
In the central area is the Colne and its tributaries – the Meltham Brook or Hall Dyke, the Holme, and Burton Brook or Fenay Beck ; these carve our the four river basins of the Colne, Meltham Holme and Burton, which converge on Huddersfield and form a well-defined geographical unit. The head waters of each of these, excepting the Burton Brook, arise in this higher zone.
To the south is the Don and its tributary, the Dearne. These rivers on the eastern slope unite with the Calder and drain into the Humber and the North Sea.
2) Foothills and spurs descend like irregular giant fingers from the summit plateau and occupy a zone ranging from 1,200 ft. down to 600 ft. O.D. These spurs owe their from largely to outcrops of Millstone Grit, cut through by the tributary streams and carved into irregular outlines by subsequent denudation. They have usually the form of gently sloping terraces with a surface bed of grit. In strong contrast to the summit plateau, the natural vegetation of these terraces consists of degenerate oak-birch woods and numerous stretches of unreclaimed heather moorland and grass-heath with thin peat or raw humus, the farmlands being largely pasture. The upper parts of the steep valley sides, strewn with tumbled blocks of grit are covered by oak woods with a ground flora of heath plants, wiry-leaved grasses, and bracken ; and over the shales below are those marvelous carpets of bluebells which are such a delight in the spring-time.
3) Lowlands range from 600 ft. to 150 ft. in the east and send tongues up the valleys towards the western ridge. In this zone are the parklands and large farms, and the valleys are crowded with overgrown villages and townships while the riversides are lined with factories for whose needs a large and constant water supply is so essential.

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