The Lambeth Waterworks Company was formed in 1785 to supply local parishes with water, drawn directly from the Thames near Waterloo, by means of wooden pipes and channels. By 1802 the main had reached Kennington and iron pipes were replacing the wooden ones. A reservoir was constructed at Streatham Hill in 1832 and new works […]
Southwark and Vauxhall Water Company
Southwark and Vauxhall Water Company was formed in 1845 on the merger of the Southwark Water Company and the Vauxhall Water Company. The reservoirs covered nearly 18 acres of ground which now houses Battersea Power Station. Steam engines were used to pump water to a height of 175 ft to supply Brixton. The water quality […]
Vauxhall Water Company
Vauxhall Water Company was formed in 1805 as the South London Waterworks Company (pictured). The works were based at the Oval and took water from both the Thames and Vauxhall Creek. It supplied the parish of St Giles, Camberwell, parts of Lambeth together with other parts of Surrey. The Vauxhall Creek supply became very polluted […]
Hydraulic Power Company
This article is adapted from a talk given in November 1979 by Mr Donnachie to the Lambeth and Southwark Archaeological Society. The Victorian age was the age of steam power, not only for steamships and railway engines, but for a multitude of smaller applications where nowadays we would find an electric motor or diesel. Pumps, […]
