Water
Bolsover Area > Bolsover > Water
Bolsover Water Works.
The water for the area around Carr Vale prior to the building of Carr Vale and New Bolsover was found in wells and springs in areas such as the Castle Fields, water was later fed from here into large tanks for use of the New Bolsover sites stand pipes. This proved too little and the tanks were prone to running dry especially on wash day.
This problem was solved by the coming of the railways.
The late nineteenth century railway line of the Lancashire, Derbyshire & East Coast Railway ran uphill from Carr Vale and into the Bolsover-Scarcliffe tunnel which was cut through the very bedrock of Bolsover and was plagued with water and subsidence whilst it was being constructed and throughout its life. The one mile eight hundred and sixty four yard tunnel yielded around two hundred thousand gallons of water each day as an undesirable by-product. The Bolsover and District Water Company was set up in 1903 to alleviate the problem. The water was used to supply softened and treated piped drinking water for New Bolsover to replace the metal water tanks and stand pipes at the back of the blocks of houses. It also replaced the wells and springs in Carr Vale and was pumped up to Hillstown to collecting tanks holding between them 64,000 gallons. By the 1920's demand had outstripped supply and bore holes were sunk on Bolsover Moor with a new water treatment plant being installed at Whalley. A large water tower was built in 1926 at Hillstown to replace the tanks and further help with water storage for the area.
The water from the tunnel and the boreholes now feeds the fishing pond in Carr Vale and into the River Doe Lea..
More Bolsover Remembered. Bernard Haigh. pp. 26-27.
Railway photograph showing the water tank for water works.
Colour Photograph Copyright ANB. Taken in 1999 of the water treatment tank. Also Hillstown Water Tower. 2015.
Map 1899. (Opens in a new window).
Photograph 1999 of the water tank at Hillstown near to the west air shaft of Bolsover tunnel.
Remains in 2015.
Details of the boreholes pumps etc and the demise of the carr Vale works. (Opens in a new window).
Water was also provided from a water tank at Hillstown on the site of the spoil heap for the western air shaft of the Bolsover Tunnel but was very small and soon out of use.
In Scarcliffe woods another small reservoir for storing water was constructed by the Blackwell RDC, it collected water from the River Poulter.
Carr Vale. SK. 470697.
Hillstown Water Tower. SK. 479698.
Hillstown Water Tank. SK. 479693.
Scarcliffe Reservoirs. SK. 496680.
