Waterscapes: Reservoirs, Environment and Identity in Modern England and Wales
Andrew McTominey (Author)
Series: New Historical Perspectives
Published in association with: Institute of Historical Research, Royal Historical Society
Open Access publication funded by The Bodleian Library
The building of reservoirs in England and Wales was key to urban growth across the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries, with the management of waterworks projects closely tied to the social and economic fortunes of rural areas, as well as the treatment of urban populations. Drawing on methods from environmental history, cultural history and historical geography, this book explores the multiple and long-term impacts of reservoir construction and management in rural England and Wales from the mid-nineteenth to the mid-twentieth century. It examines how reservoirs transformed the rural environment, the management of the urban-rural hinterland, the development of cultural landscapes, the expansion of novel leisure activities, and the social impact on local communities.
Incorporating case studies from Leeds’s Washburn Valley, Liverpool’s Vyrnwy Reservoir and Birmingham’s Elan Reservoir, amongst others, the book’s comparative approach highlights commonalities and differences in waterworks management across the country, thereby transforming our understanding of the national water industry during this period, contemporary attitudes to the environment, and the identities – civic, gender and professional – that were intertwined with these waterscapes.
A compelling dive into the cultural tides of twentieth-century Britain, explored through the overlooked influence of reservoir construction on city-countryside relations, civic pride and rural landscapes. Richly researched and in communication with novel theoretical and methodological approaches, this book should be required reading for not just environmental and urban historians but policymakers too.
— Tom Hulme, Reader in Moden British History, Queen’s University Belfast, UK
- Introduction
- 1 Remaking the countryside: urban engineering and the pursuit of water
- 2 Slips and spillages: reservoirs and the environment
- 3 Seeing the wood for the trees: afforestation and managing water supply
- 4 Romantic waterscapes: the development of cultural landscapes
- 5 All play and no fun: waterworks and the pursuit of leisure
- 6 Urban intrusion: community in the urban/rural hinterland
- Conclusion
PDF: 9781915249142
EPUB: 9781915249128
Read Online: 9781913002220
Hardback: 9781915249104 / 220 pages / 240mm x 160mm
Paperback: 9781915249111 / 220 pages / 234mm x 156mm
Andrew McTominey (Author)
Andrew McTominey is an independent scholar who has previously worked at Leeds Beckett University, the University of Huddersfield, and the University of Leeds. He gained his PhD from Leeds Beckett University in 2019, which looked at the waterworks of the Leeds, and is now working in the heritage sector.
A compelling dive into the cultural tides of twentieth-century Britain, explored through the overlooked influence of reservoir construction on city-countryside relations, civic pride and rural landscapes. Richly researched and in communication with novel theoretical and methodological approaches, this book should be required reading for not just environmental and urban historians but policymakers too.
— Tom Hulme, Reader in Moden British History, Queen’s University Belfast, UK
Subject: British and Irish History, History
BISAC codes: HIS015060, HIS015070, HIS054000
Thema codes: NHTB, NHTP
Keywords: England, Wales, culture, environment, historical geography, landscapes, leisure, nineteenth century, reservoirs, rural, twentieth century, urban, water industry, water management, waterworks
EPUB accessibility:
Accessibility summary
EPUB Accessibility Specification 1.1
Table of contents navigation
Index navigation
Single logical reading order
Short alternative textual descriptions
Print-equivalent page numbering
Use of color is not sole means of conveying information
Next / Previous structural navigation
ARIA roles provided
Appearance of all textual content can be modified
All non-decorative content supports reading without sight
WCAG v2.2
WCAG level AA
Compliance certification by (name)
More books in this subject area
Living with Machines
Ruth Ahnert
Emma Griffin
Jon Lawrence
The Living with Machines Team
12 November 2026
Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae 1541–1857: The Welsh Dioceses XIV
William H. Campbell
Joyce M. Horn
13 August 2026
Postcards, Translators and Esperanto Pioneers
Guilherme Fians
Bernhard Struck
Claire Taylor
13 November 2025
Atlantic Isles: Travel and Identity in the British and Irish West, 1880–1940
Gareth Roddy
30 October 2025
