Cambridge City water supply

Notes on the development of public water supply

In 1852 the Cambridge University and Town Water Company obtained an Act of Parliament for water to be piped to a high-level reservoir at Madingley from the spring head at Cherry Hinton. The project was completed in 1855 with a reservoir being made on Limekiln hill and a pumping station on the southern side of Fulbourn Road. By 1883 two further wells were required. After a typhoid scare in 1907 the pumping station was replaced by one in Fulbourn.

However the village of Cherry Hinton itself was not included in the city sanitation scheme. In 1891 the parish council tried unsuccessfully to change this situation but in 1892 typhoid fever struck the parish. The county council organised public lectures on proper cooking in 1892 and in 1899, after much expense, ratepayers were on the point of paying for the parish’s inclusion. However opposition from the Waterworks Company delayed participation until 1912.

During the 20th century Cambridge has been supplied by water via pipes under the former Fendon field, between Worts Causeway and Queen Edith’s Way.

Sources: Cambridge News (Cambridgeshire Collection), British Newspaper Archive, Victoria County History – Cambridgeshire

See entry on Cholera and water supply.