Most of us have walked in Nidderdale, admired the views and seen the remains of a bygone industrial era. In our October talk, Rowena Moir, a National Trust volunteer, gave us a very interesting talk on the “Glistening Dale” and its history.
Nidd is the Celtic word for brilliant or glistening. The River Nidd rises in Great Whernside and flows to the River Ouse, 55 miles away in Nun Monkton via reservoirs, Pateley Bridge and Knaresborough. Rowena spoke about the industrial history of the area, the former lead mines, the flax mills for the linen trade, farming, the introduction of the railway and the building of three reservoirs.
The railway from Pateley Bridge opened in 1862, providing transport for the villages of Dacre, Darley, Birstwith and Ripley. The Nidd Valley line transported goods and people to the upper Dale.
The first reservoir to be built was at Gouthwaite in 1901 as a compensation reservoir regulating the water down the Dale. The other two reservoirs Angram (1919) and Scar House (1936), were built to provide water for Bradford. They continue to supply 100 million litres a day to Bradford along an aqueduct. Bradford Corporation even built a village, with electricity and a cinema, to accommodate the 1000 people or more who were involved with the building.
The flax mills are no longer working, and Glasshouses Mill is now a desirable housing development. There is still plenty of evidence of lead mining along the road between Pateley Bridge and Grassington, and the village of Greenhow was built in the 18th and 19th centuries to support this industry.
Rowena concluded her lecture by talking about today’s Nidderdale: Knaresborough’s viaduct carrying the present railway line, the annual Nidderdale Show and finally the impact of the Yellow Bikes for the “Grand
Depart” of the Tour de France, 2014.
– Nicola Harding