Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

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Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

Postby cell » Wed Aug 26, 2009 5:42 pm

Recently following a visit to Loch Katrine I got to thinking about Glasgow’s water supply and thought it would make the basis for a good project. I’ve put together a basic time line and some detail on the major structures, this was done using the info on SCRAN, RCAHMS and a few other sources. I’ve included some pictures of those at the north end of the system as these may be less familiar to most folk, but I’d like to see pictures of any structures by other members. Any additional detail or corrections would be interesting, especially on how the flow of water is controlled, the junctions between the two aqueducts, how the “siphons” work and current capacities.

Most of the structures are relatively easy to visit, however a word of caution they are generally slippy, isolated and therefore very dangerous, there will be no one around to pull you out if you fall in, meaning you could end up very drowned!

There is a really good PDF on the RCAHMS website which gives some great background on the system and describes a recent survey of the structures carried out during the 2001 works at Mugdock when an additional underground reservoir and modern treatment works were added. I’ve lifted text from this and SCRAN where appropriate.
The old SCRAN pictures are also well worth a look, as are some of the aerial RCAHMS ones especially of the inlets and outlet on Loch Katrine and Loch Arklet.

The course of both aqueducts can be partially traced using 1:25K OS maps and Google earth, however it can be confusing as it’s difficult to determine what structures belong to each one. If anyone can do an accurate Google earth overlay or show them plotted on an OS map that would be good.

If anyone is interested I see MK has posted details of a couple of related talks at the Mitchell over on the What’s On thread.

15 Oct 6:30pm 150 Years of Glasgow's Water Supply
10th Nov 6pm The Water Supply of Glasgow:Ancient Discoveries

Loch Katrine Water Supply System Timeline

1853-54 Initial scheme designed by JF Bateman, Loch Katrine Achray dam and aqueduct from Loch Katrine to reservoir at Mugdock and associated gauging and filtration works. Loch Venachar and Loch Drunkie dammed to provide compensation waters to the River Teith.
1855 First Act passed and construction started.
1859 Loch Katrine scheme opened by Queen Victoria.
1885 Second Act passed to increase the level of Loch Katrine, build a second aqueduct and create a new reservoir at Craigmaddie, east of Mugdock.
1896 Craigmaddie Reservoir completed.
1901 Second aqueduct completed.
1902 Loch Arklet bill passed to build a dam and divert the water to Loch Katrine via a tunnel and associated inlet and outlet structures on Loch Arklet and Loch Katrine.
1903 Glen Finglas Act passed to allow the water from Glen Finglas to be diverted to Loch Katrine, not taken up until the 50’s.
1909 Loch Arklet dam construction started.
1914 Loch Arklet dam and associated works completed.
1019 Act to further raise Loch Katrine level passed.
1929 Level of Loch Katrine raised by increasing the height of Achray dam and the dam around the inlet for the aqueducts.
1958 Glen Finglas tunnel to Loch Katrine completed.
1965 Glen Finglas dam completed.

Details of some of the major structures

Loch Katrine, Achray Dam
The river Achray is the natural outlet at the eastern end of the loch. Sluices for controlling the water level, a waste weir and a salmon ladder were all built into the dam.The dam originally had four sluices (1855 Act) but this was increased to nine when the water level of Loch Katrine was raised in the aftermath of the 1885 Act. A further phase of modification raised the level again in the period 1919-29. A concrete coffer dam and gates were added during WWII to help protect the supply should the main dam be damaged by bombing. There are currently 13 sluices of which six have gates, the sluices and their controls are by Glenfield Co., Hydraulic Engineers, Kilmarnock. Some are also embosed with GCWW, Glasgow City Water Works.
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Loch Katrine, Aqueduct Inlets at Royal Cottage
This is just along the south shore from Stronachlachar, at the point at which the aqueducts leaves the loch. 'Royal Cottage' is so-called because Queen Victoria had lunch there on the day in 1859 when she opened the waterworks, it now stands empty.
There are two separate inlets both of similar design and now significantly below the level of the loch as a result of its level having being raised several times. The inlet on the left (west) is the later of the two. Both are protected by a masonry dam completed in 1929 with a number sluices, build by Glenfield Kennedy Ltd Kilmarnock, to control the flow of water into each.
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Loch Arklet Dam
Loch Arklet Dam was built 1909-1914. This concrete dam is 350 yards in length and is faced with Annan freestone, it is 35ft in height and 11ft in depth at the top. There are two valve houses that regulate and ensure that the amount of water passing over the dam is at least the amount of water specified by the Act of Parliament authorizing the construction of this dam. This is known as the compensation supply.
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Loch Arklet Tunnel Inlet and Outlet
The intake compound or structure for channelling water into the reservoir, is 'sunk' into the east end of Loch Arklet. There is a valve on the inlet sluice to control the flow that is similar in design to the intakes at Royal Cottage. The outlet, with its crenellated detail, discharges from the Loch Arklet tunnel into several gauge basins. It has a masonry stepped waterfall cascade with a walkway with original iron-fencing of typical Glasgow Corporation Waterworks design. The water channel leading from the cascade has masonry walls and a rubble base.
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Loch Vennachar dam and sluice house
One of the most controversial aspects of the new waterworks scheme was that it would reduce the flow of water into the River Teith, which flows out of Loch Vennacher, and this in turn would reduce the flow of water to the River Forth. Part of the scheme was therefore the dam on Loch Vennacher which was used to feed a steady flow of compensating water into the River Teith. The sluice house is at the south end of the dam and contains a series of sluices which regulate the flow. Loch Drunkie in the hills to the south of loch Vennachar has two earthen dams and supplys additional compensation water.
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1855 Aqueduct
25.75miles long, 8’ wide 8’ high with an arched roof and a capacity of 40 million gallons a day. It runs south from Loch Katrine, turns along the south side of Loch Chon, through the Loch Ard forest, over the Duchray water, then runs south passing north east of Drymen and between Balfron and Killearn before running through Strathblane and into the Mugdock resevior. For most of its distance it is underground but its builders did make the use of a number of aqueduct bridges, tunnels and piped (siphon) sections, most notably:-
The Culegarten aqueduct bridges which carry the water across small ravines and burns in the area south of Loch Ard
The Duchray Bridge seems to be two separate bridges of different dates but I can’t work out the detail here as I’m sure the latter aqueduct does not cross the river here.
Near Duntreath Castle Clashmore, the aqueduct is a tunnel, blasted through rock, which carries the water directly.
River Endrick bridge, the aqueduct was originally was tunnelled under the River Endrick at a ford at this point, but this was considered to risk damage if the river were to flood. A bridge gave greater access and the added benefit of an improved crossing for road traffic.
Ballewan Glen bridge caries the aqueduct from Loch Katrine across a ravine at Blairgar, near Blanefield, it is constructed of a single span of fifty feet, fifty two feet above the stream below.
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1895 Aqueduct
23.5 miles long 10’ wide concrete lined or 12’ wide unlined, 9’ high with an arched roof and a capcity of 70 million gallons a day. This runs parallel with the original aqueduct for most of its route although sometimes takes a more direct course because its builders were able to make use of the newly invented dynamite making tunnelling easier. One of the notable structures on its route is the stone built aqueduct over the River Duchray someway upstream of the 1855 bridge mentioned above.
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During construction of the 1895 aqueduct in order to carry out the work steadily in sections, it was necessary to build junctions between the aqueducts at various stages. Initially, there were seven points of connection. At completion, these junction chambers were used to isolate sections of either aqueduct for maintenance, repair and improvement, thereby minimising disruption to total supply, if anyone knows where these are or how the work I’d be interested.

The reservoirs at Mugdock and Craigmaddie both have aqueduct outlets very similar in design to the inlets at Loch Katrine. Both flow into “gauging” basins where the quantity of water entering the reservoir is measured or 'gauged', also any silt in the water is allowed to settle entering the main body of the reservoir. The only treatment which the water received in the original scheme was straining through a copper mesh, first as it left the Loch, and, again, at the reservoir before it was fed into the water mains. At the reservoirs the screening plant structure, which was designed and supplied by Glenfield and Kennedy, can still be seen, the screens themselves are in a chamber sunk into the ground.

Glen Finglas Dam and Tunnel
To further increase capacity in the system a 2.5 mile tunnel was built to divert water from the river Turk, in Glen Finglas, to Loch Katrine, this was opened in 1958. In 1965 a dam was completed to utilise the whole of the Glen Finglas catchment area and as part of the dam a 0.5MW hydro electric turbine was installed. As the tunnel is a free flowing, the turbine is used to make use of the available head created by the dam.
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On my travels I came across a couple of GCWW stamped items and also noted that P&R Flemming of Glasgow seem to have got the whole contract for the original fencing around all the structures.
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Re: Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

Postby Quality Mince » Wed Aug 26, 2009 6:23 pm

Cell,
fascinating account of Loch Katrine and supplying water to Glasgow. This was such an impressive piece of civil engineering and help Glasgow develop into a major industrial city. It was undoubtedly an ambitious solution to many chronic problems facing people living in the city at the time. I never realised that the Glen Finglass part of the scheme was so late opening in 1958. Looking at your timeline, the entire scheme took just over 100 years to complete!!
Am I right in thinking that there is a fountain in Kelvingrove Park commemorating the Loch Katrine scheme?
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Re: Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

Postby Knightmare » Wed Aug 26, 2009 7:16 pm

Excellent Info and a really interesting read....well done!

About 8 to 10 years ago and through a previous job, I visited the brand new water treatment works at Balmore which draws water from Katrine and Lomond....cleans it up and then pumps it to all those big underground water storage tanks all over the west of Scotland. Its an amazing place. Gigantic pumps and enormous tanks and about 2 people operating the whole thing and another fella in the tiny Bio Lab.

If you ever get a chance to visit this place...jump at it. It sits right at the foot of the campsies so its in a nice setting.
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Re: Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

Postby HollowHorn » Wed Aug 26, 2009 9:43 pm

Great post, Mr.C. Do you have a close up of the Glasgow coat of arms?
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Re: Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

Postby Icecube » Wed Aug 26, 2009 10:40 pm

Great post Cell a credit to the work you put into it.
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Re: Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

Postby purplepantman » Wed Aug 26, 2009 11:28 pm

What The Cube said! Lovin' it! :D
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Re: Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

Postby Surfer Rosa » Thu Aug 27, 2009 3:19 pm

Great post. Thanks for taking the time.
There are also a line of pressure shafts running through Mugdock Country park. They look like stone turrets with dome shaped metal grills covering the top. They are deep as fuck. I often wonder what kind of debris, dead dogs, iPhones, scud books and shit is lying at the bottom....
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Re: Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

Postby Knightmare » Thu Aug 27, 2009 3:30 pm

Surfer Rosa wrote:Great post. Thanks for taking the time.
There are also a line of pressure shafts running through Mugdock Country park. They look like stone turrets with dome shaped metal grills covering the top. They are deep as fuck. I often wonder what kind of debris, dead dogs, iPhones, scud books and shit is lying at the bottom....


There shouldn't be any debris like the kind you suggest. These are air shafts to prevent build up in fresh water pipes. I'd be worried if i saw a scud book floating in my bath or a i-phone in my water tank. I think you might be thinking of waste water???? ::):
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Re: Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

Postby cell » Thu Aug 27, 2009 6:52 pm

Thanks for the positive feedback, I’m glad folk found it of interest. What impressed me most was some of the detail on the structures, it’s all dressed stone and really well built even more amazing that they spent the money on this level of detail when they are so rarely seen. Reminded me of the detail on some of the remote Hydro stations

QM, you’re correct in saying the fountain in Kelvingrove is related to the system, it was built to commemorate the opening of the system I’m sure it has some inscriptions on it, anyone got any photos of it?

SR I believe the shafts are used as surge shafts to even out the pressure in the system although they would also have been used during construction of the tunnels to allow multiple work faces. I’m not sure if they are common to both aqueducts, certainly the same design seems to have been used on both. You can see one of the in my picture of the 1885 stone Duchray aqueduct above. Most of the shafts are visible on Google earth and around some near Loch Katrine you can see remains of the spoil from the original tunnelling operations.

HH It was wet and cold the day I took this so apologies that it’s a bit dark, wonder which YTS got the job of painting that? If the grill gave way it would make for an interesting but fatal trip!
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Re: Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

Postby Socceroo » Thu Aug 27, 2009 9:27 pm

Excellent thread Cell, really informative. Really enjoyed reading it.
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Re: Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

Postby BrianCharlton » Fri Aug 28, 2009 6:27 pm

Brilliant post "Cell", well done. Superb quality it must have been a lot of work.
But well appreciated by all who have found this post.

Regards, Brian.
I like to keep in shape - - - - - - Round IS a shape !
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Re: Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

Postby purplepantman » Fri Aug 28, 2009 8:07 pm

Some great pics on Canmore on all this.

Here's a link to just a few...

http://canmore.rcahms.gov.uk/en/site/27 ... t+intakes/

Some great aerial pics there too! Run a search on Loch Katrine.
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Re: Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

Postby Glesga_Steve » Sun Aug 30, 2009 12:36 am

Yup, good post Cell - very interesting.

I work for Scottish Water but I'm ashamed to admit that, as a Glaswegian who works on the sewerage side of the business, I've never taken anything more than a mild interest in the Glasgow water supply network.

Cell wrote:Any additional detail or corrections would be interesting, especially on how the flow of water is controlled, the junctions between the two aqueducts, how the “siphons” work and current capacities

I'm not making any promises, as I'm unlikely to be able to find the time, but I'll see if I can find out anything of interest.

Cell wrote:The course of both aqueducts can be partially traced using 1:25K OS maps and Google earth, however it can be confusing as it’s difficult to determine what structures belong to each one. If anyone can do an accurate Google earth overlay or show them plotted on an OS map that would be good.

Getting OS plans with the line of the aqueduct on them should be a doddle, though its obviously fair long. Were you thinking of particular parts or a large-scale plan of the entire length?
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Re: Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

Postby scaryman2u » Sun Aug 30, 2009 1:04 am

Possibly one of the best posts I have read on HG, I wish I had the time, patience and determination to do something like this, all credit to you Cell looks like you worked your socks off for this enlightenining and informative post.
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Re: Loch Katrine and Glasgow's Water Supply

Postby cell » Sun Aug 30, 2009 4:56 pm

Once again thanks for the positive feedback, I would say it’s one of the great things that I like about HG is the fact that it gives you a reason for doing a bit of exploring, photography and research, visiting the Mitchell and second hand book shops and that others are appreciative of your efforts. I would say to anyone, pick a topic that you’re interested in and go for it, you’ll get plenty of help from the members here.

GS if you can, it would be great to see an OS plan with the complete routes plotted, 1:25K would be best but 1:50K would be useful, I’m a bit of a sucker when it comes to maps! I’m particularly interested in the routes from Boquham around Killearn and through Strathblane, I believe they run close to each other and it’s difficult to sort out the individual routes from the structures visible on the maps and Google earth. Any other info would be great on the system would be good.

Has anyone any other photos which they can contribute? I’m hoping to get out and get some more this month but I’d like to see any others.
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