Derwent Valley Reservoirs & Dams

The Derwent Valley dams and reservoirs provide water for the UK cities of Sheffield, Derby, Nottingham and Leicester.
Victorian engineers identified the valley as being ideal for the needs of the local population and growing industries as it was deep and long with narrow points for dam building.
It also had a high rainfall and was surrounded by gritstone - useful for construction work.
The first 2 dams - Howden and Derwent - were built between 1901 and 1916. Work started on the third dam - Ladybower - in 1935. Construction continued throughout World War 2 despite the difficulty in finding materials and labour.
Building the Ladybower dam meant flooding the villages of Derwent and Ashopton despite much local opposition. Graves in Derwent churchyard had to be exhumed and reburied in the nearby village of Bamford as part of the project. The reservoir was completed in 1943.
The 3 reservoirs form the largest area of open water in Derbyshire and the Peak District. They have a combined capacity of nearly 46bn litres.