| Dove Stone Reservoir | |
|---|---|
 Dove Stone from Alphin Pike | |
  Dove Stone Reservoir | |
| Location | Greenfield Greater Manchester England |
| Coordinates | 53°31′48″N1°58′30″W / 53.530°N 1.975°W /53.530; -1.975 |
| Lake type | reservoir |
| Primary inflows | Greenfield Brook Chew Brook |
| Primary outflows | Chew Brook |
| Basin countries | England |
Dove Stone Reservoir lies at the convergence of the valleys of the Greenfield and Chew Brooks above the village ofGreenfield, onSaddleworth Moor inGreater Manchester, England.Historically part of theWest Riding of Yorkshire, the reservoir is on the western edge of thePeak District National Park.[1] It supplies drinking water to the surrounding area[2] and is a tourist attraction, providing several walks amongst picturesque landscapes.
John Platt of Oldham built aNeo-Gothic mansion at Ashway Gap on the south side of the valley in 1850. It was used as ashooting lodge but after his brotherJames's death in a shooting accident on the moor above it, the house was left empty. The house was later acquired by theAshton-under-Lyne, Stalybridge and Dukinfield (District) Waterworks Joint Committee. Boundary stones demarcating the extent of the estate are located at intervals along the footpaths along the south side of the reservoir. DuringWorld War I the waterworks board offered the house for use as a hospital. It was demolished in 1981.[3]
.jpg)
On the northern end of Dove Stone Moss, above the Ashway Gap, the Ashway Stone is a memorial toJames Platt, MP for Oldham, who was killed by an accidental discharge of the gun of Josiah Radcliffe, the Mayor of Oldham.[4]
The reservoir scheme in theGreenfield Valley andChew Valley by the Ashton-Under-Lyne, Stalybridge and Dukinfield (District) Waterworks Joint Committee commenced in 1870.[5] The scheme was completed with Dove Stone Reservoir in 1968 to collect water from the surroundingmoorland. The main contractor was A. E. Farr (Civil Engineers) ofWestbury, Wiltshire. Its construction was opposed by local mill owners, who claimed that damming the river would cut off their water supply. As a result, a tunnel was built higher up in the hillside to bypass the reservoir.
During a visit in 1981 to attend the wedding ofPrince Charles andPrincess Diana, KingTaufa'ahau Tupou IV ofTonga visited Dove Stone Reservoir. To commemorate the visit, a carved stone has been set into the dam wall of theYeoman Hey Reservoir.
In December 2015, a man who travelled from London to Manchester and walked to a location close to the reservoir, died on the Chew Track.[6] The unknown individual was initially nicknamed "Neil Dovestones" by pathologists,[6] until he was identified asDavid Lytton in January 2017.[7]
The reservoir lies at the convergence of the valleys of the Greenfield and Chew Brooks aboveGreenfield in the north west edge of the Peak District'sDark Peak area. It is the lowest and largest of three reservoirs in the Greenfield Valley. Above it are the Yeoman Hey, built in 1880, andGreenfield Reservoirs.Chew Reservoir is in the upperChew Valley and at 1,600 feet (490 metres) above sea level was the highest reservoir in the British Isles when it was built in 1914. The reservoirs are surrounded bymoorland and, above the valley, high rocky outcrops.[8]
TheA635 road toHolmfirth passes to the west and north of the reservoirs.[8]
The Ashton under Lyne, Stalybridge and Dukinfield (District) Waterworks Joint Committee obtained an act of Parliament, theAshton-under-Lyne Stalybridge and Dukingfield (District) Waterworks Act 1958 (6 & 7 Eliz. 2. c. xxxix) enabling it to build the reservoir. The committee engaged G. H. Hill & Sons as engineers and the contractor was A. E. Farr & Company. J. B. Blayney was employed as landscape architect as required by section 34 of the act. Work started in 1960 and was finished in October 1966.[9]
The dam's earth embankment is 38 metres high and 550 metres in length. It is 4.25 metres wide at the crest and is 183 metres at the widest point at its base. A concrete cutoff in a 23 metre deep trench makes a seal between the foundations and the earthworks preventing leaks. Above the concrete cutoff is the clay core. Dove Stone is possibly the last large dam to be built in Britain with a conventional puddle clay core. The volume of the dam is 34,000 cubic metres.[9]
The dam wall does not have a traditionalspillway to control water height but discharges into a tunnel under the side of the valley, via a largebell-mouth drop-shaft overflow in one corner, a feature not normally seen on Pennine dams which usually have masonry spillways.[9]
On the dam wall near the drop shaft is an ingeniously designed emergency overflow consisting of three metal troughs that when full tip water over a wall where it runs across the road and back into the river below. The emergency overflow is activated if a flash flood of approximately two metres of water occurs.
Access to the reservoir is via the A635 road to thepay and display car parks. There are toilets at Binn Green and at the main car park. The Peak District Park Ranger Service maintains an office next to the main car park and rangers patrol the reservoirs and park at weekends.
The reservoirs and surrounding moorland attract walkers and hikers. Joggers compete in a race every Friday evening in the summer months. The path around Dove Stone is well maintained, gravelled and relatively flat. Leading off its circular path are paths to Chew Reservoir, towards the car park at Binn Green and along the Greenfield Valley past the Yeoman Hey and Greenfield Reservoirs. Dovestone Sailing Club uses the reservoir.[10] The Chew Valley is agritstone climbing area visited by climbers and boulderers
Started in 1999, the "Life for a Life" plantation allows people to pay to have a tree planted in the name of a loved one.[11] More than 700 trees have been planted.
In 2010, theRoyal Society for the Protection of Birds established an interest in the area, and decided to manage the surrounding moorland and woodland, in association withUnited Utilities.[12]
ThePeak District Boundary Walk runs along the path on the dam's embankment.[13]
