Environmental history of a hydrological landscape: the soughs of Derbyshire

Under the Peak District of Derbyshire is an subterranean network
of drainage tunnels, the so-called soughs that were used to drain
the lead mines of the region.


Up till the 16th century most lead mining In the Peak District
done on the surface and miners followed horizontal seams. By then
the surface seams were exhausted and miners had to sink shafts to
reach rich underground seams. By the 17th century most mines were
down to the water table. To prevent the mines from filling up
with water drains or ‘soughs’ were cut through the hills to a
neighboring valley. The construction of soughs changed the
hydrological landscape of the Peak District, both below ground
and above. In some cases the soughs not only drained mineshafts
but also the small rivers above, which as a result were dry most
of the year. The construction of soughs also reduced the flow of
watercourses powering the mills of the early Industrial
Revolution. This led to legal conflicts between sough builders
and others who relied on the availability of water. Petitions
were submitted to the courts and many of these court cases
rumbled on for decades.


During the 20th century the soughs were largely forgotten but
recently the soughs have been rediscovered for their industrial
heritage on the one hand, and their detrimental effect on the
hydrology of the landscape, pitting heritage values versus
ecological restoration, creating a new battle ground of
interests.


This edition of the podcast examines the environmental history of
the Derbyshire Soughs with Carry van Lieshout, a historical
geographer at the University of Nottingham. She works on a
research project that investigates the environmental and cultural
history of the Derbyshire soughs in order to inform
understandings of this largely forgotten cultural landscape and
to develop management and conservation strategies for underground
heritage.


 


Website mentioned


The Water and the Power Project website


Music credits


Like Music (cdk Mix, 2013 & 2014)" by cdk, available from
ccMixter