Hobson's Conduit, also called Hobson's Brook, is a watercourse that was built from 1610 to 1614 by
Thomas Hobson Thomas Hobson may refer to
* Thomas Hobson (postal carrier) (c. 1544–1631), English postal carrier
* Thomas Hobson (actor)
Thomas "Tommy" Hobson (born June 8, 1982) is an American stage, film, and television actor and singer. He is best kn ...
and others to bring fresh water into the city of
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
from springs at
Nine Wells, a Local Nature Reserve (), near the village of
Great Shelford
Great Shelford is a village located approximately to the south of Cambridge, in the county of Cambridgeshire, in eastern England. In 1850 Great Shelford parish contained bisected by the river Cam. The population in 1841 was 803 people. By 2001 ...
.
It is now a
Scheduled Ancient Monument
In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change.
The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...
and historical relic. The watercourse currently runs overground until
Cambridge University Botanic Garden
The Cambridge University Botanic Garden is a botanical garden located in Cambridge, England, associated with the university Department of Plant Sciences (formerly Botany School). It lies between Trumpington Road to the west, Bateman Street to ...
and Brookside, where it is at its widest. At the corner of
Lensfield Road
Lensfield Road is a road (part of the A603 road, A603) in southeast central Cambridge, England. It runs between the junction of Trumpington Street and Trumpington Road to the west and the junction of Regent Street, Cambridge, Regent Street and H ...
stands a hexagonal monument to Hobson, which once formed part of the market square fountain, and was moved to this location in 1856, after a fire in the Market.
The flow of water runs under Lensfield Road, and subsequently runs along both sides of
Trumpington Street
Trumpington Street is a major historic street in central Cambridge, England. At the north end it continues as King's Parade where King's College is located. To the south it continues as Trumpington Road (the A1134), an arterial route out of ...
in broad gutters towards
Peterhouse
Peterhouse is the oldest constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Today, Peterhouse has 254 undergraduates, 116 full-time graduate students and 54 fellows. It is quite o ...
and
St Catharine's College, and also
St Andrew's Street. The conduit currently ends at
Silver Street
''Silver Street'' is a radio soap opera broadcast on the BBC Asian Network from 24 May 2004 to 26 March 2010. It was the first soap to be aimed at the British South Asian community,
Broadcast history
It was introduced in 2004 as part of the S ...
.
The scheme was first devised in 1574 by
Andrew Perne, Master of Peterhouse, who proposed that a stream be diverted from
Nine Wells chalk springs through the town and the King's Ditch to improve sanitation. The design was revived by
James Montagu, Master of
Sidney Sussex College
Sidney Sussex College (referred to informally as "Sidney") is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England. The College was founded in 1596 under the terms of the will of Frances Sidney, Countess of Sussex (1531–1589), wife ...
and built at the expense of the
University
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...
and town.
[Inscription on the monument at Nine Wells] Although Thomas Hobson was just one of those involved in the construction he endowed a Hobson's Conduit Trust to deal with maintenance of the waterway, which still exists today. The new river was dug from Vicar's Brook near Long Road to the conduit head at the end of Lensfield Road as a joint venture between the University and the city. Here the flow of water was divided into four separate branches for different uses.
Hobson's Brook from Nine Wells to the conduit head
Hobson's Conduit was originally formed by diverting the water from Vicar's Brook. From its source in chalkland springs at
Nine Wells, near
Great Shelford
Great Shelford is a village located approximately to the south of Cambridge, in the county of Cambridgeshire, in eastern England. In 1850 Great Shelford parish contained bisected by the river Cam. The population in 1841 was 803 people. By 2001 ...
, this stream flows east of
Trumpington
Trumpington is a village and parish to the south of Cambridge, England. The village is an electoral ward of the City of Cambridge and a ward of South Cambridgeshire District Council. The 2011 Census recorded the ward's population as 8,034.
Th ...
under bridges on Long Road and Trumpington Road until reaching
Coe Fen
Coe Fen is a semi-rural meadowland area to the east of the River Cam in the south of the city of Cambridge, England.[River Cam
The River Cam () is the main river flowing through Cambridge in eastern England. After leaving Cambridge, it flows north and east before joining the River Great Ouse to the south of Ely, at Pope's Corner. The total distance from Cambridge to ...](_blank)
above Cambridge. The man-made channel Hobson's Brook branches off from Vicar's Brook between the two bridges and initially runs parallel to Vicar's Brook, enclosing a stretch of common ground, now used for allotments. A public footpath, formerly known as Finch's or Senior Wrangler's Walk, follows this portion of the watercourse. The stream widens as it skirts the western boundary of the University Botanic Gardens until passing under Bateman Street. In the last portion before the conduit head at Lensfield Road, where it divides into four branches, the channel flows between Brookside and Trumpington Street through gardens enclosed by 19C wrought iron railings.
Trumpington Street branch
The original branch still functions as sluices along Trumpington Street, where it is known as the Pem (east side) and Pot (west side).
The City Council's Drainage Engineer controls flow through the sluices and generally lets water flow in the open conduits in Trumpington Street between April and September. Feeds run into
Peterhouse
Peterhouse is the oldest constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Today, Peterhouse has 254 undergraduates, 116 full-time graduate students and 54 fellows. It is quite o ...
and
Pembroke Colleges. A run also used to feed into the basement of the
old Addenbrooke's Hospital, which became the location of the
Judge Institute
Cambridge Judge Business School is the business school of the University of Cambridge. The School is a provider of management education. It is named after Sir Paul Judge, a founding benefactor of the school.
The School is considered to be par ...
by 1995.
Market Place branch
Completed in 1614, this branch brought fresh water to the Market fountain in the centre of the
Cambridge Market Place. Following a fire in 1849, the
Market Square
The market square (or sometimes, the market place) is a Town square, square meant for trading, in which a market is held. It is an important feature of many towns and cities around the world.[Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...]
gabled fountain was erected (marked on many contemporary maps as "lavatory" as there were underground public conveniences here) and the original structure of Hobson's Conduit was moved. Most of the fountain was pulled down in 1953.
Flow to this branch was cut off in 1960 during construction of the
Lion Yard
The Lion Yard shopping centre is a covered shopping centre in the city centre of Cambridge, England. Construction work on the centre, which is bounded by St Andrew's Street, Corn Exchange Street, and Petty Cury, commenced in 1970 and the dev ...
development and has never been restored.
St Andrew's Street branch
Added in 1631, this branch flowed from the conduit head along Lensfield Road and St Andrew's Street toward
Drummer Street where it split into feeds that ran into
Christ's and
Emmanuel Colleges as well as a public dipping point. Much of the open conduit along St Andrew's Street was covered in 1996 as part of pedestrian improvements.
Parker's Piece branch
A final branch ran from the conduit head toward
Parker's Piece to feed a cattle pond, but this was disrupted in 1827 when the pond was filled in.
Monuments
There are two monuments, one on Lensfield Road (, see picture below) and one at Nine Wells. The latter was erected in 1861 by public subscription and records the benefactors to the water course and conduit as:
* Thomas Chaplin, Lord of the Manor of Trumpington Delapole, 1610
*
Stephen Perse, fellow of
Gonville and Caius
Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius ( ), is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348, it is the fourth-oldest of the University ...
, 1615
* Thomas Hobson, carrier, 1630
* Edward Potto, alderman of Cambridge, 1632, and
* Joseph Merrill, alderman of Cambridge, 1806
Image:Hobson's Conduit monument at Nine Wells.jpg, Monument to the conduit at Nine Wells
Image:One_of_four_springs_at_Nine_Wells.jpg, Spring at Nine Wells that feeds the conduit
Image:Hobson's_Brook_-_geograph.org.uk_-_702236.jpg, View along the conduit towards Nine Wells
Image:Hobsons Brook - geograph.org.uk - 647599.jpg, Footpath along conduit between Brooklands Avenue and Long Road
Image:Hobson'sconduit4.JPG, Hobson's conduit at the end of Brookside
Image:Hobson'sconduit2.JPG, The Market fountain reerected at the point where the conduit crosses Lensfield Road as a monument to Hobson
Image:Hobson'sconduit3.JPG, Hobson's conduit as it runs in a sluice toward Peterhouse
Peterhouse is the oldest constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Today, Peterhouse has 254 undergraduates, 116 full-time graduate students and 54 fellows. It is quite o ...
References
Further reading
*
External links
*{{cite web, url=https://www.cambridge.gov.uk/sites/default/files/documents/Hobsons%20Brook%20Management%20plan%20consultation.pdf, title=Hobson's Brook Corridor, access-date=13 April 2016 Report by
The Wildlife Trusts
The Wildlife Trusts, the trading name of the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts, is an organisation made up of 46 local Wildlife Trusts in the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man and Alderney. The Wildlife Trusts, between them, look after more than 2, ...
1614 establishments in England
History of Cambridge
Buildings and structures in Cambridge
Buildings and structures in Cambridgeshire
Water supply and sanitation in England
Scheduled monuments in Cambridgeshire
Canals in Cambridgeshire
Canals opened in 1614