Petersham Reservoir is a heritage-listed water reservoir at New Canterbury Road, Petersham,

Inner West Council Inner West Council is a local government area located in the inner western region of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The council makes up the eastern part of this wider region, and was formed on 12 May 2016 from the merger o ...

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, Australia. It was designed and built by the

New South Wales Public Works Department NSW Public Works (or New South Wales Public Works), an agency of the Government of New South Wales, was responsible for providing expert advice to government and professional services to government agency clients in New South Wales, Australia. T ...

. It is also known as Petersham Service Reservoir and WS089. The property is owned by

Sydney Water Sydney Water, formally, Sydney Water Corporation, is a New South Wales Government owned statutory corporation that provides potable drinking water, wastewater and some stormwater services to Greater Metropolitan Sydney, the Illawarra and the B ...

. It was added to the

New South Wales State Heritage Register The New South Wales State Heritage Register, also known as NSW State Heritage Register, is a heritage list of places in the state of New South Wales, Australia, that are protected by New South Wales legislation, generally covered by the Heritag ...

on 18 November 1999.

History

Petersham Reservoir (covered) (WS 89) was commissioned in 1888 and was the first of the new reservoirs to come on line since the commissioning of the

Upper Nepean Scheme The Upper Nepean Scheme is a series of dams and weirs in the catchments of the Cataract, Cordeaux, Avon and Nepean rivers of New South Wales, Australia. The scheme includes four dams and two weirs, and a gravity-fed canal system that feeds int ...

in 1888. It initially supplied western

and

Illawarra The Illawarra is a coastal region in the Australian state of New South Wales, nestled between the mountains and the sea. It is situated immediately south of Sydney and north of the South Coast region. It encompasses the two cities of Wollongo ...

suburbs, but with the amplification of storage in its former area of supply, it recently supplied only the low lying local areas. In 1888 a single main (No. 1 Main) delivered water from

Potts Hill Potts Hill, a suburb of local government area City of Canterbury-Bankstown, is 21 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is a part of the South-western Sydney South We ...

by gravitation to Petersham Reservoir (1888) and continued on to Crown Street Reservoir (1859). In 1935–1936, the southern system of supply mains needed major adjustment to use water from the Pressure Tunnel, including an offtake to Petersham Reservoir. In 1965, the City Tunnel supplied Petersham Reservoir (elevated) (WS 204). Petersham Reservoir (elevated) was constructed in 1965. It was integrated into the structure of the covered reservoir beneath, replacing the central portion of its roof. It enabled supply to the higher parts of the

Inner West The Inner West of Sydney is an area directly west of the Sydney central business district, New South Wales, Australia. The suburbs that make up the Inner West are predominantly located along the southern shore of Port Jackson (Parramatta River) ...

. Petersham Reservoir (covered) is now empty.

Description

Petersham Reservoir (covered) is a covered reservoir, with fill placed over its roof and grassed over. The enclosing mound is rectangular in shape, though the reservoir beneath is circular, partly excavated and partly raised in embankment. The reservoir is built with brick floor, walls and

columns A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member. ...

with cast iron beams. The roof comprises three concentric concrete barrel arches, and is similar in design to Waverley Reservoir No. 1 (Covered) .WS 132 These are the only two reservoirs which possess this roof design, although the central arch has been removed by the construction of Petersham Reservoir (elevated) in 1965. Access to the reservoir is now through the tower of Petersham Reservoir (elevated). The site is surrounded by a polychrome brick wall, with the main entrance to the grounds from Canterbury Road. The entrance is flanked by two rectangular brick valve houses, each containing original valve control gear, as also found at Pymble Reservoir No. 2 (Covered) (WS 98). The reservoir also has cast iron roof ventilation caps, as at Waverley Reservoir No.1 (Covered), Randwick ReservoirWS 101 and Pymble Reservoir No.1 (Covered) .WS 97 Plantings include oleander. It has a full service level of and a capacity of . A former Water Service Operator Office is located on the Canterbury Road frontage. It is a brick building, with hipped tile roof, Federation in style. The curtilage includes the covered reservoir, the brick wall, WSO cottage, valve houses and gates. The construction of Petersham Reservoir (Elevated) in 1965 caused alteration to the central portion of the roof structure.

Heritage listing

Petersham Reservoir (Covered) demonstrates the high level of engineering skill available for the construction of late 19th century covered reservoirs. It belongs to a small group of covered reservoirs (Crown Street Reservoir (1859),

Paddington Reservoir The Paddington Reservoir is a heritage-listed public park located at 255a Oxford Street in the inner eastern Sydney suburb of Paddington in the City of Sydney local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by Edward Bell ...

(1864),

Woollahra Reservoir The Woollahra Reservoir or WS022 is a heritage-listed underground reservoir at 5R Oxford Street, Centennial Park, City of Randwick, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed and built by the NSW Public Works Department. The property is owne ...

(1880), Waverley Reservoir No. 1 (1887), and the

Centennial Park Reservoir The Centennial Park Reservoir or WS001 is a heritage-listed underground reservoir at 3R Oxford Street, Centennial Park, City of Randwick, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed and built by NSW Public Works Department from 1896 to 1898. ...

No. 1), which together exhibit the changing technology used in construction. Petersham Reservoir (Covered) was the first reservoir to be commissioned after the completion of the

in 1888. The valve houses still contain the original switch gear, which is very unusual in the Sydney Water system. Petersham Service Reservoir was listed on the

on 18 November 1999 having satisfied the following criteria. The place is important in demonstrating the course, or pattern, of cultural or natural history in New South Wales. Petersham Reservoir (Covered) was the first reservoir to be commissioned after the completion of the Upper Nepean Scheme in 1888. The place is important in demonstrating aesthetic characteristics and/or a high degree of creative or technical achievement in New South Wales. Architectural detailing (polychrome brick walling and location of valve houses on either side of gate) demonstrates excellence in design, fitting in with the surrounding streetscape. The place has potential to yield information that will contribute to an understanding of the cultural or natural history of New South Wales. This reservoir demonstrates the broad range of construction techniques and high level of technical expertise available for covered reservoir construction. All covered reservoirs are highly significant within the SWC system, since all differ in construction technology, design and architectural detailing. All, therefore, contribute to our understanding of the development of covered reservoirs in NSW. The place possesses uncommon, rare or endangered aspects of the cultural or natural history of New South Wales. One of a small group of large covered reservoirs in brick or concrete, each demonstrating differences in construction, design and architectural detailing. The first reservoir to be commissioned after the completion of the Upper nepean Scheme in 1888.

References

Bibliography

Attribution

External links

{{WaterNSW New South Wales State Heritage Register Petersham, New South Wales Reservoirs in Sydney Articles incorporating text from the New South Wales State Heritage Register