The Brent Reservoir (popularly called the Welsh Harp) is a
reservoir
A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation.
Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...
in North West London. It straddles the boundary between the boroughs of
Brent and
Barnet
Barnet may refer to:
People
*Barnet (surname)
* Barnet (given name)
Places United Kingdom
*Chipping Barnet or High Barnet, commonly known as Barnet, one of three focal towns of the borough below.
*East Barnet, a district of the borough below; an ...
and is owned by the
Canal & River Trust
The Canal & River Trust (CRT), branded as in Wales, holds the guardianship of 2,000 miles of canals and rivers, together with reservoirs and a wide range of heritage buildings and structures, in England and Wales. Launched on 12 July 2012, the ...
. The reservoir takes its informal name from a public house called The Welsh Harp, which stood nearby until the early 1970s. It is a biological
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...
(SSSI), the only SSSI in either borough and among more than 30 SSSIs in Greater London.
The reservoir is fed by the
Silk Stream and the
River Brent
The River Brent is a river in west and northwest London, England, and a tributary of the River Thames. in length, it rises in the Borough of Barnet and flows in a generally south-west direction before joining the Tideway stretch of the Thame ...
. Its main outflow is the River Brent. Its smaller outflow is a feeder channel to the canal system. It holds an estimated . In 1994 when the reservoir was drained more than of fish were captured, 95% of which were
roach
Roach may refer to:
Animals
* Cockroach, various insect species of the order Blattodea
* Common roach (''Rutilus rutilus''), a fresh and brackish water fish of the family Cyprinidae
** ''Rutilus'' or roaches, a genus of fishes
* California roach ...
. However, fishing is prohibited.
The reservoir has a
sailing
Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (land yacht) over a chosen cour ...
centre, home to Welsh Harp Sailing Club, Wembley Sailing Club, the Sea Cadets, and the University of London Sailing club. In 1960, it also hosted the
Women's European Rowing Championships. The reservoir also hosts the Phoenix canoe club and outdoor centre.
Location
The reservoir is adjacent to the A406
North Circular Road
The North Circular Road (officially the A406 and sometimes known as simply the North Circular) is a ring road around Central London in England. It runs from Chiswick in the west to Woolwich in the east via suburban North London, connecting ...
(outside it) and the A5
Edgware Road
Edgware Road is a major road in London, England. The route originated as part of Roman Watling Street and, unusually in London, it runs for 10 miles in an almost perfectly straight line. Forming part of the modern A5 road, Edgware Road undergoes ...
, and a short distance to the north-east of
Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...
. Residential areas around the reservoir include:
Neasden
Neasden is a suburban area in northwest London, England. It is located around the centre of the London Borough of Brent and is within the NW2 ( Cricklewood) and NW10 (Willesden) postal districts. Neasden is near Wembley Stadium, the Welsh Har ...
,
Kingsbury Kingsbury may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Kingsbury, London, a district of northwest London in the borough of Brent
** Kingsbury tube station, London Underground station
* Kingsbury, Warwickshire, a village and civil parish in Warwickshi ...
Green,
West Hendon
West Hendon is a district of Hendon in North London, in the London Borough of Barnet. It is the NW9 part of Hendon, located around the A5 Edgware Road and the Welsh Harp (Brent Reservoir). The area is known for the West Hendon Estate which is un ...
and
Cricklewood
Cricklewood is an area of London, England, which spans the boundaries of three London boroughs: Barnet to the east, Brent to the west and Camden to the south-east. The Crown pub, now the Clayton Crown Hotel, is a local landmark and lies north- ...
.
Construction
Plans for the construction laid in 1803 were abandoned because of cost. Canal branches and wharves continued to be dug in the early 19th century. Regular traffic meant lock openings draining the local canals (several feet above sea level) leading to canal-water shortages. By 1820 there was not enough water to supply the
Grand Union Canal
The Grand Union Canal in England is part of the British canal system. It is the principal navigable waterway between London and the Midlands. Starting in London, one arm runs to Leicester and another ends in Birmingham, with the latter st ...
and the
Regent's Canal
Regent's Canal is a canal across an area just north of central London, England. It provides a link from the Paddington Arm of the Grand Union Canal, north-west of Paddington Basin in the west, to the Limehouse Basin and the River Thames in eas ...
so having obtained an
enabling act
An enabling act is a piece of legislation by which a legislative body grants an entity which depends on it (for authorization or legitimacy) the power to take certain actions. For example, enabling acts often establish government agencies to car ...
of Parliament in 1819, the Regent's Canal Company decided to dam the River Brent to create a reservoir and cut a feeder channel from it to an upper point on the Grand Union Canal. It now holds an estimated .
The reservoir was constructed by contractor
William Hoof
William Hoof (c.1788-1855) was a British civil engineer.
He began his career with Daniel Pritchard and later became his son-in-law. In the 1820s, they founded Pritchard and Hoof, who specialised in building canal tunnels, including some of the m ...
between 1834 and 1835. The water flooded much of Cockman's Farm, to supply the Regent's Canal at
Paddington
Paddington is an area within the City of Westminster, in Central London. First a medieval parish then a metropolitan borough, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Three important landmarks of the district are Paddi ...
. Its owner gave it the name of its then
parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...
: it was named
Kingsbury Kingsbury may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Kingsbury, London, a district of northwest London in the borough of Brent
** Kingsbury tube station, London Underground station
* Kingsbury, Warwickshire, a village and civil parish in Warwickshi ...
Reservoir. At first it was between Old Kingsbury Church and
Edgware Road
Edgware Road is a major road in London, England. The route originated as part of Roman Watling Street and, unusually in London, it runs for 10 miles in an almost perfectly straight line. Forming part of the modern A5 road, Edgware Road undergoes ...
. Hoof, under the tender awarded for the work (including the construction of a bridge), was paid £2,740 6s 0d ().
[Birds of Brent Reservoir, 2001 ]
Construction met problems; in August 1835, a few months before completion, four brothers drowned in an accident.
![Brent reservoir dam](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/44/Brent_reservoir_dam.jpg)
Additional building was completed in December 1837 to extend the reservoir. In 1841 after seven days of continuous rain the dam head collapsed, killing two people. It was after this that a supervisor was employed for the first time, with a cottage near the dam, which remains.
At its greatest extent it covered in 1853. It was reduced to in the 1890s; later to .
In 1859 the famous Welsh Harp tavern was built on the site of an earlier coaching inn called the Harp or the Harp and Horn. The tavern was demolished in the 1970s, but the reservoir is still colloquially named after it.
Sport and recreation
During the second half of the 19th century the area became a destination for recreation and evening entertainment, almost entirely due to W.P. Warner (1832–1899), who in 1858 became licensee of the Old Welsh Harp Tavern. The tavern stood on the
Edgware Road
Edgware Road is a major road in London, England. The route originated as part of Roman Watling Street and, unusually in London, it runs for 10 miles in an almost perfectly straight line. Forming part of the modern A5 road, Edgware Road undergoes ...
, near where it crossed the Brent. Warner, who fought with distinction in the
Crimean War
The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia.
Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...
, created the tavern along the lines of the London
pleasure garden
A pleasure garden is a park or garden that is open to the public for recreation and entertainment. Pleasure gardens differ from other public gardens by serving as venues for entertainment, variously featuring such attractions as concert halls, ...
s (ironically at the same time when the most famous of all, the
Vauxhall
Vauxhall ( ) is a district in South West London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. Vauxhall was part of Surrey until 1889 when the County of London was created. Named after a medieval manor, "Fox Hall", it became well known for ...
finally closed). For 40 years, Warner made the Old Welsh Harp Tavern one of London's most popular places and it was celebrated in song by the music hall star
Annie Adams
Asaneth Ann Adams Kiskadden (November 9, 1848 – March 17, 1916), credited as Annie Adams, was an American actress.
Early and personal life
Adams was the daughter of Julia Ann ( Banker) and Barnabas Lothrop Adams. In 1869, she married James ...
as 'The Jolliest Place That's Out'.
The amusements were focused not just on the inn, but around the reservoir. Warner operated a race track until an Act of Parliament made it illegal. The first
greyhound races with mechanical
hare
Hares and jackrabbits are mammals belonging to the genus ''Lepus''. They are herbivores, and live solitarily or in pairs. They nest in slight depressions called forms, and their young are able to fend for themselves shortly after birth. The ge ...
s took place here in 1876. In 1891
Capazza attempted to launch his Patent Parachute Balloon – it failed to take off and accounts record 'nasty incidents' among the 5,000 spectators. These activities attracted a mixed clientele and crime and violence were not uncommon. One observer described the races as a 'carnival of vice'. The reservoir, like nearby
Hampstead Heath
Hampstead Heath (locally known simply as the Heath) is an ancient heath in London, spanning . This grassy public space sits astride a sandy ridge, one of the highest points in London, running from Hampstead to Highgate, which rests on a band o ...
, was also famous for
Bank Holiday
A bank holiday is a national public holiday in the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland and the Crown Dependencies. The term refers to all public holidays in the United Kingdom, be they set out in statute, declared by royal proclamation or held ...
fairs. During its Victorian heyday a bear escaped from the menagerie.
Water sport
![Welsh Harp 2009e](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d5/Welsh_Harp_2009e.jpg)
The reservoir was popular for speed boat and other water sports, until its size became unsuitable. The reservoir has a
sailing
Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (land yacht) over a chosen cour ...
centre, which is home to the Welsh Harp Sailing Club, Wembley Sailing Club, the Sea Cadets, and the University of London Sailing club. It also hosted the
1960 European Rowing Championships, which that year was for women only as the men competed at the
1960 Summer Olympics
The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it, Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1960), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad ( it, Giochi della XVII Olimpiade) and commonly known as Rome 1960 ( it, Roma 1960), were an international multi-sport event held ...
instead.
[''The Brent Magazine'', November 2011, p.27] More than 200 competitors and officials attended, with 5,000 spectators.
The
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
televised the event.
The reservoir also hosts the Phoenix canoe club and outdoor centre. The Phoenix Club provides: Canoeing, Kayaking, Bell Boating, Raft Building,
(Stand-up Paddleboard), Sailing and powerboat to members.
The first formal cycle race was held at the Welsh Harp grounds on 1 June 1868. It was won by
. He received a silver cup from the licensee of the Welsh Harp Hotel, the sponsor of the race.
For many years Markham had a bicycle shop at nearby 345 Edgware Road.
for 2010–11. There is access from Birchen Grove. In the late 19th century, this area was served by the
.