Talla Reservoir

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The reservoir in 2006

Talla Reservoir, located a mile from Tweedsmuir, Scotland, is an earth-work dam fed by Talla Water. The reservoir is supplemented by water from the nearby Fruid Reservoir. It was opened in 1899.

To assist in bringing the materials for its construction, the Talla Railway was built.

[edit] History

In the late 19th century engineers surveying for the Edinburgh and District Water Trust (EDWT) identified the area around the ancient loch at Talla in the hills above Tweedsmuir in the Scottish Borders as an ideal site for a new reservoir to supply the increasing water demands of the expanding city of Edinburgh, 28 miles to the north.

In the mid 1890s the land was secured from the Trustees of the Earl of Wemyss and March Estates for £20,000.

Construction was by James Young & Sons. On September 29, 1897 a stone-laying ceremony marked the start of construction of Victoria Lodge, at the southern terminus. The building is now a private house. Material was lifted from there to the construction site by a ropeway, called a 'Blondin' after the famous tightrope walker Charles Blondin.

The dam, 2006.

Materials brought in included stone and aggregates from quarries in North Queensferry and Craigleith. Pipes, valve gear and pumping equipment came from central Scotland. Puddle clay, the mixture of clay, gravel and sand used for a watertight seal (which was perfected by canal builder James Brindley) came from the Carluke area. Over 100,000 tons of material were transported for the building of the reservoir, and at least 30 of the workmen (who were mostly Irish) died during construction and are buried at Tweedsmuir churchyard.

Construction work was virtually complete by late 1904 and Talla Water was diverted into the bed of the reservoir on May 20, 1905.

The official opening ceremony on September 28 was carried out by Lady Cranston, wife of the Lord Provost.