Upper Barden Reservoir was constructed between 1876 and 1882. It is fed from streams running off Barden Moor, and its major outfall is Barden Beck, which feeds Lower Barden Reservoir and the River Wharfe. Separately, some of the outflow from Upper Barden runs into an aqueduct which in turns, feeds into the
Nidd Aqueduct, supplying water to the Chellow Heights
water treatment works (WTW) in Bradford. Between 1893 and 1901, when the aqueduct was being constructed, a pipe measuring was built to take water away from Barden Beck between the two reservoirs and feed water into the Nidd Aqueduct. All of these works were undertaken by
Bradford Corporation Waterworks, to improve the water supply into the town (later city) of Bradford, which did not have a major water supply nearby. When Lower Barden reservoir was opened in 1860, it was noted that the valley above would also be ideally suited for a second reservoir with the capability of holding the same volume of water as the lower reservoir (). Much of the
Yorkshire Dales lies on
limestone, but the area of Barden Moor is underlain by
millstone grit, which is not as porous as limestone, so is ideal for reservoirs. Upper Barden is an upland freshwater reservoir, being above sea level, and was built at the confluence of Hethersgill Beck and Padmore Syke. The scheme received
royal assent in 1875, however, the necessary surveying and preparatory work took some time, with the design and construction down to the newly appointed (1875)
Bradford Corporation Waterworks engineer,
Alexander Binnie. Work started on the reservoir in 1876, with an estimated cost of £200,000. It was intended to hold of water and, in the original plans, the lower reservoir was simply referred to as
Barden Reservoir (or dam). When completed, the cost was £245,000 (1882) and the reservoir capacity was less than intended at . The maximum water flow through the dam is per second. The dam's cut-off (the lowest part of the wall designed to prevent seepage) was constructed from concrete, one of the first to be made from this material in England. The cut-off trench was dug and completed by May 1879, and because of the "exceptional use of concrete.." (at that time), the event attracted much attention, especially in engineering circles. The embankment of the dam head reaches a height of and extends across the dam for . At the time of its construction, the dam head embankment was the highest in England. The trench which houses the embankment was dug to a depth of in places, so the span from trench bottom to crest of the dam head was at its highest. The dam embankment is filled with of concrete, and of puddle clay. The area was subject to flash flooding in June 1908, when of rain fell in 150 minutes. The dam walls, conduits and cut-offs, held up well, however the deluge destroyed many bridges and damaged roads in
Airedale and
Wharfedale. The catchment area surrounding the reservoir is part of the West Nidderdale, Barden and Blubberhouses Moors
SSSI. Like other reservoirs in the Yorkshire uplands, the water in Barden suffers from discolouration due to the peat run-off from the moors. The area around the two reservoirs is popular with walkers as the site is located in the Yorkshire Dales. Upper Barden Reservoir is noted for its colony of
black-headed gulls; one of the largest inland colonies in the north of England. == Reservoir railway ==