History team revives the village lost under water
THE drowned village of Watergrove has been brought back to life by history buffs.
Wardle and Smallbridge History Group has launched a permanent exhibition on the history of the village, which was flooded in 1938 to create Watergrove Reservoir, at their base in Wardle Community Centre.
It includes an intricate scale model of the village created by former society member Arnold Wade, artefacts rescued from Watergrove before it was abandoned and paintings, photographs and documents relating to the hamlet.
The exhibition is housed in the Watergrove Room at the community centre on Wardle Road.
It was opened by the Mayor Coun Ray Dutton at a launch event.
Ann Butterworth from WSHG said: “Many people enjoy the beautiful scenery around Watergrove Reservoir without knowing the story of the village beneath its waters.
“We meet on Wednesdays between 10am and noon at 110 Wardle Road and anyone who has an interest in the history of the area is welcome to pay us a visit to look at our holdings.”
In the 1930s, the hamlet and surrounding farms met their demise because of the need for an increase in water to supply Rochdale’s growing population. The occupants were evacuated and rehoused, many of the buildings were demolished, and a dam was built to flood the land, which now holds some 750m gallons of drinking water.
Mr Wade spent months recreating the old buildings of the area, including the mills, chapel, homes, roads and an old pub, as part of a long-standing research project by the society.
It is still possible to view a few clues to the secrets of Watergrove’s past, including a short section of the original Ramsden Road and a few foundations from the original buildings.