Langsett lies on the very edge of the Peak District National Park in the valley of the Little Don or Porter river...
Land Use
Management Of The Land
Making Provision For Visitors

Langsett lies on the very edge of the Peak District National Park in the valley of the Little Don or Porter river...

It is here that the influence of the many steelworks that brought prosperity to Sheffield in the industrial era gives way to open moorlands and green valleys. The urban sprawl of Stocksbridge ends abruptly at the dam wall of the Underbank Reservoir.

Langsett's name

The name Langsett has evolved from the old name of the area. Langsett meaning a long slope. This comes from the custom of taking the livestock up the lang side or Long Slope to the high summer pastures after their winter grazing on the lower land.

Early mention

Langsett is not mentioned in Domesday in 1086, although the village of Midhope does appear. Langsett first appears in a charter of 1252 which tells of an agreement, whereby Walter de Houdham granted his whole manor at Langside to Elias de Midhope. Elias de Midhope gradually acquired a great extend of the countryside including Midhope, Langside (Langsett), Ewden, Horderon, Waldershelf (Waldershaigh), Mitcheldene (Mickelden) and Barnside (now just a farm).

Common dispute

We hear later, in 1638 of a dispute between the people of Langsett and the men of Midhope. The Langsett villagers grazed their cattle on Midhope common and paid 20 shillings (£1) per year for this privilege.

However, the Midhope villagers were complaining that the cattle were straying too far and the Langsett men were also cutting turf. We do not know the outcome of this dispute.

Geology

The area around Langsett is part of what is described as the Dark Peak. This means that the rocks underneath this area are the gritstones (Millstone Grit) and shales which form the highest part of the Peak District National Park .

The gritstones and shales were deposited in the Carboniferous period around 250 to 280 million years ago. At this time the land formed part of a huge river estuary flowing from what is now the highlands of Scotland. The sands washed down by the river formed the gritstones and the mud in the river estuary formed the shales.

The hard gritstone rock has been exposed by wind, rain and river action, to form rock features such as Swinden Rocher and How Rocher. These take their name from the French word for rock "rocher".

Tributaries of the Little Don often run in deep valleys called cloughs. This is taken from the Old English "cloh" meaning a deep ravine or dell.

Rights of Way

Thickwoods Lane, leading to North America Farm, was used by tanks practising for the 1944 Normandy landings during the Second World War. It was strengthened by using rubble from houses bombarded during the Sheffield blitz.

Cut Gate is an ancient right of way which was used by farmers to get from the Hope, Derwent and Woodlands valleys to Penistone market. Originally it ran down the centre of what is now Langsett Reservoir and had to be re-routed over Brook House Bridge in 1904 when the reservoir was constructed.

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Land use

For many centuries sheep farming was the main occupation of people in the villages of the Langsett area. But changes came about at the end of the 19th century when the reservoirs were constructed.

Reservoirs

Langsett, Midhope and Underbank Reservoirs lie in the Langsett area, together with the water treatment works at Langsett. The reservoirs were constructed at the turn of the century, to supply water to Sheffield and Barnsley. Langsett Reservoir was built by damming the Little Don or Porter river. Work on the reservoir started in 1889 and it was finished in 1904. It was built by Sheffield Corporation Waterworks to supply water to Sheffield. A temporary village was built (consisting of corrugated iron shacks) for the construction workers. After the reservoirs were completed and the temporary village demolished, many of the local people of Langsett and Midhope were employed in the water industry.

Construction work on Langsett reservoir

Depopulation

Farms in the water catchment area of the reservoirs were seen as a danger to the purity of the water. Before a chemical process of water treatment was developed, the water companies had to ensure that the water that drained into the reservoir was as pure as possible. After any sediment of the water had drifted to the bottom of the reservoir, the water had to be safe to drink.

The water catchment area was 'sterilised' by eliminating any cattle from the land around. Sheffield Corporation Waterworks therefore allowed a policy of depopulation of the farmed land around the reservoirs to control pollution of the water catchment area.

In the Swinden area, (whose name Swine Dean meant the wooded area where pigs foraged for acorns) there were five farms which all fell into decay. Swinden Farm was the last to be abandoned and was lived in until the 1930s. Another deserted farm is North America Farm to the south of Langsett Reservoir. This name came from the habit of calling outlying farms after faraway parts of the world. During the Second World War, tanks used the farm for target practice.

Water Authorities

A Water Act was passed in 1973 and in 1974 Yorkshire Water Authority took over from Sheffield Waterworks. The Water Act of 1989 privatised the water industry and a private company, Yorkshire Water plc took over. A provision in the Act says that the Countryside Commission must be consulted before land owned by a water company in a National Park can be sold. This ensures that land of great natural beauty around reservoirs is protected.

Langsett reservoir

Water treatment works

The Langsett Treatment Works was built to replace two old water treatment works at Langsett and Midhope. In the old works, the water passed through sand filter beds. This produced water which was safe to drink but did not meet modern standards (the water was a brown colour).

Space was available at Langsett in an old quarry workings and Yorkshire Water started work on the new treatment works in 1983. Water started to be supplied from the works in 1985. Water is supplied to the south-west side of Barnsley and to the north-west side of Sheffield. The new Langsett Treatment Works can produce 60,000 cubic metres of water per day to serve a population of over 200,000. The water now meets the latest EC standards.

Farming today

Although many farms were deserted earlier in the century, much of the land in the area around Langsett is still used for sheep farming. The sheep are mainly Swaledale, which is a very hardy breed capable of spending most of its life on the moorland or on rough grazing land nearer to the farms.

The ewes have their lambs in April and may as the weather conditions would be too harsh for young lambs earlier in the year. In the summer, the sheep are brought down from the moors to be sheared in June, and then to be dipped to protect against sheep ticks and lice in June and again in September or October.

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Management of the land

The overall aim of the National Park Authority is to conserve and hence the characteristic features which make the Peak District National Park unique. In doing this, the Authority has to consider the needs of the people who live in the Park and to provide for the quiet enjoyment of the beautiful landscape by those who visit the Park.

Management of the seemingly natural landscape is necessary to preserve the qualities of wildness, openness and sense of history that are enjoyed by the visitors. The land around Langsett is nearly all privately owned, much of it by Yorkshire Water, and therefore management has to be by agreement between the landowner and the National Park Authority.

Langsett Bank Woods

Langsett Bank Woods

One example of the way a woodland can be managed to serve a number of different purposes is the Langsett Bank Woods. The woods were planted in the 1920s by the Sheffield Corporation Waterworks to stabilise the steep bank of the reservoir. The roots of the trees hold the soil of the bank and stop it from being washed into the reservoir. The woods are now owned by Yorkshire Water, the owners of the reservoir.
Langsett Bank Woods are managed firstly to preserve the water quality. Secondly, they are managed as an environmental asset and wildlife is encouraged. Thirdly the woods provide a commercial return. When the trees are felled, the wood is used for building, fences or sent to pulp for paper.

The Moorland

What are now large expanses of moorland were once forest. This natural woodland was cleared by the earliest settlers (possibly as long at 5,000 years ago) to provide clearings for hunting and then to graze their animals and to grow crops on the light sandy soils. Evidence of the ancient woodland can be seen in the tree stumps preserved in the peat bordering some of the cloughs.

These early farmers cultivated each area of land until nothing more would grow on it and then moved on to clear another area. The soils were left very poor and capable of supporting very little vegetation. The number of species of plants which grow on the acid soils of the moorland is still very limited. Heather is the most widespread species with various wild grasses. There is also bilberry and crowberry.

Grouse Moors

Heather moorland is a semi-natural vegetation that has to be maintained by management. Without careful management, overgrazing (by the sheep kept on the moors) would lead to the destruction of heather and its replacement by grass moor and bracken. Without suitable grazing and/or burning, scrub would gradually take over, resulting eventually in birch woodland.

Shooting butt	Controlled burning of moorland

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Making provision for visitors

The Langsett area is ideally placed for the visitor. The towns of Stocksbridge and Penistone lie close to Langsett and the area is almost equidistant from the larger urban developments of Sheffield, Huddersfield and Manchester. It is therefore an easy drive to Langsett for millions of people who wish to spend a day in the countryside.

Walking

Large areas of moorland (Midhope and Howden Moors) stretch away to the south and west, to provide an attraction for walkers and hikers. (About 3.75 million people visit the Peak District National Park every year to go walking).

Before the Peak District became a National Park in 1951, vast areas of the moors were strictly preserved for the rearing, management and shooting of grouse or as water-gathering grounds by the municipal authorities. Gamekeepers were employed to keep the ramblers off the moors and straying off one of the very few footpaths could result in an unpleasant encounter with one of the keepers.

Within two years of the Peak District becoming Britain's first National Park, the first access agreement allowing free access, except for a few days during the grouse-shooting season, had been signed. Many more such agreements have followed and much of the moorland around Langsett is now 'Open Country' where the walker may 'wander at will' over the moor, without having to keep to marked footpaths (except when the moor is closed for grouse shooting). Walkers must keep to footpaths to cross other moorland areas.

Attractions of water

Three water areas (Langsett, Midhope and Underbank reservoirs) provide a focus for visitors. In these areas conservation of the landscape and wildlife can be combined with quiet enjoyment such as walking, picnicking or birdwatching. Other forms of recreation which make a greater demand on the environment, such as boating, are not allowed.

Erosion

One consequence of the popularity of the moorland with walkers is the gradual erosion of the paths, worn away by millions of pairs of feet. The acid soil of the peat moors is particularly sensitive to erosion as the vegetation is very slow to regenerate and in some cases will never do so without some help. Some areas have had to be fenced to control the erosion.

Restoration of Langsett Barn

Visitor Centre

To provide some facilities for the many visitors to the area, Langsett Barn - a listed 15th century barn - has recently been restored. The project was jointly undertaken by the National Park Authority, Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council, Yorkshire Water, Langsett Parish Council and the Countryside Commission, working through the Peak Park Trust (a charity which works to conserve the local heritage).

The restored barn now provides a village hall for Langsett and a Ranger Centre. A car park, picnic site and toilets are also provided for the use of visitors.

Langsett Barn can be booked for use by school groups by contacting Karen Boam at : The Peak District National Park Office, Bakewell. Telephone: 01629 816200.

Visits to the Reservoir and Treatment Works can be arranged for groups. To arrange a visit or talk please contact: Public Relations Officer, Yorkshire Water Southern Division, Cattle Market Building, Exchange Street, Sheffield, S1 1GB.

Conservation area

The barn lies within Langsett Conservation Area, one of the 8,000 Conservation Areas nationwide, which are created to look after, and where possible improve, the architectural quality of towns and villages. Langsett has an interesting mix of pseudo-Gothic Water Board buildings and the traditionally built farm buildings and cottages. There is no regular building pattern; the village alternatives between close-knit groups of buildings and a series of spaces opening out from these constricted points. Throughout, local gritstone is the main building material, linking Langsett firmly to its surrounding hills.

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