A film by Mottershaw Commercial Films. This footage shows the laying of the pipeline from Elvington to Hoober and the construction of the water treatment plant at Elvington. The voiceover commentary is provided by Geoffrey Wheeler. The film immediately starts with a group of smartly dressed people stood around as a curtain is pulled open with a cord, by a man in a tailcoat. This reveals a plaque on a large, round, stone feature, which reads ‘Yorkshire Derwent Scheme - This plaque...

A film by Mottershaw Commercial Films. This footage shows the laying of the pipeline from Elvington to Hoober and the construction of the water treatment plant at Elvington. The voiceover commentary is provided by Geoffrey Wheeler. The film immediately starts with a group of smartly dressed people stood around as a curtain is pulled open with a cord, by a man in a tailcoat. This reveals a plaque on a large, round, stone feature, which reads ‘Yorkshire Derwent Scheme - This plaque commemorates the inauguration of stage I of the Yorkshire Derwent Scheme by Sir William Goode G.C.M.G., Chairman of the Yorkshire Resources Board, 10th September 1965’. Title Card - ‘Sheffield Corporation Waterworks presents, Yorkshire Derwent Scheme Stage One’ overlaying video of the smartly dressed guests shaking hands with the Chairman. People are shown walking through the streets of Sheffield in the rain, some with umbrellas up. Broomhead Reservoir Tower is shown in the foreground, with the reservoir in the background. Three boys are shown playing catch in the highland fields above the reservoir. Several views of the reservoir are shown. A shot of buildings next to the River Don pans down to rubbish and debris on the surface of the river. Other views of the side of the river show other spots of contamination where a lot of rubbish/debris is present. A wooden signpost reads ‘Fishing Strictly Preserved, Members Only’ next to a small river, where a man is fishing. A clean-looking river with a large stone bridge over the top is shown. The river Derwent on the North York Moors is shown. A close look at a black and white sign post shows the directions of Broxa, Langdale End, Troutsdale, Snainton, Hackness and Scarborough. The River Derwent running through Barmby on the Marsh is shown. Ducks are seen making their way onto the river and then swimming down-stream. A man in a suit is shown drawing up plans for the River Derwent by Sheffield Waterworks. A man is shown drawing on a map on the wall; it shows the planned water route from the River Derwent between Elvington and Hoober, where pipes will then lead to the city and to Rotherham. He then draws the pipeline between Brayton Barff and Leeds. He also draws the pipeline which runs from Frickley to Barnsley. Large bodies of water at Elvington are shown. Some parts of the water ripple in the wind. A disused mill is shown in the place that marks where gates prevent tidal water from passing further up the river. There is a closer look at the river splashing near this point. Machinery at Elvington is seen. A man in a suit and wellies steps out of a shed next to the river. He goes to the river and throws in a bottle on a road, then lifts it out containing a sample of water. Water is shown being tested with different scientific equipment in a lab. A work site is shown on the land where installations will be put in to extract water from the river. A constructed exterior of a cofferdam is shown with water splashing out of the pipe as it is pumped from behind the barrier. Workers are shown doing construction tasks on the rest of the cofferdam, and can be seen working amongst lots of scaffolding with various tools. Cars are shown travelling on a busy road. A diesel train goes past some of the nearby landscape. A large boat is seen travelling down the canal, with industrial buildings in the background. A sign in the foreground reads ‘British Waterways, Knottingley Goole Canal’. Cars are shown travelling on a busy road. A diesel train goes past, over a crossing. Workmen on the River Ouse are shown using shovels and cement to secure new pipelines in place. They are seen directing the large containers of cement from a crane to the pipes. The river can be seen near the pipes. A large excavation tool on a crane is shown digging into the side of the riverbank. The completed pipes are seen being rolled down the slipway with restraining cables by the workers and a crane. A boat goes down the river as the work is being carried out in the background. A worker in swimming gear attaches a pontoon to the pipes using winches to help ease the pipes into position. Workers are seen standing on the pontoon ready. Pipes are shown moving into position. Workers are seen disembarking a boat. A worker is seen preparing the rest of the pipework at the cofferdam. Pipes are shown being lowered into a trench by a crane. A man overlooks the process from above. A welder is shown doing some work on the pipes. Vehicles and equipment are seen on site next to the pipes. Workers with shovels are seen filling in the trench. Other workers are focussing on the smaller details of the pipes. A large white and red sign next to a road reads ‘Sheffield Corporation Waterworks, Elvington Treatment Works, Civil Engineering Contractors, Reed and Mallik Ltd., Milford Manor Salisbury’. A man looks through a telescope, directing some construction. Views of the large excavation site and exterior construction work of a pump house are shown. Workers are shown with tools amongst the scaffolding. Using a pen/pointer, a hand is shown drawing attention to different parts of the treatment works on a small-scale model of the proposed finished design, to demonstrate which buildings are for what purpose. The excavation site in 1963 is shown, which was full of mud, as seen by the workers trying to wash their wellies. Construction vehicles are seen stuck in the mud. Several views of the gradual exterior building work are shown. Workers are seen hammering at different parts of the structure. Cement is shown being lowered in a container by crane and then poured out into position by the workers. Several shots of even more exterior building work progress are shown. At the pipeline, workers are shown putting dynamite down holes in a zigzag formation, and then pushing down on the trigger to blast the dynamite and destroy the hard rock under the surface in the way of the pipeline. A trench dug out for the pipes is shown. A high speed welding technique is shown by a worker who is shown welding the joints on the pipe in the trench. Workers are shown painting a protective layer onto the joints of the pipes. A tractor is seen on site shovelling some earth. Diggers and cranes are also seen moving and sorting the earth. Dirt is seen being poured onto the pipes. Workers are seen digging and shifting earth, rock and dirt. A tractor is seen driving on fresh farmland, reconstructed since the excavation. At Brayton Barff construction work on a balancing reservoir is being shown in 1963; scaffolding, cranes/diggers and some building progress is shown. Workers are shown using various tools on the construction. A digger moves dirt into the back of a truck. Several more shots of the construction work at a distance are shown. A small loading vehicle labelled ‘Pickfords’ drives around the corner of a road. Construction work at a distance is shown. Several workers assist in the removal of machinery from the Pickfords loading vehicle. Progress construction work on a pumping station at Frickley in 1963 is shown. Workers are seen walking around the site, carrying items such as planks of wood. Workers are shown welding and adding a protective layer to the joints of the pipes in a trench. A crane drops a large concrete object onto some of the stone debris on the ground. Construction vehicles on an excavation site as shown. A man is seen using the controls in the cab of a digger. A truck labelled ‘Carr’ drives across the site. Workers are seen operating machinery. A yellow vehicle labelled ‘bulk delivery’ is shown at the site. A worker is seen turning a wheel near the top of the construction building. A worker is seen climbing the scaffolding. Workers are seen walking through the site. Views of the reservoir construction site at a distance are shown. Workers are shown using tools and equipment on top of the construction site. Views of a countryside field show what the reservoir looks like finished - it cannot be seen as it is underground. Workers are shown continuing on the pipeline. A pipe is shown marked with ‘Yorkshire Derwent Aqueduct Contract, Last Pipe, 21st August 1963, Final Weld’. Smartly dressed men stood around waiting to watch the last pipe being laid. A worker drives a crane with the last pipe to its final position, whilst other workers direct it into place from the ground. Other workers then weld the last joint into place. Progress work on the building of the treatment works is shown. Pieces of construction are shown being lifted by a crane. A man is putting on swimming gear at the cofferdam and walks down a ladder into the water. Another worker walks further away from the water. The diver is shown in the water holding some small cables. Some workers are seen handling sacks of sand and putting them onto a sloped conveyor belt where other workers receive them at the top. Several views of the River Derwent are shown. A typewriter is shown typing in a control room next to electrical controls and displays. Low-lift pumps are shown. A large control panel for the pumps is shown. A diagram of the pumping system is shown. A man is shown using a titrator device above the water. Solution tanks and reaction tanks at the treatment works are shown. Impurities in water are shown being driven to the surface with compressed air and being washed away with clean water. High-lift pumps are shown. Diagram shows how the control room at Elvington also controls and records data from Brayton Barff, Frickley and Hoober. Exterior shots of complete construction work. A worker walks around the site at Elvington. A car drives down a road nearby. In the control room, a worker is shown pressing some buttons on a control board on the wall. Low-lift pumps are shown. Water is shown moving through the mechanisms. The worker presses more buttons in the control room, and the needle on a gauge moves. High-lift pumps are shown in action. Water moving through the treatment works at various stages is shown. Credits - ‘Photography - Ian Gillott, Direction - John Mottershaw, Sound - Phillip Jones’ overlaying moving water. Credits - ‘Script - Stanley Williamson, Commentary - Geoffrey Wheeler’ overlaying moving water. Credits - ‘An MCF Produciton, Mottershaw Commercial Films Sheffield’ overlaying moving water.