Becks and Culverts in South Leeds.

Bramley4woods · Post by **Bramley4woods** » Mon 04 Feb, 2008 1:43 am

Since my car got damaged by water in the floods last year whilst at the Citroen Dealers on the ring road (110 new cars got written off), and the area flooded again in the last week or so ago I have taken a bit more of an interest in the drainage of the land in South Leeds!Speaking to old-timers the whole area from New Wortley to Elland Road seems to have been regularly flooded and the un built-on land around the football ground was reckoned to be "Bad Land" (marshy) when I was a kid in the '50s.However researching it doesn't seem to be easy because the becks wiggle about and have been culverted in places.I assume since water flows downhill they all drain towards the River Aire.Which becks are involved and where do they start from? For instance Millshaw Beck, I know the development of the tin sheds on Millshaw Ind. Est. couldn't happen 'till they had completed the culverting of Millshaw Beck, but how many times does it cross the Ring Road and where does it start.I notice on Leodis that in the 1930s the building of a little bridge over a beck, as on Gelderd Road, with nowt to see but a couple of dwarf walls could take about 3 years!

Phill_d · Post by **Phill_d** » Mon 04 Feb, 2008 1:46 am

There's the Hol beck..

Brandy · Post by **Brandy** » Mon 04 Feb, 2008 2:35 am

And the killing-beck! but since they have finished the work on the over-spill tank on oakwood lane it seems to have sorted out the localised flooding around the area of wykebeck valley road ...........................................................for now any way

simonm · Post by **simonm** » Mon 04 Feb, 2008 9:53 am

Let me get this straight. I have been looking at google earth and have come to the conclusion that "Hol" beck is the same beck that is fed from post hill and beyond?? Or am I missing a more obvious tributary?

simonm · Post by **simonm** » Mon 04 Feb, 2008 9:55 am

Brandy wrote: And the killing-beck! but since they have finished the work on the over-spill tank on oakwood lane it seems to have sorted out the localised flooding around the area of wykebeck valley road ...........................................................for now any way My wife was part of a team that was helping the local residents of that area last week to hel pagainst flooding. all the residents were up in arms over work carried out at Roundhay affecting them. Again, looking on google earth I can't see the connection.

FarnleyBloke · Post by **FarnleyBloke** » Mon 04 Feb, 2008 5:20 pm

simonm wrote: Let me get this straight. I have been looking at google earth and have come to the conclusion that "Hol" beck is the same beck that is fed from post hill and beyond?? Or am I missing a more obvious tributary? That's what i've always thought Simon but following it on a map is bloody hard. I can get to the industrial estate between the ring road and whitehall road, (not far from your Citroen garage!) and i know it goes behind Elland road but i can't seem to link it. I've also seen a bit just on one side of Gelderd road (I think!!!).And where does Millshaw beck end up? I know it goes under Churwell hill at the bottom but does it flow into the Post Hill beck at some point, maybe Gelderd Road?

Post by **tyke bhoy** » Mon 04 Feb, 2008 5:40 pm

FarnleyBloke wrote: simonm wrote: Let me get this straight. I have been looking at google earth and have come to the conclusion that "Hol" beck is the same beck that is fed from post hill and beyond?? Or am I missing a more obvious tributary? That's what i've always thought Simon but following it on a map is bloody hard. I can get to the industrial estate between the ring road and whitehall road, (not far from your Citroen garage!) and i know it goes behind Elland road but i can't seem to link it. I've also seen a bit just on one side of Gelderd road (I think!!!).And where does Millshaw beck end up? I know it goes under Churwell hill at the bottom but does it flow into the Post Hill beck at some point, maybe Gelderd Road? FB if you look at page 4 of the recently resurreccted Lemi thread there is a picture of a beck meandering down the back of Elland Road football ground. It cuts through the still present railway embankment and heads towards the ring road although it isn't totally clear which route.I asked on that thread if this was Hol beck and was told it was probably Wortley beck. I wasn't sure that was correct as it seems to come from the West side of Cottingley and certainly is east of Geldered road in side the ring road but wasn't going to start an argument on it. If this beck is culverted under the M621 then MillShaw beck would certainly meet it before it reached gelderd Road

Post by **chameleon** » Mon 04 Feb, 2008 7:42 pm

Brandy wrote: And the killing-beck! but since they have finished the work on the over-spill tank on oakwood lane it seems to have sorted out the localised flooding around the area of wykebeck valley road ...........................................................for now any way Not to put a dampener (sorry) on this Brandy, but I saw a report of the investigation after one of the floods, which suggested a blockage in the relief system a little further down stream was the rogue - removing a number of Tesco trolleys and other assorted hardware seemed to help!

The Parksider · Post by **The Parksider** » Mon 04 Feb, 2008 7:52 pm

I've got Millshaw beck coming from the south to feed into wortley beck from the north and Wortley beck becoming Hol beck and running into the Aire by Victoria Bridge.....Seems clear on Godfreys beeston & Beeston Hill Map.Yes very marshy - so much so that to get to Manchester from Leeds - so Dickinson Records, you would travel out of Leeds up the Beeston Road because the ground was dry.Plenty of coal mines in the valley and a pumping station was built for the mines at Elland Road footy ground before it became a major sports venue.Assume they pumped the mines out into the Wortley back......

Trojan · Post by **Trojan** » Mon 04 Feb, 2008 9:26 pm

The Parksider wrote: I've got Millshaw beck coming from the south to feed into wortley beck from the north and Wortley beck becoming Hol beck and running into the Aire by Victoria Bridge.....Seems clear on Godfreys beeston & Beeston Hill Map.Yes very marshy - so much so that to get to Manchester from Leeds - so Dickinson Records, you would travel out of Leeds up the Beeston Road because the ground was dry.Plenty of coal mines in the valley and a pumping station was built for the mines at Elland Road footy ground before it became a major sports venue.Assume they pumped the mines out into the Wortley back...... Isn't Millshaw Beck a continuation of Topcliffe Beck, which flows out of Topcliffe Colliery and runs a parallel to Dewsbury Road and presumably enters a culvert somewhere near the White Rose Centre and crosses the ring road, becoming Millshaw Beck?