View across the dam

The dates recorded for this are a little confusing, 1777 is mentioned with an extension in 1785. It was initially a simpler construction and the later date indicates the building of the dam walls that raised the water level needed to power the new wheels. 1785 correlates with that of the tilt hammer workshop where Thomas’s son, Martin Goddard had his initials carved into the lintel. 

Later variations in the recorded acreage of the dam were probably due to silting taking place…Beauchief Gardens is built on an area that once was part of the dam. 

An indication of the silting problem is shown when Tyzack, Sons & Turner were taken to court in 1899 under the Salmon Fishery Act 1861. The bottom shuttle was in need of repair, which had necessitated the emptying of the dam. Top and bottom shuttles were opened fully to allow the stored water out and in so doing a huge amount of foul smelling black sludge was carried down stream. 

In court it was estimated to be 30,000 tons, which had the effect of suffocating the trout downstream in what was one of the best fishing rivers in Sheffield. The water bailiff had first noticed the contaminated water and dead fish near Moscar Wheel a mile below Abbeydale Works, and by tracing it upstream discovered the cause. 

Recent surveying in Gillfield Wood has brought speculation about notched stone posts in Totley Brook, a tributary of the River Sheaf, thought to be used for flow management. There are a number of sites, set at approximately 100200 yard intervals, and placed in threes across the stream. Horizontal struts were bolted into the notched points in order to support battening. This would slow the flow of water, resulting in sed iment being deposited before it reached the dam, in this case the one serving the Rolling Mill at Totley Rise. 

It is known that Tyzacks had made a complaint about the volume of sediment washing into their dam. 

Although affecting the Rolling Mill at this point, some sediment would inevitably make its way down river when sluice gates were opened. 

Maintenance of the level of sediment in a dam was essential to ensure that enough water could be stored. Perhaps with the installation in 1855 of supplementary steam power to drive the machinery at Abbeydale, there was less need to be vigilant, resulting in the catastrophic deluge of 1899. 

The dam was initially built as the power for 18th century machines processing iron ore into working tools, but it had another life within the community.

The dam covered an area of approximately five acres when it was completed in 1785. It had been constructed to supply water to four new wheels at Abbey Dale Forge, powering machinery for the edge tool industry that made it the largest works in Sheffield in the early 19th century. 

During its lifetime the dam has variously been known as Abbey Dale Dam, Abbeydale Dam, Tyzack’s Dam and finally Beauchief Dam, quickly becoming a landmark and used as a reference point in newspapers when reporting events in the area. Inevitably such a large area of water would have its own stories to tell, some joyous but others less so. 

From very early days, the many dams serving Sheffield’s forges were used as trout fishing ponds. To fish a dam nor mally required a licence and wasn’t included in the agreement when renting the water to power a wheel. This was clearly illustrated at Whitely Wood Dam when William Tyzack (senior) was tenant of the wheel in the early 19th century, and was regularly reported by the water bailiff for fishing without a licence. 

Poaching was another problem and in 1904 Benjamin Turner (partner in Tyzack, Sons & Turner) set a trap with the local constable in order to catch a number of men known to be taking fish from their dam at Abbeydale. Having surprised them at 2am one Saturday night, the police and Turner managed to detain two poachers, who were charged and subsequently taken to court. 

Giving evidence, Benjamin Turner expressed surprise that although the defendants claimed to be poaching there for the first time, their baited lines were in the water at a spot where fish were known to be most plentiful! He felt this indicated the men had a wellinformed knowledge of the dam. The men, Walter Price and Ernest Piercy, stated they were out of work and only trying to catch a Sunday dinner. Each was fined 10s. 

Ice Skating

For a small fee, all comers could take part in iceskating when the winters of the late 19th and early 20th century were regularly much colder than those we experience nowadays. As soon as ice formed the newspapers would publish advice on which dam had the best conditions. It wasn’t just a case of how cold the weather had been, but also local conditions such as exposure to winds that could create an uneven surface. The papers also published notices to say if the ice was safe… or not. 

Sheffield Daily Telegraph 13th & 14th January 1887 

SKATERS are particularly requested to Notice that the ICE now on the ABBEYDALE DAM is NOT SAFE. 

The events could take on the atmosphere of a fair, with vendors selling hot drinks, soup and snacks. Proceeds from the entrance fees were sent to local hospital charities, and their appreciation was published in the newspapers… 

Sheffield Daily Telegraph 13th January 1887

The Weekly Board of Sheffield General Infirmary beg to acknowledge, with best thanks, receipt of £10 from Messrs. W. Tyzack, Sons & Turner, being part proceeds of a charge made for skating on the Abbeydale dam.” 

Others receiving donations in January 1887 were Sheffield Public Hospital and Dispensary (£10) and Jessop Hospital for Women (3 guineas). 

The craze continued for as long as the winters brought the intense cold weather… 

Sheffield Daily Telegraph 13th January 1908 

Weekend Skating Sheffield Area 

At Tyzack’s dam, Beauchief, which on Saturday was only safe at the southern end, some hundreds of enthusiasts enjoyed the exhilarating pastime. The danger zone was during the daylight quite clear, and the result was the skaters kept a safe distance away from the northern end, which is 15ft deep, and where the water always freezes more slowly owing to the presence of a miniature whirlpool. During Saturday night however, the continued keen frost had the effect of converting the whole stretch of the dam into a splendid piece of ice, and yesterday there were crowds of people enjoying the sport. The ice is, indeed, like glass, and in one portion it is so clear that the shrubs can be plainly seen underneath. 

And as the picture below shows, the fun was continuing in 1936! 

Drownings
The dam has unfortunately claimed a number of lives, both of those whose intentions were to commit suicide and others who died accidentally. Examples of the many deaths reported in the newspapers can sometimes give an insight into the social conditions and attitudes of the day. 

Sheffield Evening Telegraph 19th May 1890

Attempted Suicide at Tyzack’s Dam

A great amount of excitement was caused in the neighbourhood of Beauchief by rumour that a woman had thrown herself in the dam. A large crowd collected, it being just the time when people were on their way home from church. Some of the bystanders, after much exertion, succeeded in bringing the wouldbe suicide to the bank. She was in an exhausted condition and was attended by Dr Thorne, and afterwards removed to her home in Bradway. It was stated that she was temporarily insane. 

Until 1961 committing or attempting suicide was a crime and a verdict ‘Of unsound mind’ or similar could avoid the threat of prosecution. Dr. Thorne was the son-in-law of Joshua Tyzack (one of the three brothers running the business). He was a GP and surgeon living with his wife and family at the Glen, opposite Dore and Totley station, now a nursing home. 

Suicide at Abbeydale Dam
In October 1923 a James Wilson drowned himself two weeks after losing his job at Samuel Laycock & Sons Ltd, Bradfield. His wife had also worked there and lost her job some months earlier, each having accrued over thirty years’ service. 

Since the 1880’s Laycock’s had been a successful company making carriage fittings for trains. After the death of its founder in 1916 it was bought by a French company but was heading for bankruptcy when an attempt to enter the car and aero manufacturing industry failed. This had probably led to the reduction in staff numbers. 

Mrs Wilson said her husband had been depressed, but had not talked of taking his life. On the morning of his death he had told her he was going to the Labour Exchange, but by 2pm his body had been discovered in the dam. One wonders if he did call at the Labour Exchange, only to find no work and was overcome by despair. The verdict was ‘suicide whilst of unsound mind’. 

Despite suicide being a criminal offence, readers of the papers were often sympathetic and on one occasion money, postal orders and even gold coins were sent to help ‘the poor wife and children of the man who drowned at Abbeydale’. 

The very sad story of an accidental drowning was reported in November 1876. James Naylor was a scythe grinder working at Abbeydale, living in one of the cottages on site with his parents and wife, Sarah. They already had a toddler and Sarah was about to give birth, or had just done so, when her husband drowned. 

It was a Saturday and James had spent the afternoon in the pub. Taking a shortcut home across the weir and dam, it was thought he slipped in the darkness and met his fate. Despite a search on Sunday, his body wasn’t found until the following day. A sad fact revealed at the inquest was that James had fallen from a path known to be dangerous and recently banned from use by Tyzack. 

His death and the birth of his new daughter were recorded in the same quarter of the year. Four years later, in the census of 1881, Sarah was still living with James’ parents and receiving Parish Relief. Later that year, the daughter born so close to the death of her father also died, aged four years. Sarah married again, to another scythe smith, and lived in Dore for the rest of her long life. She had a further five children. 

In 1933 the whole site was bought by J. G. Graves and given to Sheffield Council to preserve and develop. For many years, little happened other than the building of Beauchief Gardens. 

The dam was investigated in 1937/8 as a possible venue for Sheffield Model Yacht Club, because their pond in Millhouses Park was proving too small for this very popular hobby. However the alterations needed to make it suitable proved too expensive and the idea was dropped. 

Repairs to the retaining wall and shuttles have been needed over the years but the dam remains almost unaltered since its construction in 1785. The silt has reduced its overall size by about one acre at the southern end, where Beauchief Gardens now exist. 

The water has always attracted bird life and newspapers would report anything they considered unusual, as when a pair of swans took up residence. The arrival of seagulls was once considered worthy of a mention in the nature column of a newspaper! 

Today the dam still attracts wildfowl and presents a picturesque and peaceful oasis alongside the busy A621. Its waters still turn a wheel at Abbeydale Hamlet. 

Pauline Burnett

April 2017