Description and History of Site:-
Gilkes Vortex water turbine (c1902) installed on rock ledge at the side of the waterfall in 1936 to generate electricity at 110 volts. Water obtained from a reservoir at SD 9813790493 J W Alderson, garage owners in Woodhall, purchased the turbine from T Grubb, a dealer in secondhand machinery in Lancaster. From it they charged storage batteries and wireless accumulators, also supplying the village houses and garage. In the 1930s a holiday camp with wooden chalets, known as Bungalow Town, was set up near the falls, allegedly using electricity from the turbine. During World War II the supply extended to the army camp near the village, to operate the clippers in the barber's shop. During the 1946-7 winter the turbine and dynamo, in a corrugated iron hut, were buried under snow for weeks but still continued to generate electricity. When the thaw came, it was found that the hut had been flattened by the weight of snow.

Further Reading and References:-
Hay, T T. Hydroelectricity generation in the Yorkshire Dales, CIAS 26, 2000, p45.

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Key Words :- Turbine

Viewing the Site :- Visible from the public footpath to the east of Disher Falls.

Address :- Woodhall, Leyburn, North Yorkshire, DL8 3LA
Grid Ref :- SD 98070 90443
Co-ordinates :- Lat 54.309581 , Long -2.031166
Local Authority :- Richmondshire District Council
Pre 1974 County :- Yorkshire - North Riding
Site Status :- Site extant - Protected status unknown
Site Condition :- Site disused - but otherwise substantially intact
Site Dates :- 1936 -
Record Date :- 16 April 2018

Copyright :- cc-by-nc-sa 4.0 © John Suter