Company History

We have reproduced a number of historical photos from the Company's archives. Click on the smaller images on the left to see a full screen image and related commentary.



Portsmouth Water today serves large towns and cities such as Gosport, Fareham, Portsmouth, Havant, Chichester and Bognor Regis, as well as rural areas of South East Hampshire and West Sussex.


Its origins date back to 1857 when the Borough of Portsmouth Waterworks Company was formed to supply water to Portsmouth, then a city with a population of little more than 70,000.


As the Company prospered, so it embarked on a period of expansion which has continued to this day. 1955 saw a doubling of the statutory area which it served through an amalgamation with Gosport Waterworks Company. The acquisition of its West Sussex areas followed in 1963, again doubling the Company's coverage and making it one of the largest water supply companies in the country.


To meet increased demand from the enlarged area, further springs at Havant and Bedhampton were brought into use and new borehole sources were constructed. There are now 18 borehole sites throughout the catchment area.


Pumping from the Havant and Bedhampton Springs by steam driven engines first started in 1860 but a continuous supply of water "on tap" was not brought in until 1880. Then the old wooden fire plugs, left over from previous centuries, were replaced with fire hydrants.


110 years after its formation the Portsmouth Water Company opened its new headquarters at Havant. Around the same time in 1966 it began the preparations for the River Itchen scheme. Completed at a cost of £4 million, the highly automated plant is the largest single project ever carried out by the company.


Throughout the long history of Portsmouth Water, its responsibility has always remained constant - to provide a clean water supply and to do so at a very reasonable cost.