History of the London Water Industry, 1580–1820

Leslie Tomory is a research affiliate at McGill University. He is the author of Progressive Enlightenment: The Origins of the Gaslight Industry, 1780-1820.

• IntroductionTechnological and industrial change1.1 London1.2 Late Medieval and Early Modern Urban Water Supply1.3 New Water Technology1.4 A Thirsty City1.5 Patents1.6 Peter Morris and the London Bridge Waterworks1.7 Other Water EntrepreneursConclusion2.1 Corporations and Joint-Stock Companies2.2 Myddelton's Politics and the New River Company2.3 Supplying LondonConclusion3.1 Slow Growth and Stabilization, 1625-16603.2 Growth of the New River, 1660-17003.3 Improving and joint-stock companies, 1660-17003.4 New Attempts, 1700-1730Conclusion4.1 The Scale of the New River4.2 Wren's and Lowthorp's Reports4.3 Reform of Operations4.3.1 Maintaining Adequate Supply4.3.2 The Pipe Network4.3.3 Controlling Customers4.3.4 Manufacturing Pipes4.3.5 Maintenance4.3.6 Legal DimensionConclusion5.1 The Nature of Competition: Dominance of the New River and the LBWW5.2 The New LBWW to 17505.2.1 The Engines5.2.2 The Water Tower and the Mains5.2.3 The Employees and Operations5.3 The LBWW After 1750Conclusion6.1 Supplying Houses6.2 Brewers and Other Large Users6.3 Geography of Consumption6.4 Municipal Uses: Fire and CleaningConclusion7.1 The New River Company's Efforts to Maintain Water Quality7.2 Bathing in the New RiverConclusion8.1 Transformations in London to 18208.2 Legacy of the London Water NetworkConclusion

For me, Tomory’s book is relevant to the current water debate: is water a human right that is foundational to other human rights including access to food and sanitation, for example, or is water a commodity like chocolate or coal that should be fully monetized? Examining London’s water industry provides insights into how for-profit water companies worked (and might still work in some cases) and certain inherent problems associated with limiting public access to water, including disease, that led to government takeovers and buyouts of water suppliers in many parts of the world, including London, in the nineteenth century.—Metascience