Oxford is built at the confluence of three rivers – the Evenlode, the Cherwell and the Thames – with four other watercourses contributing to the flow. These rivers form a single floodplain at South Oxford that funnels through a narrow outlet south of Abingdon Road.
Records show that from 1692 to 1900 serious flooding from the River Thames occurred every ten to twenty years. The fields around Oxford frequently remained flooded through winter. When they froze it was possible to skate for miles around the city. The worst months were November and December with snow thaw making January also precarious. Historians have found that the floods of 1852, 1875, and 1894 were particularly severe.
During the 19th Century, the arrival of the railway in Oxford also brought development to South Oxford. The first railway line terminated just south of Folly Bridge at Grandpont, on what is now the corner of Marlborough and Western Roads. However on 4th December 1852, a flood across the tracks brought a train to a halt, leading to rail passengers being rowed to and from the station to the city for several days.
Further work on the railway line was carried out to raise it above the flood level using gravel dug from the Hinksey area. This left a hole that was naturally filled in with groundwater, and created what is now Hinksey Lake. The Grandpont terminal was closed in 1872, and the land at Grandpont was sold for housing, now possible because the properties and surrounding roads had been raised above the high-water mark.
At the turn of the 20th Century, however, people appear to have been aware that construction on the floodplain was making the situation worse. Thomas Kingerlee, a leading property developer in the area and mayor of Oxford (1898/1899 and 1911/1912), notes that though previous floods might have been bad, the area “now had hundreds of houses built on the low-lying districts to contend with” (Oxford City Council website).
The locks on the Thames built after 1900 appear to have moderated the high waters, with a lull in flooding between 1903 and 1947. However, a flood in March 1947 was so severe that it reached new heights. A report by PP Griffiths stated at the time: “In modern times …, the flood of 1947 was unique for its volume and persistence … Oxford, Reading, Maidenhead and Windsor – all the towns of the Thames Valley suffered gravely.”
Further soakings were recorded in 1954, 1959, 1979, and 1998. They were all minor in comparison, however, lulling many developers into a false sense of security. The ring road, with its bridges over the Thames and Hinksey Stream, was completed in 1966 with no consideration for the flood channel, further restricting the river’s release valve at the southern end of Abingdon Road. Building continued in Kennington, New Hinksey, South Hinksey and beyond. Botley Road and the Old Abingdon Road were raised, creating more barriers.
In December 2000, about 160 homes on the Thames floodplain in the city suffered internal flooding. The waters returned in January 2003, when about 250 properties were flooded, forcing the local authorities to consider protective measures.
Then in July 2007, a major storm resulted in as much as 140 mm falling in 24 hours on parts of the Thames catchment above Oxford. Two hundred and fifty homes in the west were evacuated, with about 600 people taking shelter at the Kassam Stadium. Abingdon and Botley Roads were closed and businesses suffered. Gordon Brown, the prime minister at the time, ordered the Pitt Review, which resulted in some improvements in flood risk management, including early flood warnings and new defence schemes.
The floods returned in January 2014, but the city council was better prepared. A barrier was raised at Hinksey Lake, to stop water flowing east down Lake Street and Vicarage Road, and protecting, amongst others, St John the Evangelist church and Vicarage Lane. A pump kept the houses dry but Abingdon Road was closed once again and buses diverted. Rail services were also disrupted.
The winter of 2023/2024 became the eighth wettest on record, with a series of storms battering the country. By early January, Abingdon and Botley Roads were flooded and South Oxford was under threat as lake levels rose. The barriers on Hinksey Lake were put in place but waters receded before severe damage was caused.
If you would like to join the SOFLAG coordinating group, be kept up to date during flood events, or if you have photographs to send, please email southoxfordfloodaction@gmail.com
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