Carfax Conduit

{{Short description|Water conduit in England}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2017}}

{{Use British English|date=March 2017}}

File:Carfax Conduit building.jpg, Oxfordshire]]

The Carfax Conduit was a water conduit that supplied the city of Oxford with water from 1610 until 1869.

The conduit ran in an underground lead pipe from a spring on the hillside above the village of North Hinksey, beneath Seacourt Stream and the River Thames, to a building at Carfax in the centre of Oxford. The system was built by Otho Nicholson, a London lawyer, to supply the citizens of Oxford with clean water. It replaced a system built by Osney Abbey between 1205 and 1221 that had fallen into disrepair.Hanson, W.J. (1996) A Thousand Years: a study of the interaction between people and environment in the Cumnor, Wytham and North Hinksey Area Wytham Publications, p.22

The conduit building at Carfax was an elaborate structure, some {{convert|40|ft|m}} tall, with eight niches containing statues of historic and mythical figures. By 1787 it had become an obstacle to traffic and it was removed in 1797 and replaced by a smaller cistern. The original structure was given to the Earl Harcourt, who had it re-erected in the grounds of his home, Nuneham House, where it remains to this day.[http://www.follytowers.com/carfax.html Follies and Monuments website] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080515231253/http://www.follytowers.com/carfax.html |date=15 May 2008 }} Two plaques are attached to opposite sides of the building, giving a short history in English and Latin.[https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Carfax_Conduit_building_plaque.jpg Photograph of the English plaque] The re-erected conduit is a Grade I listed building{{NHLE |num=1193569|grade=I |desc=Carfax Conduit |accessdate=12 January 2021}} and scheduled monument.{{NHLE |num=1020965 |fewer-links=yes |desc=Carfax Conduit, 540m south west of Nuneham House |accessdate=12 January 2021}}

A building, now called the Conduit House, was built at Harcourt Hill over the spring. It remains in situ and is in the care of English Heritage.[https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/north-hinksey-conduit-house/ English Heritage website] The Conduit House site is designated as a Grade II* listed building{{NHLE |num=1048315 |grade=II* |desc=Well house, approximately 160 metres south east of The Fold |fewer-links=yes |accessdate=12 January 2021}} and a scheduled monument.{{NHLE |num=1015158 |fewer-links=yes |desc=North Hinksey conduit house |accessdate=12 January 2021}}

The entire system fell into disuse in the 19th century. In 1869, when it was carrying very little water, the conduit was sold to Oxford Corporation.[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=22819 Victoria County History of Oxfordshire: Water Supply]