Water Supplies

Fresh water has always been a vital and essential commodity – and no more so than in places like Aden where the long-term annual rainfall averages not more than around two inches. This article looks at what was available in 1876, the statistics being very largely taken from Major Hunter’s book on Aden published the following year. In due course it is hoped to produce similar articles to bring the reader well into the 20^th Century regarding the availability of water in Aden.

In 1876 the aqueduct from Sheikh Othman was still relatively new. It finished just inside the Isthmus lines where it delivered its water into two large reserve tanks. These tanks were just ESE of the Victoria Bastion. The aqueduct had been constructed in 1867 to bring water from two of the best wells in Sheikh Othman to provide a regular supply of water. Water from these two wells was raised to ground level using Burgess & Key water lifts; nothing much is known about these as regards capacity or how they were powered. Burgess & Key were better known for their ploughs. The original intention had been to extend the aqueduct a further eight miles North of Sheikh Othman to tap the water coming underground in the area of Darab as the quality of water from the Sheikh Othman wells was not good – Hunter describes the aqueduct water was being ‘very indifferent in quality and is only fit for washing in’. That may have been true for himself but for the civilian population there was at times little other choice. Most of the aqueduct water was distributed to the military but limited quantities were available to be bought by the public at a cost of one Rupee for 100 gallons. This was the standard price for well water from any source, and also for water from the Tawela Tanks. There is an inference that as these were the reserve tanks for the garrison issues, including sales, were limited to the daily input from the wells at Sheikh Othman.

Another source was wells within Crater itself, or more to the point at the head of valleys within the crater. Some was good quality water, the sweetest being that from the Banian well located in the Khussaf (or Khoosaf) Valley where wells had been sunk through solid rock to depths of between 120 and 190 feet. The water level in the best well was actually 70 feet below sea level. It could produce up to 2,500 gallons a day. To try to ensure a continued supply from these wells in the mid-1870s it was decided to build two bunde across the gorges in the valley with the aim of helping to retain water after rains to stop it all flowing directly into the sea. It was hoped that some of this retained water would percolate down to the aquifers. In 1874 the Shield Bund was completed at the head of the gorge and a year later the Main Bund a bit further down, the latter being some 213 feet above sea level.

Apart from the two wells supplying the aqueduct, water came from other wells in and around Sheikh Othman and in addition from wells at Hiswah where the wadi-bed reaches the sea. Hiswah at the time was in what was described as ‘neutral ground’. Some of the the Hiswah water was brought over to Maalla in boats, the rest being brought on camels. Nearly 72,000 camel-loads of water were brought in in the year 1875-76, which Hunter reckoned equated to in excess of 3.5 million gallons. This may have been a considerable underestimation as another source quotes each camel as being able to carry between eight and ten 8-gallon skins of water. Taking Hunter’s figure this works out at camels bringing in about half a gallon a day for everyone in the civilian population. The amount being brought by boat across the harbour is not known.

The Tawela Tanks were an abundant source of water after heavy rains. When they were rediscovered in the 1850s it was estimated that if all 50 tanks were cleaned out they could hold around 30 million gallons of water. Or in other words around four gallons a day per person, every day of the year, for a civilian population of 20,000. There were several problems with this equation, the first being that by 1876 only 13 tanks had been restored, with a capacity of 7.7 million gallons. The second problem was that in the 15 years or more prior to 1876 the 13 tanks had only twice been filled to capacity – once in 1864 and again in 1870. Quite often they were bone dry. Another problem was the gradual loss of water over a long period from leaks and evaporation. Water from the Tanks was not free either – the cost was as for duct water, one Rupee per 100 gallons. (see also Cowasjee Dinshaw)

Another dependable source of water was required and this was provided by condensing sea water. Several condensers were ordered from the UK in 1867, the first being installed on the Isthmus and the second at the southern end of Seerah Island, just to the southeast of the causeway. The Isthmus condenser had a daily capacity of 5,600 gallons and the one on Seerah 9,000. Using coal they were not particularly cheap to run and the Seerah condenser would be closed down whenever there was water in the Tawela Tanks. Condensed water was not particularly cheap to buy either, being about three times as expensive as duct or well water. There was a third government condenser, at Steamer Point, which had a daily capacity of 7,000 gallons. This one was on an old river-flat, named the ‘Hyderbad’ that had been converted into a floating condenser that was moored just to the West of the Post Office Pier. As well as the three government condensers there were also three privately-owned ones, primarily to provide water for visiting ships. The P&O condenser, with a nominal capacity of 9,000 gallons was located to the West of Post Office Pier, quite close to the Hyderbad. P&O did not sell water to the public. Luke Thomas had a 12,000 gallon condenser close to the Little Pass (Hedjuff). Although Luke Thomas primarily sold their water to shipping companies (at £1 a ton of 250 gallons delivered on board) they also sold water to the public. The third privately-owned one was at the Maalla bunde and was owned by Eduljee Maneckjee and had a capacity of only 4,000 gallons. It supplied water to country craft and also sold it to the general public.

Steamer Point condenser at the end of the Post Office Pier

One important aspect of supply and demand for water was the water ration per head for the different sections in government employ. British officers and their wives each had a daily ration of 10 gallons. British Other Ranks and their wives and the children of All Ranks were on an allowance of five gallons, as were Indian Other Ranks and their wives, but their children were limited to a ration of three gallons, as were the servants of officers. There was also an allowance for an Officers’ Mess of five gallons per living-in member.

Hunter noted that the daily total capacity of the six condensers (46,600 gallons) could, in an emergency, provide water for 9,320 Europeans each on a daily ration of five gallons. The assumption from this is that there might have been contingency plans for the military to take over the civilian condensers if Aden was under attack and no longer had control of the duct supply (as would happen briefly in 1915 – see Lahej 1915 Part 3)

Bore Water and the Coming of Mains Water

Everyone in government employment received a free ration of water, the amount varying according to their status. Over the years some inequality crept in and to make the allocation as fair as it could be the size of each water ration was eventually dictated by salary bands. In most cases the ration consisted of both condensed and aqueduct (duct) water.  

The Government water contract to distribute and deliver water was awarded on an annual basis. The cost per 100 gallons varied from 8 Annas to 1 Rupee, the latter to deliver duct water from the Isthmus reservoir to Steamer Point. This included delivery, although married officers had to pay for water to be delivered to their quarters.

In 1909 de Brath when he was Resident was keen to enter into a new agreement with the Sultan of Lahej for the latter to provide 600,000 gallons a day of better quality water from new wells that would be dug between Sheikh Othman and Lahej. This water would then be brought in underground pipes to Aden. At this stage the Maalla to Sheikh Othman railway was under consideration and it was decided to extend this to the proposed waterhead to carry all the materials needed. WW1 came before this new project could be realised.

That things did not alter much over the years is shown by the water ration for British troops in 1922. The daily ration for Privates (Fusiliers actually, as the resident battalion was 2^nd Bn The Royal Fusiliers) was three gallons of condensed and two gallons of duct. The former was just sufficient for drinking, cooking and the washing of clothes. Duct water was meant for washing the person but it was so hard it was quite impossible to obtain a lather.

This unsatisfactory situation continued to 1929 when ‘bore’ water became available from new wells in or to the north of Sheikh Othman. (This may explain the extension of the railway towards Lahej). Initially bore water was piped only as far as the Isthmus. This was in June 1929 and when the permanence of the new wells had been fully tested in December bore water was pumped as far as Crater. Bore water was sold at 12 Annas per 100 gallons and, more importantly, by 1929 this was one sixth the cost of condensed water. Soon bore water replaced both condensed and duct water in the daily ration. Although the water ration was increased a little, requests for a significant increase in light of the reduced cost was resisted by the authorities.

The next stage in the modernisation of the water supply was the introduction of mains water. The first main was one put in for the use of Air Ministry installations in Steamer Point. This would appear to date from sometime in 1930 or early 1931. This water was available in Ras Boraldi, the inference being that it was piped directly from Crater. The Settlement (i.e. government departments) were allowed four connections to stand-pipes off the Air Ministry main. One was by the Abkari Pier as a cart filling station. Another was in Post Office Bay at the Air Ministry Works Department stand pipe, also used as a cart filling station. The other two were in the Crescent, one for public use and the other for the gardens in the Crescent.  At this stage the Resident did not have mains water. The photograph below is of a water filling station in about 1955, but one can assume the 1931 filling stations were very similar in design.

Water filling station in about 1955

A civil main in Crater was put in at the end of 1932, but with limited outlets, all of which were metered. For example on hearing of the imminent introduction of a main, the Civil Hospital in Crater asked for a stand-pipe to be put in.