Berkshire Record Office (BRO) has placed high resolution digitised copies of Reading’s Board of Health maps on their website. The maps, produced in 1853 by Borough surveyor John Clancy, are an exceptionally detailed and useful record of the town.
BRO say:
‘Each map shows the detail of sanitary provision in Reading Borough, as surveyed in 1853. The Borough’s boundaries were smaller and so some areas of modern Reading – such as Caversham and Tilehurst – are not shown. Roughly the boundaries are Oxford Road to the west, Reading railway station to the north, London Road to the east, Southampton Street and Whitley Street to the south.‘
As well as buildings and structures above ground the maps show wells, drains and culverted streams and brooks such as Holy Brook in the town centre.
Funding was provided by Reading High Streets Heritage Action Zone project.
The maps can be found here: Reading Board of Health Maps 1853
Reading Conservation Area Advisory Committee 