Our next FoWT monthly meeting will take place on Monday 3rd August 2026 – 7.00 pm (19.00 hrs) via Zoom.
“Behind and Beyond Sir Joseph Bazalgette and the London Sewers” by Laurence Scales.
Our guest speaker on the night will be Laurence Scales, who will tell us about “Behind and Beyond Sir Joseph Bazalgette and the London Sewers”.
About the Speaker
This talk by Laurence Scales, who formerly worked in engineering and has latterly been lecturing on the history of science, technology and medicine, has also volunteered in the archives of the Royal Institution and Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce. He traces the story of London’s sewers over centuries including Sir Joseph’s monumental system but also introduces some of his predecessors, contemporaries and successors who deserve some of the credit for cleaning up London and other great cities, including Liverpool.
About the talk
In the 19th century, Sir Joseph Bazalgette banished cholera from London and shielded it from miasmal misery by constructing his robust system of brick bowels, the sewers. He was a fine engineer and public servant, but he did not invent London’s system of intercepting drains, nor did he build a sewer system adequate for the 21st century, or even the 20th. It fell to others to keep up with London’s prodigious waste output.
If you would like to take part in this, or any of FoWT’s future monthly meetings, you will need to register your interest. Once registered, we will e-mail you the details you will need to join the meeting on the night.
To register, Fill in the form on our FoWT Monthly Meeting page and we will do the rest. Once you are on our mailing list to take part in our monthly meetings, look out for our e-mail a few days before the meeting, which will give you all the details you will need to join the meeting.
To see the complete list of talks, presentations and speakers planned for 2026.