ABSTRACT
Water has been brought steadily ‘under control’, with its enclosure concretised by new technology at every stage. A historical perspective on water use and management in Dorset elucidates some of these changes, and their bearing upon the way in which people think about and evaluate water. The Romans introduced water wheels and mills, establishing an important idea of water as a creator of physical energy – a generative force for economic growth. The medieval period saw a steady increase in the physical management of water, with the creation of communal supplies in settlements and the construction of small dams, weirs and mills to reuse water energy over and over again. Consideration of the importance of ‘water carriers’ highlights some of the gender issues that have accompanied changes in water management. The small-scale farming, industry and settlement that characterised the Stour until the 1600s placed little pressure on water resources.
