Gas supply for Canterbury was initiated in 1819 by the Canterbury Gas Light and Coke Company. Up until the provision of water from a new pumping station in Wincheap in 1870, most city gas and water supplies shared the same distribution point in the castle, and shared the same supply trenches. One result of this was the smell of gas that accompanied much of the city’s household water supply. Reliance on gas fell quickly with the advent of a reliable electricity service in city.
Some evidence of the earlier gas fittings and supply pipes can be seen here and there in city streets:
