It was inaugurated in 1907 and stores up to 2,180 million litres of raw water abstracted from the River Thames prior to its treatment and supply to London and north Surrey.

In 1898 the Southwark and Vauxhall Waterworks Company operated a water works at Hampton, Middlesex.

To increase the raw water storage capacity the company sought legal powers to construct two reservoirs across the river from the Hampton works.

c. cxv)[2] which empowered the company to build two storage reservoirs; an intake from the river Thames; a pump house, and filter beds.

[1] The Knight and Bessborough reservoirs have a combined area of 125.5 acres (0.508 km2) and hold 1,198 million gallons.

[6] There were four lift pumps which were originally driven by triple-expansion steam engines each rated at 373 kW at 135 rpm.

[6] The reservoirs allowed some settlement of suspended solids, biological cleaning through exposure to sunlight, and provided a buffer storage volume to maintain capacity at times of low flow in the river.

Further plant was added as the demand for water grew, and when the Queen Elizabeth II reservoir was commissioned in 1962.