Whittinghame
The building of the Whiteadder reservoir in the south brought the greatest environmental change to the parish. Where once the Whiteadder meandered through the land between the hill farms of Millknowe, Penshiel and Priestlaw, forming part of the boundary between Stenton and Whittingehame, the Whiteadder reservoir now forms a sizeable body of water, covering 193 acres (Lothian Regional Council Strategy for Conservation and Recreation 1989 p6). The sites of Millknowe farm (in Stenton parish) and Kingside school (see Education) are now under the water.
The additional water was needed for the Cockenzie power station (due on line in 1968), as well as for future county requirements. Work began in November 1964 (Haddingtonshire Courier 1964 November 13), peaked in 1966, and was completed in 1968; the flooding ceremony was held in May 1968, and the reservoir was officially opened on 3 October 1969. The dam is 89 feet high and 600 feet thick at the base; the reservoir has a capacity of 1,750 million gallons. A second area for flooding was also provided. The consulting engineers were GH Hill & Sons of Manchester, and the main contractors AM Carmichael Ltd. Initiated by the East Lothian Water Board, the reservoir was completed under the auspices of the South-East Scotland Water Board. The project cost £1¾ million, and over 120 men were employed on the project (Haddingtonshire Courier Annual Retrospective for 1968; 1969 October 3); as they were billeted in Haddington, this massive enterprise did not impinge much on the economy of the parish.
Later, the Whiteadder reservoir was registered as a wildlife site of importance by the Scottish Wildlife Trust, being of particular value for geese. It also supports a number of natural brown trout (Lothian Regional Council Strategy pp12,15).