129-545: The Stroudwater Navigation is a canal in Gloucestershire, England which linked Stroud to the River Severn . It was authorised in 1776, although part had already been built, as the proprietors believed that an Act of Parliament ( 3 Geo. 2 . c. 13) obtained in 1730 gave them the necessary powers. Opened in 1779, it was a commercial success, its main cargo being coal. It was 8 miles (13 km) in length and had
258-547: A caisson of water in which boats float while being moved between two levels; and inclined planes where a caisson is hauled up a steep railway. To cross a stream, road or valley (where the delay caused by a flight of locks at either side would be unacceptable) the valley can be spanned by a navigable aqueduct – a famous example in Wales is the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct (now a UNESCO World Heritage Site ) across
387-510: A drainage divide atop a ridge , generally requiring an external water source above the highest elevation . The best-known example of such a canal is the Panama Canal . Many canals have been built at elevations, above valleys and other waterways. Canals with sources of water at a higher level can deliver water to a destination such as a city where water is needed. The Roman Empire 's aqueducts were such water supply canals. The term
516-528: A hydro-electric installation was built. The scheme is expected to generate over 100 MWh per year, and income from the sale of the electricity to the national grid will help to fund ongoing maintenance of the canal. An evaluation cruise was held on 10 November 2017, when the maintenance boat Wookey Hole carried three assessors from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the chief executive from Stroud District Council and their canal project manager,
645-399: A towing path for horses. Some boats sailed along the canal, but most were bow-hauled by men. Framilode Lock at the entrance to the canal was a tide lock, with multiple gates to cope with all states of the tide. When a vessel arrived at the junction, a rope would be taken from it to the shore, and attached to a capstan , which would then be used to haul the boat into the lock. Once the canal
774-415: A "cistern", or depressed area just downstream from the fall, to "cushion" the water by providing a deep pool for its kinetic energy to be diffused in. Vertical falls work for drops of up to 1.5 m in height, and for discharge of up to 15 cubic meters per second. The transport capacity of pack animals and carts is limited. A mule can carry an eighth-ton [250 pounds (113 kg)] maximum load over
903-607: A Society". This was the "first group of non-military engineers in the English-speaking world". He was elected the first president of a Society of Civil Engineers in 1771 which was later called the Smeatonian Society. (This society was to become the Institution of Civil Engineers in 1818.) Yeoman probably made President because of his seniority but it was a position he approached with enthusiasm taking
1032-437: A boat on one level to another on the other side of the weir. An Act was obtained in 1759 which authorized Kemmett and the others to construct the canal without any locks to avoid loss of water to the mills. The Act allowed two years for completion of the scheme, and although some progress had been made by April 1761, Kemmett was given an extension of six years at that time. After about 5 miles (8 km) of river had been improved,
1161-496: A canal has a series of dams and locks that create reservoirs of low speed current flow. These reservoirs are referred to as slack water levels , often just called levels . A canal can be called a navigation canal when it parallels a natural river and shares part of the latter's discharges and drainage basin , and leverages its resources by building dams and locks to increase and lengthen its stretches of slack water levels while staying in its valley . A canal can cut across
1290-599: A charge of £1 (in 2020: £132.00) for the use of each lock. The main cargo carried was coal. In 1788, a group of shareholders set up a coal committee, and began trading. At first, the product came from the Staffordshire coalfields, travelling via the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal , or from the Shropshire coalfields, but this was later supplemented by coal from the south Gloucestershire mines and then
1419-413: A combination of the three, depending on available water and available path: Smaller transportation canals can carry barges or narrowboats , while ship canals allow seagoing ships to travel to an inland port (e.g., Manchester Ship Canal ), or from one sea or ocean to another (e.g., Caledonian Canal , Panama Canal ). At their simplest, canals consist of a trench filled with water. Depending on
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#17327765591411548-546: A commissioner under the Stroudwater Navigation Act 1729, commissioned the engineer Thomas Yeoman to make a new survey in 1754, and his new plan was published the following year. It was for a navigation from Wallbridge to the Severn, estimated to cost £8,145, which would require 16 locks and four stanks (which were probably half-locks or staunches). In order to placate the millers, water for the operation of
1677-749: A dip in the carriage of merchandise in 1810, when the Kennet and Avon Canal opened and provided a more convenient route from Bristol to London, but it picked up again after 1819, when the North Wilts Canal opened, providing a link from Latton near Cricklade to Abingdon via Swindon and the Wilts and Berks Canal , which was easier than using the Thames. The highest dividend paid was in 1833, when shareholders received 26.33 per cent, after which receipts and dividends steadily dropped. In 1859, in order to allow
1806-549: A journey measured in days and weeks, though much more for shorter distances and periods with appropriate rest. Besides, carts need roads. Transport over water is much more efficient and cost-effective for large cargoes. The oldest known canals were irrigation canals, built in Mesopotamia c. 4000 BC , in what is now Iraq . The Indus Valley civilization of ancient India ( c. 3000 BC ) had sophisticated irrigation and storage systems developed, including
1935-521: A line from Swindon to Gloucester in 1845, which passed through Stroud, but the effects on the canal were rather less than the effects on the Thames and Severn. However, in 1863 the Stonehouse and Nailsworth Railway Act was passed, allowing the construction of a railway from Stonehouse to Dudbridge and Nailsworth that directly competed with the canal. Dividends fell below 5 per cent after 1880, although they did not cease entirely until 1922. Around
2064-616: A millwright, surveyor and civil engineer who played a significant part in the early industrial revolution and became the first president of the first engineering society in the world, the Society of Civil Engineers , now known as the Smeatonian Society of Civil Engineers. Although his origin and early life are obscure, he was probably born in Somerset and is first known as a wheelwright skilled in "turning iron & Brass, & making machinery for grinding" recruited by Edward Cave to operate
2193-421: A positive legacy for future generations, and would fund some 90 acres (36 ha) of wildlife habitats to increase bio-diversity, improvements to flood protection in the area, and routes for cycling and walking, in addition to the reinstatement of the canal channel. Progress was rapid, and by late 2020 the channel beneath the roundabout had been constructed and filled with water, with the final stages of reinstating
2322-581: A rather low gradient for its time. The canal is still in use after renovation. In the Middle Ages , water transport was several times cheaper and faster than transport overland. Overland transport by animal drawn conveyances was used around settled areas, but unimproved roads required pack animal trains, usually of mules to carry any degree of mass, and while a mule could carry an eighth ton, it also needed teamsters to tend it and one man could only tend perhaps five mules, meaning overland bulk transport
2451-459: A rise of 102 ft 5 in (31.22 m) through 12 locks . Following the opening of the Thames and Severn Canal in 1789, it formed part of a through route from Bristol to London , although much of its trade vanished when the Kennet and Avon Canal provided a more direct route in 1810. Despite competition from the railways, the canal continued to pay dividends to shareholders until 1922, and
2580-487: A towpath bridge was constructed where the water leaves the canal to enter the River Frome, and a set of floodgates was constructed beyond the weir, to protect the canal from high water levels. In November 2007 work started to clear the canal between Ryeford Double Lock and Oil Mills Bridge. Oil Mills Bridge was rebuilt, with the brickwork left after its demolition being incorporated into the new bridge. By mid-2012, when
2709-784: A tunnel boring machine named Florence was set to work to cut the 5-foot (1.5 m) diameter sewer beneath the canal and the Painswick Stream. Having successfully tunnelled under both waterways, it reached the end of its first 935-foot (285 m) run near Lodgemore Lane in August 2022. A second tunnel boring machine named Suzanne was set to work in July 2022. The new sewers terminate at a combined sewage overflow (CSO) holding tank, 82 feet (25 m) in diameter and 92 feet (28 m) deep, designed to hold excess flow until it can be pumped to Stanley Downton Sewage Treatment works. The project
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#17327765591412838-459: A uniform altitude. Other, generally later, canals took more direct routes requiring the use of various methods to deal with the change in level. Canals have various features to tackle the problem of water supply. In cases, like the Suez Canal, the canal is open to the sea. Where the canal is not at sea level, a number of approaches have been adopted. Taking water from existing rivers or springs
2967-584: A water-powered cotton roller-spinning mill at Northampton in 1741 under licence from Lewis Paul . He was here with his wife Sarah and their son James. Yeoman established himself as a millwright constructing machinery such as ventilators invented by the clergyman Stephen Hales and began to take an active part in Northampton's business. Yeoman was a notable member of the local Baptist Church in College Lane. Yeoman's contribution to society in general
3096-626: A wealthy Turkey Merchant and grandfather of Edward Bouverie , who would later purchase Delapre Abbey . In 1756, Yeoman moved to London where he advertised his services in The Gentleman's Magazine and took up residence in Little Peter Street, Westminster . He had Admiralty contracts to install ventilators both in ships of the fleet and in their naval hospitals. He also ventilated the Drury Lane Theatre and
3225-422: Is a channel that cuts across a drainage divide , making a navigable channel connecting two different drainage basins . Both navigations and canals use engineered structures to improve navigation: Since they cut across drainage divides, canals are more difficult to construct and often need additional improvements, like viaducts and aqueducts to bridge waters over streams and roads, and ways to keep water in
3354-701: Is presumed, introduced in Italy by Bertola da Novate in the 16th century. This allowed wider gates and also removed the height restriction of guillotine locks . To break out of the limitations caused by river valleys, the first summit level canals were developed with the Grand Canal of China in 581–617 AD whilst in Europe the first, also using single locks, was the Stecknitz Canal in Germany in 1398. In
3483-599: Is rarely less than 30 metres (98 ft) wide. In the 5th century BC, Achaemenid king Xerxes I of Persia ordered the construction of the Xerxes Canal through the base of Mount Athos peninsula, Chalkidiki , northern Greece. It was constructed as part of his preparations for the Second Persian invasion of Greece , a part of the Greco-Persian Wars . It is one of the few monuments left by
3612-588: Is rated good or fail. The water quality of the Stroudwater Navigation was as follows in 2019. These two sections are not connected. The upper section ends at Ebley Weir, where most of the water which enters the canal from Slad Brook, Painswick Stream and Ruscombe Brook discharges into the River Frome . The lower section starts a little further along the canal, with the gap between the two sections not monitored in 2019. Like most waterways in
3741-418: Is steeper than the desired canal gradient. They are constructed so the falling water's kinetic energy is dissipated in order to prevent it from scouring the bed and sides of the canal. A canal fall is constructed by cut and fill . It may be combined with a regulator, bridge, or other structure to save costs. There are various types of canal falls, based on their shape. One type is the ogee fall, where
3870-452: Is the pound lock , which consists of a chamber within which the water level can be raised or lowered connecting either two pieces of canal at a different level or the canal with a river or the sea. When there is a hill to be climbed, flights of many locks in short succession may be used. Prior to the development of the pound lock in 984 AD in China by Chhaio Wei-Yo and later in Europe in
3999-623: The A38 road . The roundabout where the A38 joins the A419 road was built over Bristol Road Lock, and part of the route was destroyed by flood relief work for the River Frome , while at Stonehouse, the bridge carrying the Bristol and Gloucester Railway had been replaced by a culvert. A bid to the newly formed Gloucestershire Local Transport Board for its reinstatement, and to create a long-distance footpath along
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4128-658: The Elbe , Oder and Weser being linked by canals. In post-Roman Britain, the first early modern period canal built appears to have been the Exeter Canal , which was surveyed in 1563, and open in 1566. The oldest canal in the European settlements of North America, technically a mill race built for industrial purposes, is Mother Brook between the Boston, Massachusetts neighbourhoods of Dedham and Hyde Park connecting
4257-649: The Environment Agency . Water from the Slad Brook , which is culverted beneath Stroud, joins the Thames and Severn Canal a short distance above Lower Wallbridge Lock, the first on that canal, while the Painswick Stream joins above the Dudbridge Locks, and Ruscombe Brook joins between the two locks. The top gates of the locks had been replaced with concrete dams, which maintained the water level at normal flows around 3.3 feet (1.0 m) lower than
4386-472: The Forest of Dean . This profitable business continued until 1833. Boats that worked the canal included Severn Trows, a type of sailing boat which was fitted with ketch , cutter or sloop rigging. Many were later converted for use as dumb barges by removing the masts, but none are known to have survived to the present day. In 1794, a basin was built above Framilode Lock, so that vessels could wait there until
4515-637: The Houses of Parliament . He was elected to the Society of Arts which was founded by his friend William Shipley in the 1760s. He introduced other members and he was the active chairman of the Committee of Mechanics for many years. On arrival in London he gave evidence to the parliamentary commission for the River Nene and in 1758 was employed as surveyor and engineer on the works. After this his main work
4644-543: The Naviglio Grande built between 1127 and 1257 to connect Milan with the river Ticino . The Naviglio Grande is the most important of the lombard " navigli " and the oldest functioning canal in Europe. Later, canals were built in the Netherlands and Flanders to drain the polders and assist transportation of goods and people. Canal building was revived in this age because of commercial expansion from
4773-545: The Phoenix metropolitan area was the most complex in ancient North America. A portion of the ancient canals has been renovated for the Salt River Project and now helps to supply the city's water. The Sinhalese constructed the 87 km (54 mi) Yodha Ela in 459 A.D. as a part of their extensive irrigation network which functioned in a way of a moving reservoir due to its single banking aspect to manage
4902-528: The River Brue at Northover with Glastonbury Abbey , a distance of about 1.75 kilometres (1,900 yd). Its initial purpose is believed to be the transport of building stone for the abbey, but later it was used for delivering produce, including grain, wine and fish, from the abbey's outlying properties. It remained in use until at least the 14th century, but possibly as late as the mid-16th century. More lasting and of more economic impact were canals like
5031-726: The Severn Estuary (at Framilode) as originally constructed, and terminated in the east at Wallbridge Basin near Stroud town centre. The Thames and Severn Canal bypassed Wallbridge Basin around ten years after this, and continued across Stroud to climb the Golden Valley , following its opening through the Cotswold hills to Lechlade . A junction between the Stroudwater Navigation and the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal (at Saul ) came later when this new ship canal bypassed
5160-614: The Songhai Empire of West Africa, several canals were constructed under Sunni Ali and Askia Muhammad I between Kabara and Timbuktu in the 15th century. These were used primarily for irrigation and transport. Sunni Ali also attempted to construct a canal from the Niger River to Walata to facilitate conquest of the city but his progress was halted when he went to war with the Mossi Kingdoms . Around 1500–1800
5289-577: The Thames and Severn Canal , which depended on the Stroudwater for its link to the River Severn. The National Parks Commission declared that it should be retained for its amenity value and beauty in 1954, but it was closed nevertheless. The publication in 1972 of Lost Canals of England and Wales , a book by Ronald Russell, resulted in a number of canal restoration societies being formed, as it gave details of 78 derelict canals, and suggested that
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5418-556: The reservoirs built at Girnar in 3000 BC. This is the first time that such planned civil project had taken place in the ancient world. In Egypt , canals date back at least to the time of Pepi I Meryre (reigned 2332–2283 BC), who ordered a canal built to bypass the cataract on the Nile near Aswan . In ancient China , large canals for river transport were established as far back as the Spring and Autumn period (8th–5th centuries BC),
5547-404: The stratum the canal passes through, it may be necessary to line the cut with some form of watertight material such as clay or concrete. When this is done with clay, it is known as puddling . Canals need to be level, and while small irregularities in the lie of the land can be dealt with through cuttings and embankments, for larger deviations other approaches have been adopted. The most common
5676-471: The 12th century. River navigations were improved progressively by the use of single, or flash locks . Taking boats through these used large amounts of water leading to conflicts with watermill owners and to correct this, the pound or chamber lock first appeared, in the 10th century in China and in Europe in 1373 in Vreeswijk , Netherlands. Another important development was the mitre gate , which was, it
5805-472: The 15th century, either flash locks consisting of a single gate were used or ramps, sometimes equipped with rollers, were used to change the level. Flash locks were only practical where there was plenty of water available. Locks use a lot of water, so builders have adopted other approaches for situations where little water is available. These include boat lifts , such as the Falkirk Wheel , which use
5934-495: The British merchant fleet. He also first surveyed the river Nene in 1744. Yeoman and his wife had another son, Samuel, before Sarah died in 1746. He married Anne Remington on 18 August 1747 and they had a son Thomas in 1748 and a daughter Anne in 1752. Yeoman’s talents also extended to surveying, which he was already trying his hand at in 1752 when he drew up a map of the estate of the late Bartholomew Clarke of Hardingstone ,
6063-573: The Cotswold Canals Trust is gradually restoring many of the other structures, with the ultimate goal of re-opening a link between the River Thames and the River Severn . The first plans for making the small River Frome navigable date back to the last three years of the 17th century. The plan was to serve the woollen industry, by carrying coal from the Severn to Stroud and transporting the finished cloth away to markets, but it
6192-641: The Cotswold Canals Trust, councils at district and county level, and a number of other interested parties. This provided a suitable structure to drive the restoration forwards. In 2002, the waterway was identified as being of high priority in the Association of Inland Navigation Authorities report entitled Vision for Strategic Enhancement of Britain's Inland Navigation Network , and was one of several new projects highlighted at British Waterways ' Unlocked and Unlimited conference held in March. The estimated cost of
6321-481: The Heritage Lottery Fund and funding from other sources, this was initially expected to be carried out during the May bank holiday weekend in 2021. By early 2021, a large compound had been established close to the railway, where concrete components for the underbridge were being cast. However, investigations into the geology of the site revealed that the bridge would require deeper foundations than planned, and its installation
6450-457: The Heritage Lottery Fund to enable them to plan the project, which it was estimated would cost some £23.4 million. The Heritage Lottery Fund were prepared to provide a large part of this, but the award depended on the Trust raising an additional £1 million to cover a gap in the total funding package. The project included reinstatement of the missing mile of canal destroyed by the building of
6579-498: The Inland Waterways Association held a trailboat festival on the refurbished canal, as part of an event called "Stroud on Water", over 2 miles (3.2 km) of canal from Ocean swingbridge to the bottom of Dudbridge Locks were open for navigation, as was a second section from the top of the locks to the bottom of Wallbridge Locks on the Thames and Severn Canal. As part of the restoration of the Dudbridge Locks,
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#17327765591416708-528: The Institution of Civil Engineers at the 2022 South West Civil Engineering Awards ceremony for the best new build project costing under £8 million. In a separate project, Severn Trent Water started a £25 million upgrade to the sewerage system in Stroud in 2021. One of the driving forces for the project was the fact that the main sewer passed through the canal just below Wallbridge Lock, severely restricting
6837-527: The M5 motorway and the A38 roundabout, which buried Bristol Road Lock. In an unexpected turn of events, Highways England agreed to partially fund this part of the work, which would involve two tunnels, a substantial cutting, and two new locks. Their contribution of £4 million enabled work such as tunnelling, which cannot be done by volunteers, to be brought forward, speeding up the whole project. The money came from their Designated Funds programme, designed to leave
6966-503: The Mayor of Stroud, and the Cotswold Canals Trust chief executive and vice-chair. It travelled from The Ocean at Stonehouse eastwards to Bowbridge Lock, with a stop for lunch at Upper Wallbridge Lock. The cruise enabled the assessors to view the work done and to sign off the Phase 1a project, bringing it to a conclusion. The second phase of the restoration project, initially known as Phase 1b,
7095-590: The Persian Empire in Europe . Greek engineers were also among the first to use canal locks , by which they regulated the water flow in the Ancient Suez Canal as early as the 3rd century BC. There was little experience moving bulk loads by carts, while a pack-horse would [i.e. 'could'] carry only an eighth of a ton. On a soft road a horse might be able to draw 5/8ths of a ton. But if
7224-525: The Phase 1a project, by Stroud District Council and the Homes and Communities Agency . In early 2016, work began on a £210,000 project to restore Junction Lock on the Old Stroudwater at Saul, after a grant of £75,000 was received from the Heritage Lottery Fund. The lock was not made navigable, as the original canal route to the river at Framilode is infilled beyond the bottom gates and not needed since
7353-411: The Phase 1b section at the beginning of 2017, in advance of any funding package being available. The restoration of the section from Stonehouse to Stroud had, by 2017, attracted some £117 million of private investment into the canal corridor since work started in 2006. Additionally, a further £3 million was to be invested in infrastructure improvements at Brimscombe Port, the original terminus for
7482-588: The Purton site began on 24 August 1970, and the works commenced operation in April 1973, providing a new water supply for Bristol. Interest in maintaining the canal for its amenity value began before the canal closed, with the Inland Waterways Association mounting a campaign to retain it when plans to close it were first announced in 1952. They were already formulating plans for the revival of
7611-401: The Severn at Framilode was used much less, although coal from the Forest of Dean still used that route. Traffic, receipts and dividends steadily increased. Tolls rose from £1,468 in 1779 to £6,807 in 1821. The first dividend of 3.75 per cent was paid in 1786, and had reached 15.78 per cent by 1821. Figures for tonnage are not available for the early years, but were 79,359 tons in 1821. There was
7740-476: The Southwest by 1300 CE. Archaeologists working at a major archaeological dig in the 1990s in the Tucson Basin, along the Santa Cruz River, identified a culture and people that may have been the ancestors of the Hohokam. This prehistoric group occupied southern Arizona as early as 2000 BCE, and in the Early Agricultural period grew corn, lived year-round in sedentary villages, and developed sophisticated irrigation canals. The large-scale Hohokam irrigation network in
7869-428: The Stroud Subscription Rooms to the Ballroom, after it appeared that the expected attendance of 20 people might be exceeded. Some 300 people met in the Ballroom, and The Stroudwater Canal Society was formed. This was renamed the Stroudwater, Thames and Severn Canal Trust in April 1975 as the scope of the project expanded, and became the Cotswold Canals Trust in July 1990. Although the Proprietors were initially hostile to
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#17327765591417998-440: The Stroudwater and Thames and Severn Canals should be restored. In 1974 the BBC featured an interview with a local resident, Michael Ayland, who proposed restoration of the waterway, and a chance discussion by him with a reporter for the Bristol Evening Post resulted in the newspaper carrying an article headlined "Exclusive: canal to be reopened to Stroud." Offers to help flooded in, and an initial public meeting had to be moved from
8127-410: The Trust, this gradually changed, and in 1979 granted them permission to start work on the section from Pike Bridge at Eastington to Ryeford, so that a trip-boat could be used on it. As attitudes softened, the Proprietors re-purchased sections of the waterway which had previously been sold off. In 2001, the Cotswold Canals Partnership was established, drawing together people representing the Proprietors,
8256-691: The UK, the chemical status changed from good to fail in 2019, due to the presence of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE), perfluorooctane sulphonate (PFOS) and mercury compounds, none of which had previously been included in the assessment. [REDACTED] Media related to Stroudwater Navigation at Wikimedia Commons Canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation ) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi ). They carry free, calm surface flow under atmospheric pressure , and can be thought of as artificial rivers . In most cases,
8385-417: The assets for the canals, and its charitable status means that stamp duty land tax does not have to be paid. The company will be responsible for management and maintenance of the canal once it is re-opened. In 2013, the Department for Transport was in the process of reorganising how funding for major transport schemes was managed, and this enabled Stroud District Council to submit a bid for £1.5 million to
8514-436: The canal pressure with the influx of water. It was also designed as an elongated reservoir passing through traps creating 66 mini catchments as it flows from Kala Wewa to Thissa Wawa . The canal was not designed for the quick conveying of water from Kala Wewa to Thissa Wawa but to create a mass of water between the two reservoirs, which would in turn provided for agriculture and the use of humans and animals. They also achieved
8643-418: The canal to form a dam. They are generally placed in pre-existing grooves in the canal bank. On more modern canals, "guard locks" or gates were sometimes placed to allow a section of the canal to be quickly closed off, either for maintenance, or to prevent a major loss of water due to a canal breach. A canal fall , or canal drop, is a vertical drop in the canal bed. These are built when the natural ground slope
8772-462: The canal. Where large amounts of goods are loaded or unloaded such as at the end of a canal, a canal basin may be built. This would normally be a section of water wider than the general canal. In some cases, the canal basins contain wharfs and cranes to assist with movement of goods. When a section of the canal needs to be sealed off so it can be drained for maintenance stop planks are frequently used. These consist of planks of wood placed across
8901-409: The channel. There are two broad types of canal: Historically, canals were of immense importance to commerce and the development, growth and vitality of a civilization. In 1855 the Lehigh Canal carried over 1.2 million tons of anthracite coal; by the 1930s the company which built and operated it for over a century ceased operation. The few canals still in operation in our modern age are a fraction of
9030-416: The cloth industry, but opposition from some of the millers, but it seemed to ignore Hore's recommendations, in that it was again based on making the river navigable. As the millers were given powers that would have effectively shut the navigation for two months each year, and the tolls were set at a level that would have discouraged traffic, no further action was taken. John Dallaway, who had been appointed as
9159-410: The depth of water at that point, and the Proprietors argued that Severn Trent had not obtained permission to put the pipe there. Over 2 miles (3.2 km) of main sewer will be replaced by a larger diameter pipe, which will pass under the canal at a lower level, enabling boats that could not pass over the obstruction to do so. The renewal project was expected to be completed by late 2023, and in May 2022,
9288-399: The drop follows an s-shaped curve to create a smooth transition and reduce turbulence . However, this smooth transition does not dissipate the water's kinetic energy, which leads to heavy scouring. As a result, the canal needs to be reinforced with concrete or masonry to protect it from eroding. Another type of canal fall is the vertical fall, which is "simple and economical". These feature
9417-607: The first recorded uses of the term. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1764, described on his application citation as an Inspector of Ventilators in his Majestys Fleet. In 1771 Smeaton and Yeoman were joined Robert Mylne , Joseph Nickalls (1725–1793), John Grundy , John Thompson , and James King at the King's Head in Holborn where they "agreed that the civil engineers of this Kingdom do form themselves into
9546-670: The first summit level canal to use pound locks in Europe was the Briare Canal connecting the Loire and Seine (1642), followed by the more ambitious Canal du Midi (1683) connecting the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. This included a staircase of 8 locks at Béziers , a 157 metres (515 ft) tunnel, and three major aqueducts. Canal building progressed steadily in Germany in the 17th and 18th centuries with three great rivers,
9675-462: The freedom to make deliveries well away from rail lined road beds or ditches in the dirt which could not operate in the winter. The longest extant canal today, the Grand Canal in northern China, still remains in heavy use, especially the portion south of the Yellow River . It stretches from Beijing to Hangzhou at 1,794 kilometres (1,115 miles). Canals are built in one of three ways, or
9804-457: The hazardous tidal Severn, and dramatically reduced traffic on the short 'Old Stroudwater' segment from Saul to the river at Framilode, although it was still used by Forest of Dean coal shipments as the shortest journey. In the modern restoration era, the Old Stroudwater is now permanently abandoned, and very unlikely to be restored as the ship canal offers a safer route in both directions. Download coordinates as: The Environment Agency measure
9933-695: The higher waters of the Charles River and the mouth of the Neponset River and the sea. It was constructed in 1639 to provide water power for mills. In Russia, the Volga–Baltic Waterway , a nationwide canal system connecting the Baltic Sea and Caspian Sea via the Neva and Volga rivers, was opened in 1718. Thomas Yeoman Thomas Yeoman (1709 or 1710 – 23 January 1781) was
10062-521: The lack of investment by partners in the project, was backed by a promise of £3 million from Stroud District Council, £700,000 from Gloucestershire County Council and £675,000 from the Canal & River Trust , who also pledged practical support. In addition, the Cotswold Canals Trust offered financial assistance and volunteer labour. They contribute around 15,000 man hours of labour per year, and started work on channel clearance and investigative surveys on
10191-601: The land around the M5 and the A38 was part of the phase 1 grant by the HLF. Proposals for the A38 involved tunnelling under the Whitminster roundabout; the Bristol Road Lock was buried by the construction of the roundabout, and a new lock would be constructed to the east of it. There were two proposals for passing under the M5 motorway: one was for a new channel alongside the River Frome through an existing culvert, and
10320-498: The load were carried by a barge on a waterway, then up to 30 tons could be drawn by the same horse. — technology historian Ronald W. Clark referring to transport realities before the industrial revolution and the Canal age . Hohokam was a society in the North American Southwest in what is now part of Arizona , United States, and Sonora , Mexico. Their irrigation systems supported the largest population in
10449-451: The lock will be renamed John Robinson Lock when the work is completed. Due to delays, the cost of the restoration has increased, and by mid-2024 was expected to be £30 million. Money is in hand for all of the work between the Ocean railway bridge and John Robinson lock, but there is a shortfall of around £10 million for the section between the lock and Walk Bridge. The canal linked directly to
10578-446: The locks would be provided by a reservoir below Wallbridge, which would cover 2 acres (0.8 ha) and be filled on Sundays, when the mills were inactive and would not be needing the water. Tolls were set at a more realistic level. While support and finance for the scheme were being gained, John Kemmett, Arthur Wynde, James Pynock and Thomas Bridge devised a scheme which used cranes at each mill weir to transfer cargo, stored in boxes, from
10707-480: The longest canal in the world today and the oldest extant one. It is 1,794 kilometres (1,115 mi) long and was built to carry the Emperor Yang Guang between Zhuodu ( Beijing ) and Yuhang ( Hangzhou ). The project began in 605 and was completed in 609, although much of the work combined older canals, the oldest section of the canal existing since at least 486 BC. Even in its narrowest urban sections it
10836-534: The longest one of that period being the Hong Gou (Canal of the Wild Geese), which according to the ancient historian Sima Qian connected the old states of Song, Zhang, Chen, Cai, Cao, and Wei. The Caoyun System of canals was essential for imperial taxation, which was largely assessed in kind and involved enormous shipments of rice and other grains. By far the longest canal was the Grand Canal of China , still
10965-500: The navigable levels. Below the A419 Dudbridge Road Bridge, the water was discharged into the River Frome. As a consequence of its flood relief function, the channel here is classified as a "main river". Designs for reinstatement of the canal had to accommodate large flows on this section, and included underground bywash culverts, capable of carrying the full flood flow of all three streams. A new weir which carries
11094-432: The newly formed Gloucestershire Local Transport Board to fund the replacement of the Ocean railway culvert with a bridge. A second application for £650,000 was made to enable part of the Thames and Severn Way long-distance footpath to be created, specifically, the section from Saul Junction to Chalford. The bids were not successful, however. The effort to reconnect the restored section to the national network at Saul Junction
11223-506: The numbers that once fueled and enabled economic growth, indeed were practically a prerequisite to further urbanization and industrialization. For the movement of bulk raw materials such as coal and ores are difficult and marginally affordable without water transport. Such raw materials fueled the industrial developments and new metallurgy resulting of the spiral of increasing mechanization during 17th–20th century, leading to new research disciplines, new industries and economies of scale, raising
11352-691: The opening of the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal, but new lock gates were fitted, interpretation signs erected, and access was improved. The structure was on the English Heritage "Buildings at Risk" register prior to work starting. By 2018, Phase 1b had been renamed the Cotswold Canals Connected project, as it would connect the isolated section restored under Phase 1a to the national network at Saul Junction. The Cotswold Canals Trust were given an award of £872,000 in 2018 by
11481-528: The other was for a new wider culvert, nearer to the original line of the canal. Below this, the canal used to cross the Frome at Lockham Aqueduct but this was demolished in the 1970s, when the canal and river channel were combined as part of a flood defence scheme. Bids for Heritage Lottery funding were rejected in May 2012 and November 2015. A revised bid was submitted in November 2017, and following criticism of
11610-534: The passage of a coal barge called the Queen Esther , two of the locks were widened. The first threat from a railway came in 1825, when there was a proposal for a line from Framilode Passage to Brimscombe Port. The canal tolls were reduced as a bargaining tool, but the promoters went ahead with their bill. The Stroudwater Company opposed it and it was defeated in Parliament. The Great Western Railway opened
11739-604: The pre-railroad days of the industrial revolution, water transport was the gold standard of fast transportation. The first artificial canal in Western Europe was the Fossa Carolina built at the end of the 8th century under personal supervision of Charlemagne . In Britain, the Glastonbury Canal is believed to be the first post-Roman canal and was built in the middle of the 10th century to link
11868-578: The project to restore both the Stroudwater Navigation and the Thames and Severn Canal was £82 million. Having raised £100,000, the Cotswold Canals Trust lodged the money with the Waterways Trust, in the hope that it could be used as match funding for any grants that might be received. Andy Stumpf became the full-time Regeneration Programme Manager, working on a major bid application to the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to finance
11997-408: The project was achievable and that its costings were realistic, a further £9 million would be released in early 2020. The length to be restored in the first phase, known as Phase 1a, was around 6 miles (9.7 km), and presented some of the biggest difficulties to restoration in the whole 36-mile (58 km) route. Through Dudbridge, the channel had been used as part of a flood relief scheme by
12126-408: The railway embankment could begin. The project was completed on time, and the railway was fully reinstated by 4am on 1 January 2022. The reinstatement of the canal involved constructing a clay lining and realignment of the towpath, followed by a programme of tree planting on the banks. This work was not completed until May, and an official opening took place on 23 May 2022. The new bridge won an award at
12255-403: The restoration, and the canal was visited by Charles, Prince of Wales , in his capacity as Patron of the Waterways Trust. A Heritage Survey, which cost £60,000 and was funded by the Inland Waterways Association , was carried out, as was a Community Development Plan and a Visitor Management Strategy, costing another £30,000, all of which were pre-requisites for the main HLF bid. By the time the bid
12384-405: The river and hence the mills, was put at £16,750, and soon £20,000 had been raised. Deciding that they did not need a new Act of Parliament, since the powers of the Stroudwater Navigation Act 1729 were still valid, Yeoman, who had carried out the 1754 survey, was asked to survey the route again, and a route was selected, which would require 12 locks. Work started, with Samuel Jones as engineer, but he
12513-459: The roundabout well underway. At the Institution of Civil Engineers South West Awards Ceremony 2021, the work was awarded the prize for the best new build project costing under £8 million, and also picked up the People's Choice Award, after an on-line vote. The next major project was for Network Rail to create a passage through the railway embankment at Ocean. With an £8.9 million grant from
12642-412: The route was rejected, but in 2019 the Heritage Lottery Fund made a further grant of £8.9 million towards the section from Ocean to Saul. Highways England also made a grant of £4 million, to fund the construction of the canal under the A38 roundabout, and it is expected that the Stroud section will be linked to the national waterways network at Saul Junction by 2025. Outside the main restoration,
12771-438: The sale of water and some monies produced by property holdings. In the early 1970s, the weirs at Whitminster were modified, so that much of the water flowing down the River Frome could be diverted into the remains of the navigation, below Whitminster Lock, and from there into the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal . This water is abstracted from the canal near Sharpness, and treated by Bristol Water 's Purton Treatment Works. Work on
12900-464: The same time the connection to the Severn at Framilode became blocked, leaving the connection to the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal as the only link between the canal and the River Severn. The last toll was paid in 1941, and most of the canal was formally abandoned by an Act of Parliament granted in 1954. Although this removed the need to maintain the waterway for navigation, the Company of Proprietors
13029-548: The scheme in 2008, due to financial difficulties, and the role of project leader was taken over by Stroud District Council . Following the reorganisation, the Stroud Valleys Canal Company was established in March 2009. It is a limited company, with two independent directors and three directors representing Stroud District Council, the Proprietors, and the Cotswold Canals Trust. Its purpose is to hold
13158-519: The section from 'The Ocean' at Stonehouse to Wallbridge to be reopened, together with the Wallbridge to Hope Mill section of the Thames and Severn. A second bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund for the connection from Stonehouse to the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal at Saul was rejected in 2007. This section presented some engineering challenges, as it was severed by the construction of the M5 motorway and
13287-416: The shareholders, by running up debts, and by using the tolls from the parts of the canal which were already open. Traffic was around 16,000 tons per year, which enabled the company to repay the debts and to declare a first dividend of five per cent in 1786. The locks were suitably sized for Severn Trows , which were 72 by 15.5 feet (21.9 by 4.7 m), and could carry 60 tons. The canal was not provided with
13416-480: The standard of living for any industrialized society. Most ship canals today primarily service bulk cargo and large ship transportation industries, whereas the once critical smaller inland waterways conceived and engineered as boat and barge canals have largely been supplanted and filled in, abandoned and left to deteriorate, or kept in service and staffed by state employees, where dams and locks are maintained for flood control or pleasure boating. Their replacement
13545-421: The tide in the Severn was at a suitable level. This had been requested by the Thames and Severn Canal company, but requests for a horse towing path in 1799 and 1812 were dismissed as too expensive. They eventually provided one after the Gloucester and Berkeley Canal had been built, and the canal was the only part of the waterway from Shrewsbury on the Severn to Teddington on the Thames that did not have one. It
13674-573: The valley of the River Dee . Another option for dealing with hills is to tunnel through them. An example of this approach is the Harecastle Tunnel on the Trent and Mersey Canal . Tunnels are only practical for smaller canals. Some canals attempted to keep changes in level down to a minimum. These canals known as contour canals would take longer, winding routes, along which the land was
13803-498: The water quality of the waterways in England. Each is given an overall ecological status, which may be one of five levels: high, good, moderate, poor and bad. There are several components that are used to determine this, including biological status, which looks at the quantity and varieties of invertebrates , angiosperms and fish. Chemical status, which compares the concentrations of various chemicals against known safe concentrations,
13932-400: The waterway. The project gained popularity, and in 2003, a bid was made to the Heritage Lottery Fund for £82 million to restore both the Stroudwater Navigation and the Thames and Severn Canal. The project had to be split into smaller parts, and only the first phase has so far been funded in this way, when a grant of £11.9 million was confirmed in 2006. With match funding, this enabled
14061-479: The works were abandoned as being too costly. By 1774, canal building was much better understood, and a new attempt was made. The plan was led by Dallaway's son William, who asked Thomas Dadford Jr. (the engineer on the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal ) and John Priddy (who had been the engineer on the Droitwich Canal during its construction) to carry out a survey. The cost of a canal which avoided
14190-606: The writing of poems to support their causes. Work resumed under the supervision of Priddy, but he was soon replaced by Edmund Lingard, who had been the engineer for the Coventry Canal . The canal was opened in stages as it was completed. It reached Chippenham Platt at the end of 1777, Ryeford in January 1779, and it was open throughout to the Wallbridge terminus on 21 July 1779. It had cost £40,930, which had been raised by calling £150 on each £100 share, by borrowing money from
14319-466: Was also expensive, as men expect compensation in the form of wages, room and board. This was because long-haul roads were unpaved, more often than not too narrow for carts, much less wagons, and in poor condition, wending their way through forests, marshy or muddy quagmires as often as unimproved but dry footing. In that era, as today, greater cargoes, especially bulk goods and raw materials , could be transported by ship far more economically than by land; in
14448-458: Was an option in some cases, sometimes supplemented by other methods to deal with seasonal variations in flow. Where such sources were unavailable, reservoirs – either separate from the canal or built into its course – and back pumping were used to provide the required water. In other cases, water pumped from mines was used to feed the canal. In certain cases, extensive "feeder canals" were built to bring water from sources located far from
14577-572: Was as surveyor and engineer on numerous canal and river navigations including the Stort , Lea , Chelmer , Medway , Stroud and Thames . In many of these he worked as an assistant to John Smeaton and a major achievement was the Limehouse Cut which allowed shipping to avoid the sinuous River Lea. As early as 1763 he was described as a "surveyor and civil engineer" by Thomas Mortimer 's Universal Director , together with John Smeaton, one of
14706-480: Was branded as Stroudwater Navigation Connected , and another bid was put before the Heritage Lottery Fund. This was partially successful, when £842,800 was awarded to finance the development phase of the project. This paid for surveys, so that the future impact of the project could be measured, for detailed planning and investigative work, and for gaining approval for the project from the Environment Agency and Natural England . Providing that this work demonstrated that
14835-424: Was completed in August 1827. The opening of the Gloucester and Berkeley Canal in 1825 required a slight diversion where they crossed at Saul, and the levels were adjusted by building a new lock on the Stroudwater below the junction, to ensure neither company lost water to the other; the new company paid for its construction. After the Gloucester and Berkeley Canal opened to Sharpness in 1827, the link between Saul and
14964-583: Was for the section from Stonehouse to the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal at Saul Junction , which had been blocked by the M5 motorway and the A38 road . A bid for £16 million was submitted to the Living Landmarks Fund (part of the Big Lottery Fund ) in August 2006. An interim award of £250,000 was made to allow the bid to be developed, but the application was rejected in November 2007. Despite this setback, money for purchasing
15093-470: Was gradual, beginning first in the United States in the mid-1850s where canal shipping was first augmented by, then began being replaced by using much faster , less geographically constrained & limited, and generally cheaper to maintain railways . By the early 1880s, canals which had little ability to economically compete with rail transport, were off the map. In the next couple of decades, coal
15222-424: Was increasingly diminished as the heating fuel of choice by oil, and growth of coal shipments leveled off. Later, after World War I when motor-trucks came into their own, the last small U.S. barge canals saw a steady decline in cargo ton-miles alongside many railways, the flexibility and steep slope climbing capability of lorries taking over cargo hauling increasingly as road networks were improved, and which also had
15351-454: Was largely complete by April 2024, after which Galliford Try, the contractor for the scheme, will remove the sewer pipes and the existing CSO tank at Wallbridge Lock to allow deeper draught boats to use the canal. The whole of Phase 1b was expected to be completed by 2025,. but by 2024 had been pushed back to 2028. The project involves: Most of the cost of restoring Westfield Lock has been given in remembrance of John Robinson by his family, and
15480-436: Was not disbanded, and retained most of its other powers. It consists of those who now own the original shares, although over half of the shares were transferred to a Trust in the 1950s, which prevents hostile takeovers and ensures that the company will always be run for the benefit of the communities through which the canal passes. After the closure of the canal, the canal company continued to generate income for many years through
15609-474: Was not finally abandoned until 1954. Even before its closure, there was interest in retaining the canal for its amenity value. The Stroudwater Canal Society, which later became the Cotswold Canals Trust , was formed in 1972. Following initial hostility from the Proprietors, who had not been stripped of their powers when the canal had closed, agreement was reached and work began on restoration of
15738-426: Was once used to describe linear features seen on the surface of Mars , Martian canals , an optical illusion. A navigation is a series of channels that run roughly parallel to the valley and stream bed of an unimproved river. A navigation always shares the drainage basin of the river. A vessel uses the calm parts of the river itself as well as improvements, traversing the same changes in height. A true canal
15867-407: Was open, the Proprietors worked hard to improve the facilities, and a number of warehouses were built. Many of the shareholders were also involved with the Thames and Severn Canal scheme, which was completed in 1789 and provided a through route between Wallbridge and the River Thames at Lechlade . The navigation was seen as a commercial waterway; pleasure boats were discouraged by the imposition of
15996-468: Was opposed by mill owners, and it came to nothing. The idea was revived in 1728, when John Hore , who had previously succeeded in making the River Kennet navigable, suggested a canal around 8.2 miles (13.2 km) long, with 12 locks, suitable for 60-ton barges. An Act of Parliament , the Stroudwater Navigation Act 1729 ( 3 Geo. 2 . c. 13), was obtained in 1730, with support from those who worked in
16125-547: Was put back to the period between Christmas 2021 and New Year. Work began on 24 December 2021 after 250 yards (230 m) of the canal had been drained and fish moved to another part of the canal. Using the largest mobile crane available in Britain, to ensure that the operation was unlikely to be interrupted by high winds, the eight concrete box sections forming the bridge, with their associated wing walls and parapets, had been craned into position by 29 December so that rebuilding of
16254-482: Was ready for submission, the HLF were under pressure for the funds they had, and asked British Waterways, who were heading up the application, to break the bid and the project into smaller phases. At the end of 2003, a provisional grant of £11.3 million was awarded by the HLF, to enable the restoration of the Stroudwater Navigation between Stonehouse and Wallbridge, and the Thames and Severn Canal between Wallbridge and Brimscombe Port. An additional £2.9 million
16383-554: Was received from the European Inter-Regional budget for this first phase. By the time the grant was awarded in January 2006, it had risen to £11.9 million, and a further £6 million of match funding was received from the South West of England Regional Development Agency . As part of the process, the Proprietors leased the canal to British Waterways in 2005. However, British Waterways had to withdraw from
16512-539: Was replaced by Priddy within a month. A challenge to the legality of building a canal under the Stroudwater Navigation Act 1729 was mounted by landowners and millers in 1775. An injunction was obtained, and the Gloucestershire Assizes ruled that the Act did not cover the work. A new Act was obtained on 25 March 1776, authorising the raising of £20,000 and an extra £10,000 if required. Both sides commissioned
16641-497: Was rewarded when he became president of the Northampton Philosophical Society. This society met in his house and included the inventor William Shipley and nonconformist leader Philip Doddridge among its members. As his social standing rose he moved first to Gold Street, where he built and sold scientific instruments, and then to Bridge Street. His ventilators sold as far as Rotterdam, for use on
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