143-424: Peckforton is a scattered settlement (centred at SJ538564 ) and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire , England. The settlement is located 6.5 miles (10.5 km) to the north east of Malpas and 7.5 miles (12.1 km) to the west of Nantwich . The civil parish covers 1,754 acres (710 ha), with an estimated total population of 150 in 2006. The area
286-522: A London borough . (Since the new county was beforehand a mixture of metropolitan boroughs , municipal boroughs and urban districts, no extant parish councils were abolished.) In 1974, the Local Government Act 1972 retained rural parishes, but abolished most urban parishes, as well as the urban districts and boroughs which had administered them. Provision was made for smaller urban districts and boroughs to become successor parishes , with
429-620: A Site of Special Scientific Interest , and the hills have also been designated county sites of biological importance for their woodland and grassland habitats. The Peckforton Hills are the source of the Weaver and the Gowy rivers; the Weaver flows southwards through the parish, while the Gowy flows northwards. To the east of Stone House Lane, the land is gently undulating with an elevation mainly within
572-531: A Site of Special Scientific Interest . The hills have been quarried since the Roman era. Peckforton appears in the Domesday survey of 1086. The earliest surviving buildings date from the early 17th century. Peckforton and the adjacent Beeston were part of an estate purchased by John Tollemache, Lord Tollemache in 1840. He had Peckforton Castle – a Victorian mansion designed by Anthony Salvin in imitation of
715-417: A civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government . It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes , which for centuries were the principal unit of secular and religious administration in most of England and Wales. Civil and religious parishes were formally split into two types in
858-534: A scheduled monument in 1994, and work eventually started on its refurbishment in 1999. It reopened in 2002, and is once more hydraulically powered. The use of modern hydraulic fluids is expected to prevent the problem of corrosion suffered when it was originally built. The navigation is managed by the Canal and River Trust (CRT) as far as Winsford Bridge. Beyond this are Winsford Bottom Flash and Winsford Top Flash. Both are shallow lakes , resulting from subsidence in
1001-515: A Special Expense, to residents of the unparished area to fund those activities. If the district council does not opt to make a Special Expenses charge, there is an element of double taxation of residents of parished areas, because services provided to residents of the unparished area are funded by council tax paid by residents of the whole district, rather than only by residents of the unparished area. Parish councils comprise volunteer councillors who are elected to serve for four years. Decisions of
1144-576: A boundary coterminous with an existing urban district or borough or, if divided by a new district boundary, as much as was comprised in a single district. There were 300 such successor parishes established. In urban areas that were considered too large to be single parishes, the parishes were simply abolished, and they became unparished areas . The distinction between types of parish was no longer made; whether parishes continued by virtue of being retained rural parishes or were created as successor parishes, they were all simply termed parishes. The 1972 act allowed
1287-471: A chemical industry developed in the area around Northwich, which became the major source of income for the Navigation. The locks on the river are paired, with two lock chambers side by side, and in most cases the larger lock also has intermediate gates, so that ships of varying length can be accommodated, without undue waste of water. The maximum size of the locks is 196 by 35 feet (60 by 11 m) above
1430-477: A city council (though most cities are not parishes but principal areas, or in England specifically metropolitan boroughs or non-metropolitan districts ). The chairman of a town council will have the title "town mayor" and that of a parish council which is a city will usually have the title of mayor . When a city or town has been abolished as a borough, and it is considered desirable to maintain continuity of
1573-462: A city council. According to the Department for Communities and Local Government , in England in 2011 there were 9,946 parishes. Since 1997 around 100 new civil parishes have been created, in some cases by splitting existing civil parishes, but mostly by creating new ones from unparished areas. Parish or town councils have very few statutory duties (things they are required to do by law) but have
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#17327870756101716-559: A city was Hereford , whose city council was merged in 1998 to form a unitary Herefordshire . The area of the city of Hereford remained unparished until 2000 when a parish council was created for the city. As another example, the charter trustees for the City of Bath make up the majority of the councillors on Bath and North East Somerset Council. Civil parishes cover 35% of England's population, with one in Greater London and few in
1859-481: A civil parish which has no parish council, the parish meeting may levy a council tax precept for expenditure relating to specific functions, powers and rights which have been conferred on it by legislation. In places where there is no civil parish ( unparished areas ), the administration of the activities normally undertaken by the parish becomes the responsibility of the district or borough council. The district council may make an additional council tax charge, known as
2002-455: A different arch of the structure. The weir at Frodsham was built in 1785, although it has been altered subsequently. The main curved section is 49 yards (45 m) wide, and there are two 16-foot (5 m) sluices at the southern end. The adjacent lock, which was designed by Robert Pownall and George Leigh in 1781, was modified in 1830 and later, but most traffic was using the Weston cut by
2145-465: A grade-II*-listed farmhouse dating from the late 17th century. In red brick with a slate roof, the hall has twin gabled bays with a later ungabled wing. The nearby former farm building of the same date is timber-framed with a mixture of stone, brick and oak boarding; it is also listed at grade II. Several former Peckforton Estate cottages, built for John Tollemache in around 1860, are listed at grade II. Constructed in red or brown brick, they typically have
2288-400: A hydraulic system. A descending tank caused hydraulic fluid to enter the pistons which raised the other tank. The design was a success, but the fluid became contaminated, resulting in corrosion of the pistons. The lift was replaced by a new design, where each tank was attached to its own counterbalance weight by wire ropes and pulleys, with small electric motors to overcome friction. The new lift
2431-474: A lock built on the Barnton cut between 1832 and 1835. The Pelton turbines which control the gates were built to Stoney's patent, and carry plates which indicate that they were manufactured by Hanna, Donald & Wilson of Paisley . Acton swing bridge is a symmetrical bowstring girder swing bridge, which was built in situ between 1931 and 1933, on an island in the centre of the river. It was first swung across
2574-603: A loss of trade, which resulted in Bills laid before Parliament in 1711, 1715, 1718 and 1720 being defeated. In 1720 the first act of Parliament , the River Weaver Navigation Act 1720 ( 7 Geo. 1. St. 1 . c. 10) to authorise improvements to the river was obtained by three gentlemen of Cheshire. The act was dated 23 March 1721 and authorised work between Frodsham bridge and Winsford bridge. Rates for tolls were set, which were to be reduced by 20 per cent once
2717-556: A medieval castle – built at the northern end of the Peckforton ridge. Many of the local buildings were constructed for Lord Tollemache using brick in the 1860s and 1870s as part of the Peckforton Estate. The Peckforton Hills were quarried during the Roman era. Peckforton appears in the Domesday survey of 1086, when it was held by Wulfric (possibly Wulfric Spot ). The survey lists land for two ploughs. Peckforton fell in
2860-529: A new code. In either case the code must comply with the Nolan Principles of Public Life . A parish can be granted city status by the Crown . As of 2020 , eight parishes in England have city status, each having a long-established Anglican cathedral: Chichester , Ely , Hereford , Lichfield , Ripon , Salisbury , Truro and Wells . The council of an ungrouped parish may pass a resolution giving
3003-504: A new cut, lock and weir at Pickerings, but in 1759, the navigation was cut in half by the collapse of a salt pit at Northwich. The commissioners discovered that they could not sue for damages, as the provisions of the 1721 act no longer covered the way in which they were operating, and so a further act of Parliament, the River Weaver Navigation Act 1759 ( 33 Geo. 2 . c. 49) was obtained on 22 May 1760. This changed
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#17327870756103146-541: A new lock connected the cut to a basin, and tide gates connect the basin to the Mersey. This cut was called the Weston Canal and was completed in 1810. A fourth act of Parliament was obtained on 2 May 1825, which altered some of the details of the previous act of Parliament, and the River Weaver Navigation Act 1829 ( 10 Geo. 4 . c. lxx) of 22 May 1829 noted that the Weston Canal had been completed. It stated that
3289-431: A new smaller manor, there was a means of making a chapel which, if generating or endowed with enough funds, would generally justify foundation of a parish, with its own parish priest (and in latter centuries vestry ). This consistency was a result of canon law which prized the status quo in issues between local churches and so made boundary changes and sub-division difficult. The consistency of these boundaries until
3432-689: A parish (a "detached part") was in a different county . In other cases, counties surrounded a whole parish meaning it was in an unconnected, "alien" county. These anomalies resulted in a highly localised difference in applicable representatives on the national level , justices of the peace , sheriffs, bailiffs with inconvenience to the inhabitants. If a parish was split then churchwardens, highway wardens and constables would also spend more time or money travelling large distances. Some parishes straddled two or more counties, such as Todmorden in Lancashire and Yorkshire. River Weaver The River Weaver
3575-416: A parish council, and instead will only have a parish meeting : an example of direct democracy . Alternatively several small parishes can be grouped together and share a common parish council, or even a common parish meeting. A parish council may decide to call itself a town council, village council, community council, neighbourhood council, or if the parish has city status, the parish council may call itself
3718-431: A population in excess of 100,000 . This scope is similar to that of municipalities in continental Europe, such as the communes of France . However, unlike their continental European counterparts, parish councils are not principal authorities , and in most cases have a relatively minor role in local government. As of September 2023 , there are 10,464 parishes in England, and in 2020 they covered approximately 40% of
3861-503: A population of between 100 and 300 could request their county council to establish a parish council. Provision was also made for a grouped parish council to be established covering two or more rural parishes. In such groups, each parish retained its own parish meeting which could vote to leave the group, but otherwise the grouped parish council acted across the combined area of the parishes included. Urban civil parishes were not given their own parish councils, but were directly administered by
4004-1079: A range of discretionary powers which they may exercise voluntarily. These powers have been defined by various pieces of legislation. The role they play can vary significantly depending on the size, resources and ability of the council, but their activities can include any of the following: Parish councils have powers to provide and manage various local facilities; these can include allotments , cemeteries, parks, playgrounds, playing fields and village greens , village halls or community centres , bus shelters, street lighting, roadside verges, car parks, footpaths, litter bins and war memorials. Larger parish councils may also be involved in running markets , public toilets and public clocks, museums and leisure centres . Parish councils may spend money on various things they deem to be beneficial to their communities, such as providing grants to local community groups or local projects, or fund things such as public events, crime prevention measures, community transport schemes, traffic calming or tourism promotion. Parish councils have
4147-409: A role in the planning system; they have a statutory right to be consulted on any planning applications in their areas. They may also produce a neighbourhood plan to influence local development. The Localism Act 2011 allowed eligible parish councils to be granted a " general power of competence " which allows them within certain limits the freedom to do anything an individual can do provided it
4290-598: A set number of guardians for each parish, hence a final purpose of urban civil parishes. With the abolition of the Poor Law system in 1930, urban parishes became a geographical division only with no administrative power; that was exercised at the urban district or borough council level. In 1965 civil parishes in London were formally abolished when Greater London was created, as the legislative framework for Greater London did not make provision for any local government body below
4433-477: A single storey with an attic and feature lozenge windows and prominent chimney stacks. Examples include Fountain Cottages, Green Cottage and Mill Beck Cottage. Manor Farm ( SJ540564 ) stands on Peckforton Hall Lane at the east of the village and is typical of farmhouses built for the Peckforton Estate. The farmhouse dates from around 1870 and is in red brick with three bays, lozenge windows and timber studding to
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4576-943: A small village or town ward to a large tract of mostly uninhabited moorland in the Cheviots, Pennines or Dartmoor. The two largest as at December 2023 are Stanhope (County Durham) at 98.6 square miles (255 km ), and Dartmoor Forest (Devon) at 79.07 square miles (204.8 km ). The two smallest are parcels of shared rural land: Lands Common to Axminster and Kilmington (Devon) at 0.012 square miles (0.031 km ; 3.1 ha; 7.7 acres), and Lands Common to Brancepeth and Brandon and Byshottles (County Durham) at 0.0165 square miles (0.043 km ; 4.3 ha; 10.6 acres). The next two smallest are parishes in built up areas: Chester Castle (Cheshire) at 0.0168 square miles (0.044 km ; 4.4 ha; 10.8 acres) (no recorded population) and Hamilton Lea (Leicestershire) at 0.07 square miles (0.18 km ; 18 ha; 45 acres) (1,021 residents at
4719-524: A south-easterly direction towards the border with Shropshire , fed by tributaries some of which rise in north Shropshire. The first of three canal crossings occurs just before the village of Wrenbury , when the Llangollen Canal crosses its course. After flowing through the village, it passes to the west of the Cheshire village of Audlem , where it starts to flow approximately northwards across
4862-521: A spur to the creation of new parishes in some larger towns which were previously unparished, in order to retain a local tier of government; examples include Shrewsbury (2009), Salisbury (2009), Crewe (2013) and Weymouth (2019). In 2003 seven new parish councils were set up for Burton upon Trent , and in 2001 the Milton Keynes urban area became entirely parished, with ten new parishes being created. Parishes can also be abolished where there
5005-432: A survey. The merchants then offered to take over the navigation, but the commissioners wanted to keep control of it, and paid £17,000 to the undertakers, which repaid the outstanding debt and bought the navigation rights. The deal was completed on 11 October 1758. The commissioners largely ignored the survey which had been carried out by Henry Berry, and decided to enlarge the locks to 17.3 feet (5.3 m) wide. Work began on
5148-428: A swing bridge crosses the lock. The gates are opened by a Pelton water turbine mechanism, and other features include a water levelling mechanism and a system for removing rubbish from behind the gates using jets of water which are controlled mechanically. The lock keeper's cottage is also grade II listed. It was built in the 1850s, but was moved northwards by 20 yards (18 m) during the 1890 reconstruction. Below
5291-427: A two-storey lodge attached. Both buildings are listed at grade II*. A red sandstone carving depicting an elephant bearing a castle stands in a garden on Stone House Lane in Peckforton village. It dates from around 1859 and is listed at grade II . It was carved by John or William Watson, a local stonemason then working on Peckforton Castle who also carved stone lions now at Spurstow and Tattenhall . The elephant and
5434-487: Is a river, navigable in its lower reaches, running in a curving route anti-clockwise across west Cheshire , northern England . Improvements to the river to make it navigable were authorised in 1720 and the work, which included eleven locks , was completed in 1732. An unusual clause in the enabling Act of Parliament stipulated that profits should be given to the County of Cheshire for the improvement of roads and bridges, but
5577-507: Is at present the only part of England where civil parishes cannot be created. If enough electors in the area of a proposed new parish (ranging from 50% in an area with less than 500 electors to 10% in one with more than 2,500) sign a petition demanding its creation, then the local district council or unitary authority must consider the proposal. Since the beginning of the 21st century, numerous parish councils have been created, including some relatively large urban ones. The main driver has been
5720-539: Is evidence that this is in response to "justified, clear and sustained local support" from the area's inhabitants. Examples are Birtley , which was abolished in 2006, and Southsea , abolished in 2010. Every civil parish has a parish meeting, which all the electors of the parish are entitled to attend. Generally a meeting is held once a year. A civil parish may have a parish council which exercises various local responsibilities prescribed by statute. Parishes with fewer than 200 electors are usually deemed too small to have
5863-459: Is larger, with eight arches each carrying a sluice gate. Where the weir stream rejoins the main channel, the towpath is carried over it on Horse Bridge , which was designed by J. A. Saner, the Navigation's engineer, in 1915, and erected in 1916. It is one of the earliest surviving laminated timber structures, and consists of two arches, both over 100 feet (30 m) long. Below the locks, Joseph Locke and George Stephenson built another viaduct for
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6006-555: Is near Northwich , and links the Weaver with the Trent and Mersey Canal some 50 feet (15 m) above. It was opened in 1875, to allow canal boats to reach the Weaver, and although closed on safety grounds in 1983, it was refurbished and reopened in 2002. Many of the structures of the navigation are of historical importance, and are grade II listed . They include the Hayhurst swing bridge and Northwich Town bridge, which are believed to be
6149-405: Is not prohibited by other legislation, as opposed to being limited to the powers explicitly granted to them by law. To be eligible for this, a parish council must meet certain conditions such as having a clerk with suitable qualifications. Parish councils receive funding by levying a " precept " on the council tax paid by the residents of the parish (or parishes) served by the parish council. In
6292-523: Is often associated with public houses, but there has never been a pub called The Elephant and the Castle in Peckforton. An elephant also appears in the arms of the Corbett family, local landowners before 1626. According to one source, the carving was originally intended as a beehive, although there is no evidence it has ever been used as one. Peckforton has a diverse collection of listed buildings . Probably
6435-573: Is possible for pleasure craft to reach the Weaver from the Ship Canal, it is a commercial waterway, and most leisure users are dissuaded from doing so by the amount of paperwork and the requirements of the operating company. Situated just below Northwich, the Anderton Boat Lift is now the normal route for leisure boats to reach the river. Following its closure in 1983, a trust was created to campaign for its restoration. The lift became
6578-461: Is predominantly agricultural. Nearby villages include Bulkeley to the south, Beeston to the north, Higher Burwardsley to the west, Spurstow to the east and Bunbury to the north east. The Peckforton Hills form the western part of the civil parish with high points at Peckforton Point (203 metres) and Stanner Nab (200 metres). They are the source of the Weaver and Gowy rivers. Part of Peckforton Woods, largely planted in 1922, form
6721-456: Is rated good or fail. The water quality of the Weaver was as follows in 2019. Reasons for not achieving good quality include agricultural runoff and the discharge of treated effluent from sewage treatment works along the length of the river. Chemical status was rated good until 2016, but is now rated fail, largely due to the presence of polybrominated diphenyl ethers , which are used as flame retardants in many products, mercury compounds, and
6864-504: The 'Standards Board regime' with local monitoring by district, unitary or equivalent authorities. Under new regulations which came into effect in 2012 all parish councils in England are required to adopt a code of conduct with which parish councillors must comply, and to promote and maintain high standards. A new criminal offence of failing to comply with statutory requirements was introduced. More than one 'model code' has been published, and councils are free to modify an existing code or adopt
7007-493: The Ellesmere and Chester Canal in 1830, but felt that water supply would be a problem. New cuts were constructed at Barnton, Crowton and Aston Grange between 1832 and 1835, and they then planned to construct a second lock beside each of the original locks. William Cubbitt was asked for advice on whether the river could be adapted for seagoing ships, and although he said it could, he did not think it would be cost effective. Work
7150-1010: The Local Government Act 1894 ( 56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) to become the smallest geographical area for local government in rural areas. The act abolished the civil (non-ecclesiastical) duties of vestries . Parishes which straddled county boundaries or sanitary districts had to be split so that the part in each urban or rural sanitary district became a separate parish (see List of county exclaves in England and Wales 1844–1974 ). The sanitary districts were then reconstituted as urban districts and rural districts , with parishes that fell within urban districts classed as urban parishes, and parishes that fell within rural districts were classed as rural parishes. The 1894 act established elected civil parish councils as to all rural parishes with more than 300 electors, and established annual parish meetings in all rural parishes. Civil parishes were grouped to form either rural or urban districts which are thereafter classified as either type. The parish meetings for parishes with
7293-590: The Manchester Ship Canal was opened in 1894. The tidal section of the river below Frodsham now flowed into the ship canal, rather than the River Mersey, and the exit lock from Weston Docks also joined the canal rather than the estuary. A new ship lock was constructed at Weston Marsh, which provided a more convenient route to the ship canal than the alternative route through Weston Point docks. The Weston Canal has been little used since. Although it
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#17327870756107436-402: The Manchester Ship Canal , a new lock was constructed at Weston Marsh, which gave direct access to the ship canal without having to pass through the docks at Weston Point. All water from the river entered the canal nearby, and any surplus was released into the Mersey through the Weaver sluices, which were located just upstream of the junction. A notable feature is the Anderton Boat Lift , which
7579-517: The Mersey Flats at neap tides, resulting in them having to wait for days at Frodsham. In 1796, users of the navigation suggested that it should be extended to Weston Point, where the water was deeper. The trustees wanted to pay for this extension by raising tolls, but the users objected, and it took several years to work out a deal which suited both parties. Finally, the trustees obtained a third act of Parliament on 8 August 1807, which authorised
7722-498: The Second World War , the castle has been used as a film and television location, and as a venue for civil weddings and live-action fantasy role playing . The castle was sold in 1989, and subsequently converted into an hotel. Also by Salvin are the castle's small private chapel and the gatehouse on Stone House Lane. Both, like the castle, are in rock-faced stone. The gatehouse consists of an archway and circular turret with
7865-577: The ancient parish of Bunbury in the Eddisbury Hundred . Peckforton and the adjacent civil parish of Beeston were part of an estate purchased by John Tollemache, 1st Baron Tollemache , in 1840. Lord Tollemache built Peckforton Castle in 1844–50. Praised as a model landlord, he had over fifty farms and many cottages built on his Cheshire estate, at a cost of around £280,000. Labourers were encouraged to rent 3 acres (1.2 ha) of land to farm to supplement their income. The woods that surround
8008-472: The break with Rome , parishes managed ecclesiastical matters, while the manor was the principal unit of local administration and justice. Later, the church replaced the manor court as the rural administrative centre, and levied a local tax on produce known as a tithe . In the medieval period, responsibilities such as relief of the poor passed increasingly from the lord of the manor to the parish's rector , who in practice would delegate tasks among his vestry or
8151-595: The lord of the manor , but not all were willing and able to provide, so residents would be expected to attend the church of the nearest manor with a church. Later, the churches and priests became to a greater extent the responsibility of the Catholic Church thus this was formalised; the grouping of manors into one parish was recorded, as was a manor-parish existing in its own right. Boundaries changed little, and for centuries after 1180 'froze', despite changes to manors' extents. However, by subinfeudation , making
8294-403: The monarch ). A civil parish may be equally known as and confirmed as a town, village, neighbourhood or community by resolution of its parish council, a right not conferred on other units of English local government. The governing body of a civil parish is usually an elected parish council (which can decide to call itself a town, village, community or neighbourhood council, or a city council if
8437-470: The (often well-endowed) monasteries. After the dissolution of the monasteries , the power to levy a rate to fund relief of the poor was conferred on the parish authorities by the Poor Relief Act 1601 . Both before and after this optional social change, local (vestry-administered) charities are well-documented. The parish authorities were known as vestries and consisted of all the ratepayers of
8580-477: The 1830s were replaced by five much larger locks, and most of the bridges were replaced by swing bridges, which enabled coasters of up to 1000 tons to use the river. Construction of a connection between the river and the Trent and Mersey Canal was begun in 1871 and completed in 1875. Because of the difference in level, a vertical boat lift was designed by Edwin Clark, using counterbalanced tanks which were linked by
8723-403: The 19th century and are now entirely separate. Civil parishes in their modern form came into being through the Local Government Act 1894 ( 56 & 57 Vict. c. 73), which established elected parish councils to take on the secular functions of the parish vestry . A civil parish can range in size from a sparsely populated rural area with fewer than a hundred inhabitants, to a large town with
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#17327870756108866-564: The 19th century is useful to historians, and is also of cultural significance in terms of shaping local identities; reinforced by the use of grouped parish boundaries, often, by successive local authority areas; and in a very rough, operations-geared way by most postcode districts. There was (and is) wide disparity in parish size. Writtle , Essex traditionally measures 13,568 acres (21 sq mi) – two parishes neighbouring are Shellow Bowells at 469 acres (0.7 sq mi), and Chignall Smealy at 476 acres (0.7 sq mi) Until
9009-591: The 2011 census, Newland with Woodhouse Moor and Beaumont Chase reported inhabitants, and there were no new deserted parishes recorded. Nearly all instances of detached parts of civil parishes (areas not contiguous with the main part of the parish) and of those straddling counties have been ended. 14 examples remain in England as at 2022, including Barnby Moor and Wallingwells , both in Nottinghamshire. Direct predecessors of civil parishes are most often known as "ancient parishes", although many date only from
9152-511: The 2021 census). The 2001 census recorded several parishes with no inhabitants. These were Chester Castle (in the middle of Chester city centre), Newland with Woodhouse Moor , Beaumont Chase , Martinsthorpe , Meering , Stanground North (subsequently abolished), Sturston , Tottington , and Tyneham (subsequently merged). The lands of the last three were taken over by the Armed Forces during World War II and remain deserted. In
9295-455: The Anderton boat lift, and 213 by 37 feet (65 by 11 m) below it. The lock at Weston Point Docks is slightly narrower, at 213 by 36 feet (65 by 11 m). The boat lift is designed for canal craft rather than ships, and so can hold vessels up to 72 by 14 feet (21.9 by 4.3 m) with a draught of 4 feet (1.2 m). Access to the navigation was improved for traditional canal boats with
9438-606: The Cheshire Plain. Shortly afterwards, the Shropshire Union Canal is carried over it on Moss Hall aqueduct. The first significant town on the river is the market town of Nantwich , where a watermill was a feature from the 13th century; 100m further north, an early 19th-century stone bridge, with a single span, crosses the river. Continuing northwards, it passes under the Middlewich Branch of
9581-427: The County of Cheshire, in line with the original act of Parliament. Further improvements to make the river suitable for coasters began in 1856, when Edward Leader Williams was appointed as engineer. He oversaw the complete reconstruction of the navigation between 1870 and 1900, a programme which was designed to ensure that the river remained attractive to carriers, and which ensured its profitability. The 12 locks of
9724-570: The English population. For historical reasons, civil parishes predominantly cover rural areas and smaller urban areas, with most larger urban areas being wholly or partly unparished ; but since 1997 it has been possible for civil parishes to be created within unparished areas if demanded by local residents . In 2007 the right to create civil parishes was extended to London boroughs , although only one, Queen's Park , has so far been created. Eight parishes also have city status (a status granted by
9867-554: The Grand Junction Railway, is grade II* listed, and a civic celebration was held on its completion, as there had been no deaths and no serious injuries to the workers during its construction. The River Weaver is around 71 miles (114 km) long. From its source in the hills of west Cheshire just south of Peckforton Castle , and within a few hundred metres of the source of the River Gowy it initially flows in
10010-404: The Grand Junction Railway, which was completed in 1836 and is grade II* listed. It has 20 arches, and was built at a cost of £54,440 by a London civil engineering contractor called David McIntosh. A civic celebration was held on its completion, as there had been no deaths and no serious injuries to the workers during its construction. The navigation has since been re-routed, and now passes through
10153-421: The Mersey by the Weaver sluices, just upstream of the junction. The tidal river section below Frodsham has been bypassed by the Weston Canal since 1810, and is no longer navigable, as Frodsham Lock is derelict. The river runs through the Cheshire salt-producing area, but was not deep enough to allow boats to reach the salt mines. It was tidal for around 7 miles (11 km) to Pickering's wharf, and salt from
10296-517: The Shropshire Union Canal before the village of Church Minshull . The aqueduct carrying the canal was designed by Thomas Telford and was built of brick with stone bands between 1827 and 1833. The river flows through a central arch, and there are flood relief arches on each side of the channel. The two waterways run roughly parallel for several miles. They diverge near Winsford , the current head of navigation, and at Northwich
10439-404: The Trent and Mersey generated significant trade for the Navigation, for in 1793 a system of chutes was constructed at Anderton, to enable salt from narrow boats on the canal to be tipped into Weaver flats moored in a dock some 50 feet (15 m) below the level of the canal. The steady increase in traffic encouraged the trustees to press on with improvements. Witton Brook was widened in 1788, and
10582-528: The Weaver was completed by 1732, at a cost of £15,885. Eleven timber locks and weirs had been constructed, but no work had been carried out on the Witton Brook. The river had been improved by dredging and the construction of a series of cuts, with locks and weirs to manage the drop of around 50 feet (15 m) over the 20 miles (32 km) between Winsford and the River Mersey. Barges of up to 40 tons could reach Winsford, and boats called Weaver flats were
10725-738: The administration of the poor laws was the main civil function of parishes, the Poor Law Amendment Act 1866 , which received royal assent on 10 August 1866, declared all areas that levied a separate rate or had their own overseer of the poor to be parishes. This included the Church of England parishes (until then simply known as "parishes"), extra-parochial areas , townships and chapelries . To have collected rates this means these beforehand had their own vestries, boards or equivalent bodies. Parishes using this definition subsequently became known as "civil parishes" to distinguish them from
10868-474: The bridge swings. During the project, river access was only possible by narrow boats and other small craft. Frodsham viaduct, completed in 1850 and built in brown bricks with a cast-iron central arch, was built for the Birkenhead, Lancs & Cheshire Junction Railway by the contractor Thomas Brassey . The engineer for the project was Alexander Rendel . The Environment Agency assesses the water quality of
11011-496: The castle are each carved from a single piece of stone, which derives from the same quarry as Peckforton Castle. The elephant has a tasselled saddle, supporting the castle which has three tiers, with a turreted gatehouse and a keep with turrets at the corner. Some of the castle windows are glazed. The original purpose of the carving is unclear. The device formed part of the crest of the Worshipful Company of Cutlers and
11154-466: The castle were largely planted in 1922. In 2008, the Tollemache family remained the major landowners in Peckforton, although the castle itself was sold in 1989. Peckforton has a parish meeting rather than a parish council. From 1974 the civil parish was served by Crewe and Nantwich Borough Council, which was succeeded on 1 April 2009 by the unitary authority of Cheshire East . Peckforton falls in
11297-471: The channel on 10 August 1933. J. A. Saner was again the designer. Dutton locks are of a similar design and age to those at Saltersford, and the Pelton turbines were made by Northern Foundry Co. Ltd. of Oldham, who are described as turbine makers on the cast-iron covers. Dutton sluice, some 160 yards (150 m) to the north-east of the lock, was built in the 1870s, in a similar Baroque style to Hunt's weir, but
11440-399: The charter, the charter may be transferred to a parish council for its area. Where there is no such parish council, the district council may appoint charter trustees to whom the charter and the arms of the former borough will belong. The charter trustees (who consist of the councillor or councillors for the area of the former borough) maintain traditions such as mayoralty . An example of such
11583-402: The construction of a cut from Frodsham to Weston Point. The trustees insisted that their own engineer, John Johnson, should oversee the work, but the project was too large for him, and ran over time and budget. He was sacked in 1809, after serving the navigation for 29 years, and Thomas Telford was asked to complete the work. He managed the project with Samuel Fowls as engineer. At Weston Point,
11726-435: The cost of construction had been met, and profits were then to be used to maintain bridges and highways within Cheshire. Each year the justices of the peace were to meet to decide which structures should benefit from this source of revenue. The act included powers to improve the Witton Brook from the Weaver to Witton Bridge. Following a plea by the owner of brine workings near Middlewich, who felt they would be disadvantaged by
11869-537: The council are carried out by a paid officer, typically known as a parish clerk. Councils may employ additional people (including bodies corporate, provided where necessary, by tender) to carry out specific tasks dictated by the council. Some councils have chosen to pay their elected members an allowance, as permitted under part 5 of the Local Authorities (Members' Allowances) (England) Regulations 2003. The number of councillors varies roughly in proportion to
12012-464: The council of the urban district or borough in which they were contained. Many urban parishes were coterminous (geographically identical) with the urban district or municipal borough in which they lay. Towns which included multiple urban parishes often consolidated the urban parishes into one. The urban parishes continued to be used as an electoral area for electing guardians to the poor law unions . The unions took in areas in multiple parishes and had
12155-466: The council will an election be held. However, sometimes there are fewer candidates than seats. When this happens, the vacant seats have to be filled by co-option by the council. If a vacancy arises for a seat mid-term, an election is only held if a certain number (usually ten) of parish residents request an election. Otherwise the council will co-opt someone to be the replacement councillor. The Localism Act 2011 introduced new arrangements which replaced
12298-525: The creation of town and parish councils is encouraged in unparished areas . The Local Government and Rating Act 1997 created a procedure which gave residents in unparished areas the right to demand that a new parish and parish council be created. This right was extended to London boroughs by the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 – with this, the City of London
12441-463: The desire to have a more local tier of government when new larger authorities have been created, which are felt to be remote from local concerns and identity. A number of parishes have been created in places which used to have their own borough or district council; examples include Daventry (2003), Folkestone (2004), Kidderminster (2015) and Sutton Coldfield (2016). The trend towards the creation of geographically large unitary authorities has been
12584-505: The earliest remaining buildings in the civil parish are Manor Farm Cottage and Yew Tree Cottage, grade-II-listed timber-framed cottages dating from the early 17th century. Black and White Cottage on Stone House Lane is a single-storey, timber-framed, thatched cottage dating from the late 17th century with an attached byre under the same roof; the cottage is listed at grade II* for its unusually well-preserved interior. Other black-and-white cottages include Garden Cottage and Hillside Cottage in
12727-402: The earliest swing bridges powered by electricity. Both have a sectional pontoon, which is immersed in the river and carries about 80 per cent of the weight of the bridge. Dutton Horse Bridge , which carries the towpath over the weir stream at Dutton, is one of the earliest surviving laminated timber structures. Dutton railway viaduct , which was built by Joseph Locke and George Stephenson for
12870-467: The east of the locks has a walkway supported by rusticated piers and five cast iron arches, which also support the floodgates. The structure is Baroque in style. Northwich railway viaduct spans both the lock cut and the weir stream, and was built in the 1860s. It consists of 48 round arches, constructed of blue bricks and red sandstone, with iron spans over the channels. It is around 980 yards (900 m) long, provides 39 feet (12 m) of headroom over
13013-496: The eastern boundary of the civil parish. Stone House Lane runs north–south through the parish, with Peckforton Hall Lane running eastwards from it. The Sandstone Trail long-distance footpath runs along the Peckforton ridge. In 2006, the total population of the civil parish was estimated as 150. The 2001 census recorded a population of 116 in 52 households. This represents a decline from historical population figures, which were 260 (1801), 286 (1851), 176 (1901) and 140 (1951). At
13156-439: The ecclesiastical parishes. The Church of England parishes, which cover more than 99% of England, have become officially (and to avoid ambiguity) termed ecclesiastical parishes . The limits of many of these have diverged; most greatly through changes in population and church attendance (these factors can cause churches to be opened or closed). Since 1921, each has been the responsibility of its own parochial church council . In
13299-534: The established English Church, which for a few years after Henry VIII alternated between the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England , before settling on the latter on the accession of Elizabeth I in 1558. By the 18th century, religious membership was becoming more fractured in some places, due in part to the progress of Methodism . The legitimacy of the parish vestry came into question, and
13442-735: The gables. Both the farmhouse and the adjacent farm building of the same date are listed at grade II. Hillside Farm ( SJ533556 ) on Stone House Lane south of the village is another former estate farm, also dating from 1870. The farm house and adjacent farm building are grade II listed. There are no educational facilities within the civil parish. The parish falls within the catchment areas of Bunbury Aldersey Church of England Primary School in Bunbury and Tarporley High School in Tarporley . Civil parishes in England In England,
13585-455: The government at the time of the Local Government Act 1972 discouraged their creation for large towns or their suburbs, but there is generally nothing to stop their establishment. For example, Birmingham has two parishes ( New Frankley and Sutton Coldfield ), Oxford has four, and the Milton Keynes urban area has 24. Parishes could not however be established in London until the law was changed in 2007. A civil parish can range in area from
13728-576: The historic building in which it is housed, and a visitor centre at the Anderton lift, which is popular with boaters and non-boaters alike. There are, however, few facilities for the recreational boater. Rowing is popular on the River Weaver, with competitive clubs in Runcorn , Northwich , and Acton Bridge (The Grange School). Fishing is another pastime which takes place along the river. Several clubs lease fishing rights for different parts of
13871-401: The insecticide cypermethrin , all substances which did not form part of the quality checks prior to 2019. In August 2012, oxygen levels in the river were found to be low, following the death of thousands of fish. The Environment Agency were notified and aerated the water while they investigated the cause of the problem. This was thought to result from naturally occurring algae, which deplete
14014-476: The late 19th century, most of the "ancient" (a legal term equivalent to time immemorial ) irregularities inherited by the civil parish system were cleaned up, and the majority of exclaves were abolished. The census of 1911 noted that 8,322 (58%) of "parishes" in England and Wales were not geographically identical when comparing the civil to the ecclesiastical form. In 1894, civil parishes were reformed by
14157-423: The lock was raised, but subsidence caused by the salt mining resulted in a new lock being needed in 1826. A longer-term solution was provided by the decision to move Northwich lock to a new site below the town. When the work was finished in 1829, Witton Brook lock was no longer necessary, and was removed. New cuts and locks were built through the 1790s at Vale Royal, Newbridge, Hartford and Hunts, and Butty Meadow lock
14300-499: The locks, a five-arched red sandstone viaduct, constructed in 1837, crosses the valley. It was built by Joseph Locke , and carried the Grand Junction Railway . Hunt's locks also consist of a pair, the smaller one from the 1860s and the larger one, with three sets of gates, from the 1890s. Steel semaphore signals control access to the locks, and again the movement of the gates employs a Pelton turbine. The weir to
14443-465: The mid 19th century. Using a longer historical lens the better terms are "pre-separation (civil and ecclesiastical) parish", "original medieval parishes" and "new parishes". The Victoria County History , a landmark collaborative work mostly written in the 20th century (although incomplete), summarises the history of each English "parish", roughly meaning late medieval parish. A minority of these had exclaves , which could be: In some cases an exclave of
14586-474: The mines was carried by pack horse to the wharf, where it was loaded into barges. These used the ebbing tide to carry them back down the river. By the early 17th century, coal was being transported into the area so that it could be used to evaporate the brine, and as the industry expanded, there were calls to improve the river to simplify this trade. There was opposition to the initial schemes, however, from landowners who feared flooding and from carriers who feared
14729-456: The navigation was not initially profitable, and it was 1775 before the first payments were made. Trade continued to rise, and by 1845, over £500,000 had been given to the county. The major trade was salt . The arrival of the Trent and Mersey Canal at Anderton in 1773 was detrimental to the salt trade at first, but ultimately beneficial, as salt was tipped down chutes from the canal into barges on
14872-542: The navigation, and also crosses the River Dane . Hayhurst swing bridge carries the A5509 road over the navigation, and was manufactured by A Handyside and Co. Ltd., of Derby and London, in 1899. It is an asymmetric bowstring lattice girder bridge, and its timber-framed weatherboarded control cabin is also listed. This and Town bridge, which is located a little further downstream and is of a similar design, are believed to be
15015-465: The new district councils (outside London) to review their parishes, and many areas left unparished in 1972 have since been made parishes, either in whole or part. For example, Hinckley , whilst entirely unparished in 1974, now has four civil parishes, which together cover part of its area, whilst the central part of the town remains unparished. Some parishes were sub-divided into smaller territories known as hamlets , tithings or townships . Nowadays
15158-614: The new navigation, the River Dane Navigation Act 1720 ( 7 Geo. 1. St. 1 . c. 17) was obtained on 7 June 1721 to authorise improvements to the River Dane, but did not result in any work being undertaken. Progress was slow, as only Richard Vernon of the original three undertakers was actively engaged on the project, and he could not reach agreement with the commissioners. The stalemate was broken when Vernon died in 1726, and new undertakers were appointed. The work on
15301-458: The northern end of the Peckforton ridge stands the grade-I-listed Peckforton Castle ( SJ533580 ), a Victorian replica of a medieval castle designed by Anthony Salvin in 1844–50 for John Tollemache . Built around a walled courtyard with battlements and towers, the castle stands opposite the genuinely medieval Beeston Castle , and is surrounded by a dry moat. George Gilbert Scott called it "the very height of masquerading". Uninhabited since
15444-548: The opening of the Runcorn and Weston Canal , which was completed in 1859. The canal left the Weston Canal at Weston Point, and provided a link to Runcorn Docks , near which two flights of locks connected to the Bridgewater Canal . This link was severed in 1966, when the Runcorn to Widnes road bridge was constructed. Half of the Runcorn and Weston Canal was filled in at the same time. Significant change occurred when
15587-488: The other conurbations. Civil parishes vary greatly in population: some have populations below 100 and have no settlement larger than a hamlet , while others cover towns with populations of tens of thousands. Weston-super-Mare , with a population of 71,758, is the most populous civil parish. In many cases small settlements, today popularly termed villages , localities or suburbs, are in a single parish which originally had one church. Large urban areas are mostly unparished, as
15730-425: The oxygen on which the fish depend, and may also have been affected by a reaction between hydrogen peroxide , which is used to improve oxygen levels in the water, and traces of detergent. The reaction results in an unpleasant-looking foam building up on the surface, although the foam is not hazardous. The Winsford and District Angling Association, who use the river for fishing, believe it will take many years to restore
15873-448: The parish has city status). Alternatively, in parishes with small populations (typically fewer than 150 electors) governance may be by a parish meeting which all electors may attend; alternatively, parishes with small populations may be grouped with one or more neighbours under a common parish council. Wales was also divided into civil parishes until 1974, when they were replaced by communities , which are similar to English parishes in
16016-401: The parish the status of a town, at which point the council becomes a town council . Around 400 parish councils are called town councils. Under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 , a civil parish may be given one of the following alternative styles: As a result, a parish council can be called a town council, a community council, a village council or occasionally
16159-404: The parish. As the number of ratepayers of some parishes grew, it became increasingly difficult to convene meetings as an open vestry. In some, mostly built-up, areas the select vestry took over responsibility from the entire body of ratepayers. This innovation improved efficiency, but allowed governance by a self-perpetuating elite. The administration of the parish system relied on the monopoly of
16302-562: The parish; the church rate ceased to be levied in many parishes and became voluntary from 1868. During the 17th century it was found that the 1601 Poor Law did not work well for very large parishes, which were particularly common in northern England. Such parishes were typically subdivided into multiple townships , which levied their rates separately. The Poor Relief Act 1662 therefore directed that for poor law purposes 'parish' meant any place which maintained its own poor, thereby converting many townships into separate 'poor law parishes'. As
16445-605: The parliamentary constituency of Eddisbury , which has been represented by Edward Timpson since 2019, after being represented by Stephen O'Brien (1999–2015) and Antoinette Sandbach (2015–19). The civil parish has a total area of 1,754 acres (710 ha). The sandstone ridge of the Peckforton Hills runs broadly north–south in the west of the civil parish, with high points at Peckforton Point ( SJ529557 ; 203 metres) and Stanner Nab ( SJ531573 ; 200 metres). A 57.88 hectares area of Peckforton Woods has been designated
16588-499: The perceived inefficiency and corruption inherent in the system became a source for concern in some places. For this reason, during the early 19th century the parish progressively lost its powers to ad hoc boards and other organisations, such as the boards of guardians given responsibility for poor relief through the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 . Sanitary districts covered England in 1875 and Ireland three years later. The replacement boards were each entitled to levy their own rate in
16731-635: The plans were revised in 1764 to increase the navigable depth to 4.5 feet (1.4 m), and this work was completed in 1765. The proposed Trent and Mersey Canal was seen as a threat by the Trustees of the Navigation, for it ran parallel to the River Weaver for some distance near Anderton. However, the commissioners pressed on with upgrading the river, completing new locks at Barnton in 1771 and at Acton Bridge in 1778. They also set about repaying their debts, which were liquidated in July 1775, resulting in some of
16874-411: The population of the parish. Most rural parish councillors are elected to represent the entire parish, though in parishes with larger populations or those that cover larger areas, the parish can be divided into wards. Each of these wards then returns councillors to the parish council (the numbers depending on their population). Only if there are more candidates standing for election than there are seats on
17017-459: The predominant vessels. These either sailed up the river, or were bow-hauled by teams of men. The navigation was not initially profitable, and the amount of money owing to the undertakers gradually rose to a peak of £19,659 by 1740. Toll receipts improved, and by 1757, the debts had been reduced to £9,809. In September 1757, merchants from Liverpool complained about the run-down state of the navigation to Liverpool Corporation, who offered to pay for
17160-530: The profits being given to the County of Cheshire, as stated in the original act of Parliament. The Trent and Mersey was completed in May 1777, and had an immediate effect on trade, which dropped by 25 per cent, particularly in the Winsford area. The downturn was short lived, as the salt trade developed, figures reaching their former levels by 1783, and climbing another 40 per cent to 171,719 tons by 1790. Ultimately,
17303-429: The range of 75–100 metres. The land use in this part of the civil parish is agricultural, predominantly pasture with some arable land. This area also includes the woodland and plantations of Peckforton Moss ( SJ542559 ), Peckforton Wood ( SJ554560 ), Brickkiln Wood ( SJ544574 ) and part of Willis's Wood ( SJ542580 ), as well as Peckforton Mere ( SJ541576 ) and many smaller ponds and meres. The A49 forms part of
17446-551: The river for activities which include youth training and racing of several types of dinghy sailboats. Their training courses are accredited by the Royal Yachting Association . The navigation has a number of structures which, because of their age, have historic value and are listed on the Listed Building register. At Vale Royal, the lock built in 1860 was retained as a sluice channel when a new lock
17589-500: The river from British Waterways, as it holds populations of bream , three types of carp , chub , dace , eels , perch , pike , roach , rudd and tench . Fishing matches are regularly organised at weekends. The lower reaches of the Weaver between Frodsham railway viaduct and the Manchester Ship Canal are used for sailing. The Weaver Sailing Club is based at Frodsham, and uses a 2.5-mile (4.0 km) stretch of
17732-472: The river navigation. Access to the river was improved in 1810 by the Weston Canal, which provided a link to Weston Point, where boats could reach the River Mersey at most states of the tide, as the water was deeper. The navigation was completely reconstructed between 1870 and 1900, with the original locks being replaced by five much larger locks, capable of handling 1000-tonne coasters. With the opening of
17875-426: The river systems 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,
18018-408: The river turns to flow north-west across north Cheshire . Below Winsford, the course of the river has been altered several times, by the construction of cuts and locks, to enable small ships to trade on it. The river formerly joined the River Mersey at Weston Marsh, but since the construction of the Manchester Ship Canal , begun in 1887, it has flowed into the canal, from where surplus water enters
18161-424: The river would cease once the lift was opened, but by the turn of the 19th century, although there were 190,000 tons of cargo using the lift each year, 38,000 tons of salt were still being transferred by chute. From the middle of the 19th century, some of the salt traffic transferred to the railways, and the use of pipelines through which the brine was pumped also affected trade, but as that source of revenue declined,
18304-566: The ship-sized locks remain. For leisure boaters, most of the movable bridges provide a clearance of 8 feet (2.4 m), although the swing bridge at Newbridge, on the Vale Royal cut, only has headroom of 6.3 feet (1.9 m). Boats which require the bridges to be opened must give prior notice. There is a salt museum at Northwich, which was renamed as the Weaver Hall Museum and Workhouse in 2010, to reflect its expanding scope and
18447-399: The six species of fish affected by the incident. Download coordinates as: The following is a list of those named watercourses which enter the river Weaver on its left (L) or right (R) bank. By convention, the left and right banks are as viewed when looking downstream. Tributaries are listed down the page in an upstream direction, i.e. the first tributary listed (Flood Brook) is closest to
18590-458: The time of the 1890s upgrade, and so it retained some of its original features. It is derelict, and water flow is controlled by a concrete and steel sluice erected in the mid 20th century. A red sandstone and limestone bridge carries the A56 road over the channel below the lock. It was built in 1850, and has three 27-yard (25 m) arches. The A56 crosses the main channel on Sutton swing bridge, which
18733-461: The trustees had built a basin, piers and a lighthouse at Weston Point, that the Weston Canal was officially a branch of the River Weaver, and that the trustees would make no additional charges for using the section. No tolls had been collected since 1816, once the construction costs had been repaid. The trustees investigated the idea of a junction canal from Winsford to the Middlewich branch of
18876-491: The two earliest swing bridges in Britain to be powered by electricity. Both bridges were designed by J. A. Saner, who was the Navigation's engineer, and incorporate a sectional pontoon, which is immersed in the river and carries about 80 per cent of the weight of the bridge. Because of the risk of subsidence from the salt workings, the bridges are fitted with screw jacks which allow the deck level to be maintained. Hayhurst bridge
19019-559: The underlying salt mines. It is possible for some canal boats to explore the Bottom Flash, but the depth of water is limited, and great care is needed. The Flash is used for yacht racing by the Winsford Flash Sailing Club, which is based on the 90-acre (36 ha) lake. The Weaver is a river of contrasts, with quiet wooded reaches and heavily industrialised sites. Commercial shipping has largely ceased, but
19162-449: The village, and Hill Lane Cottage on Hill Lane. Rock Cottage is unusual in being constructed in sandstone, while Smithy Cottage is a timber-framed cottage infilled with a mixture of brick and sandstone. On Peckforton Gap in the south of the civil parish stands The Gap, another stone cottage. All date from the late 17th century and are listed at grade II. To the east of the village on Peckforton Hall Lane stands Peckforton Hall ( SJ545565 ),
19305-519: The way in which the debts were managed, and gave the commissioners powers to sue and to appoint a management committee. It also stipulated that all locks should be 90 by 17.3 feet (27.4 by 5.3 m) with a draught of 4.5 feet (1.4 m), but the actual depth exceeded 6 feet (1.8 m). Debts continued to increase, as the commissioners borrowed more money to fund the improvements. The new weir and lock at Pickerings failed in 1761 and both had to be rebuilt. Work had started on Witton Brook in 1756, but
19448-666: The way they operate. Civil parishes in Scotland were abolished for local government purposes by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1929 ; the Scottish equivalent of English civil parishes are the community council areas established by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 , which have fewer powers than their English and Welsh counterparts. There are no equivalent units in Northern Ireland . The parish system in Europe
19591-416: Was built in the 1890s. A swing bridge crosses the chamber. The sluice at the upstream end is supported by two cast iron arches on rusticated piers. A swing bridge, made of wood and iron, crosses the small lock, which was the large lock until the construction of the new large lock in the 1890s. This has three sets of gates, and could accommodate a train of four barges when the outer gates were used. Again,
19734-424: Was built in the 1920s. There have been problems with the stability of the road surface, and options to secure its long-term future and appearance were discussed in 2010. A £4.5 million restoration project began in the summer of 2013, with the construction of a temporary bridge to carry the traffic while the swing bridge was refurbished. Work included fitting a new deck and renovation of the buoyancy tanks on which
19877-401: Was built over the top of the old one, so that it could continue to be used until the new one was ready, and the work was carried out by staff of the Navigation, supervised by the engineer J. A. Saner. It was completed in 1906, and continued in use until 1983, when it was closed on safety grounds due to corrosion. It had been expected that use of the chutes to transfer salt between the canal and
20020-498: Was established between the 8th and 12th centuries, and an early form was long established in England by the time of the Norman Conquest . These areas were originally based on the territory of manors , which, in some cases, derived their bounds from Roman or Iron Age estates; some large manors were sub-divided into several parishes. Initially, churches and their priests were the gift and continued patronage (benefaction) of
20163-435: Was refurbished in 2004 at a cost of £33.5 million. Winnington bridge, the next downstream, was built between 1908 and 1909, to replace the first bridge which was built in 1901. The original design was flawed, and hence the bridge was replaced after only 7 years. A pedestrian walkway was later fitted on the downstream side of the new bridge. Saltersford locks were built in 1874, using red sandstone and limestone , and replaced
20306-473: Was removed. In response to petitions, the construction of a towing path suitable for horses was started in 1792, and was completed as far as Anderton by mid-1793. It was later extended to Winsford, and bow-hauling of boats by men was ended. Below Frodsham, barges carrying salt had to negotiate a tidal section of the river to reach the Mersey, from where the cargo would be taken to Liverpool or Manchester for distribution worldwide. Water levels were inadequate for
20449-436: Was then started on making the river 7.5 feet (2.3 m) deep throughout, and building double locks suitable for 100-ton vessels which were 88 by 18 feet (26.8 by 5.5 m). By 1845, Winnington, Acton and Hunts locks had been improved. Trade was good, with tolls generating £38,363 in 1845 from the carriage of 778,715 tons of goods. All of the improvements had been funded from the toll revenue, and over £500,000 had been given to
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