Once upon a time the River by passed Abingdon

Thursday, 14 April 2011 00:28

This seems difficult to believe! However read on ...

The unobservant boater might easily miss the clues on their trip on the River Thames. Above Abingdon Lock, on the south bank, there is what looks like a tributary of the River Thames, and a bit further down a small weir.

We actually moored just below this second weir

I went exploring .....

I was surprised to learn that this small stream, known as Swift Ditch, was once the main navigation channel of the Thames and that probably the course to Abingdon, and later the lovely bridge and attractive area, all began as the idea of an ancient Benedictine monk!

The founding Abbot of St Mary's Abbey in Abingdon in 935 was Ethelwolde.

According to a writer in 1535

"The chefe stream of Isis ran afore betwixt Andersey Isle and Culneham, even where now the south End is of Culneham. Ethelwolde, Abbate of Abbingdon, and after Bishop of Winchestre, yn King Edgares days - caused - a Gut to cum out of Isis by force to serve and purge thofficis of thabbay."

Interpreted, this possibly means that the river ran through Swift Ditch to the east of the large island of Andersey as far as Culham, but Ethelwolde wanted a way of clearing the effluent from the Abbey! This then became a way of goods and trade reaching the Abbey. A causeway eventually led from Abingdon to Culham Bridge which is over the southern end of Swift Ditch where it now rejoins the River.

In the early 1600s the Swift Ditch was reinstated as the main channel as the then navigation was difficult, shallow and hard to use. Swift Ditch had one of the first pound locks on the Thames.

I found the remains of this not far from our mooring. There is a footpath that leads to the the lock remains on Swift Ditch. Come back with me in your imagination.

Over the first bridge

The EA have erected a storyboard further along the path - and proceeding round the corner another footbridge appears. Under this are the remains of the pound lock.

Footbridge and remains, above and in close up

Swift Ditch itself is very overgrown as this view upstream shows, but it was once the faster route to Culham

I followed the line of Swift Ditch upstream and fought my way to the "mouth" and weir that is invisible from the Thames.

For the next 150 years barges used this navigation and moored up in the pool below the lock. There was a large weir half way along the Swift Ditch, and weir keepers and lock keepers lived where they worked. Sadly all the buildings are long gone as the navigation reverted back to the course through Abingdon in 1790.

The good citizens of the town were very pleased that they now had access to all the trade that the river could bring and that Abingdon would become one of the nicest places to stop and explore!