The Dewsbury Arm on the Calder and Hebble Navigation

Saturday, 05 September 2009 08:00

A walk down the Dewsbury Arm from Thornhill Double Locks

Thornhill Double locks are just above the junction with the Dewsbury Arm. As you can see the bottom gates are very leaky!

Thornhill Double Locks

We went down onto the towpath of the Dewsbury Arm from the bridge over the junction

Under the railway bridge

We were wondering if it was worth cruising the Arm and if we could turn at the end. It looked OK, but there was not much to see initially as there was light industry hidden by trees.

This boat passing us answered the cruising question

This handsome bridge, Bretton Street Bridge, was built in 1878

The next bridge is a disused railway bridge - trees have taken over the line!

Savile Town - part of Dewsbury, is on the off-side and there are new houses here. It was sad to see the effect of the recession on the building industry evidenced by these empty, boarded up new properties.

Empty development

After about three quarters of a mile walk in total we reached Savile Town Basin or Dewsbury Basin. There are two visitor moorings here and a number of boats on permanent moorings.  It is the home of Calder Valley Marine and there is a pub "The Legger's Inn".

Savile Town Basin

A partnership, together with BW, have grand ideas for this area - some of it is already in place, but other plans seem to have been "shelved" for the moment. There is a small exhibition about this in the buildings beside the basin.

Plan of development in basin

The Dewsbury Arm was opened in 1770, giving access to the main line of the Calder and Hebble Navigation. Dewsbury was a centre for the "Shoddy" industry. This combined old wool items with new wool and then made this into blankets and uniforms. Dewsbury prospered from its location in the "Heavy Wool Industry"; coal was readily available and the canal improved the transport links.

Having reached the end of the Arm we decided that turning in the basin or at the winding hole just before might be a little awkward, although possible. Now we had walked it we decided not to boat it though!

We turned left along Mill Street East and then right, over the River Calder into Dewsbury town centre. We passed Dewsbury Minster but were unable to go in as there was a wedding taking place.

Dewsbury Minster

Patrick Bronte was a curate here in 1803. It was a stepping stone to the Yorkshire village of Howarth where he was vicar in 1820. He had some famous children - but more of that another time!

Dewsbury Minster was built in the 13th century on the banks of the River Calder which passes through the town. There has been a church there since the 900s. It has been enlarged and rebuilt over the years but by the late 1800s it had taken on its Cathedral-like proportions.

Like all town centres, Dewsbury has good and bad points but feels a little run down. There is a thriving market (indoor and out) however and the town was busy because of it.

Dewsbury Market building

On our way back to Epiphany, via the Dewsbury Arm again, we shopped in the large Asda which is just before the bridge over the River Calder. It felt much longer walking back because of the shopping!