Now what?

Monday, 09 August 2010 17:18

One member of crew "down"

John has had a bad back - these people with long backs are prone to this painful problem. We blame the heavy and stiff swing bridges on the Stainforth and Keadby Canal.

In practice this means that we have had a lazy few days, but first it is time to catch up with what we did at Stockwith. Not a lot! However I did take a few photos around the basin.

History storyboard on side of the basin warehouse which was built in 1789

The Chesterfield Canal was James Brindley's last canal; in fact, he died a year after it was begun. In 1771, the canal was started at Norwood Tunnel (now the limit of navigation until more restoration is possible). Brindley's assistant, John Varley was appointed resident engineer. This was his first large project and when, nearly a year later, Brindley died, he was allowed to carry on.

Brindley's brother-in-law, Hugh Henshall, was later appointed to keep an eye on things, whilst Varley continued to Brindley's plans. There were construction problems - whether Varley was directly responsible or not is not proven. The entire canal from Chesterfield to Stockwith was officially opened on 4th June 1777, a mix of a broad and narrow navigation. Various cargoes were carried, the most famous being the stone that was used to build the Houses of Parliament in the 1840s.

The cargo warehouse at Stockwith Basin (dated 1789) now contains the Lock Keeper's office. The letterbox is always open for the swallows who have made the warehouse their home

By 1847, the canal was owned by the railway, but in 1907 Norwood Tunnel fell in and was closed, never to reopen. The canal was cut in two but coal and bricks from the brickworks were still carried.

The canal near Walkeringham now - no sign of wharves, just the brickworks chimney above the trees:

The last cargo was silt from the River Trent to Walkeringham, where it was dried and sieved. The final product, known as warp, was used to polish Sheffield's silver. All cargoes ceased in 1962, but even then all the working boats were horse drawn.

It is hard to imagine this scene, busy with large cargo boats coming and going from the River Trent, unloading at the warehouse. The canal boats were loaded and unloaded at the other side of the lock, where there were two more warehouses and cranes.

Canal boats were also built in the basin, near where we were moored, by the road.

The 1968 Transport Act designated the canal from Stockwith to Worksop as a "cruiseway" but members of the then Chesterfield Canal Society (now a Trust) felt that another  20 miles should be restored. There are only nine miles left to be restored - from Kiveton (north of Norwood Tunnel) to Staveley, north of Chesterfield. The Chesterfield Canal Trust (CCT) are actively working on the project they call Closing the Gap.

The CCT's website is excellent and really worth perusing for detail and news.

The canal stretches away from Basin Bridge (85) in a straight cut towards Misterton with more permanent moorings and electric points - our route for the morrow!

Our adventure on a little cruised waterway was about to start - a well kept secret and one of the most lovely rural canals we know of.