Peak Forest Canal
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The Peak Forest Canal, England, runs from a junction with the Ashton Canal at the southern end of the Tame Aqueduct at Dukinfield (grid reference SJ934984) through Newton, Hyde, Woodley, Bredbury, Romiley, Marple, Strines, Disley, New Mills, Furness Vale and Bridgemont to terminate at Bugsworth Basin (grid reference SK021820 - the village is now called Buxworth) - and there is a short branch at Bridgemont to Whaley Bridge. This canal, which is just over 14.5 miles long, forms part of the British inland waterways network.
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[edit] Features
The "lower" Peak Forest climbs steadily from Ashton to Marple. It crosses the River Goyt on Marple Aqueduct, alongside a railway viaduct, and then rises through 16 locks in a pretty setting through the centre of Marple. Above Top Lock the canal is joined by the Macclesfield Canal and continues ("upper" Peak Forest) on the same level - half way up the valley-side with beautiful views of Furness Vale, and the Peak District beyond - all the way to the terminus. This level is the same as that of the upper Macclesfield canal, so boats can cruise from Whaley Bridge or Bugsworth all the way to the top lock at Boseley without having to use a lock.
[edit] Construction
It was authorised by Act of Parliament in 1794 and its purpose was to provide an outlet for the vast limestone deposits around Dove Holes. As Dove Holes is over 1,000 feet above sea level, the canal was terminated in a basin at Bugsworth and the line was continued up to the quarries by means of a gravity operated feeder tramway, known as the Peak Forest Tramway, which was six miles long.
The construction of the canal and tramway was promoted by Samuel Oldknow with much of the finance being provided by Richard Arkwright Junior of Cromford, Derbyshire. The line was surveyed by Thomas Brown and the consulting engineer and resident engineer were Benjamin Outram and Thomas Brown, respectively.
Work was begun first on the section between Ashton and Hyde Hall, whee new coal-pits were being opened, so as to derive some income as soon as possible. Outram was somewhat delayed by a request from the committee to report on ideas by Robert Fulton who had been awarded the contract for the cuttings at Werneth. These would have replaced the stone construction of Marple Aqueduct by a somewhat flimsy cast iron trough. Outram, who was experiencing problems with the Holmes Aqueduct on the Derby Canal was well aware of potential weaknesses. Fulton had also suggested the use of small tub boats rather than conventional narrow boats, and an inclined plane at Marple instead of locks. Outram having privately voiced his disquiet, Fulton's plans were quietly dropped.
At the same time as Outram was working on the lower end, he came under pressure to make progress on the section Bugsworth to Marple, and Samuel Odknow's coal-pits and lime kilns. Splitting the work in this way possibly contributed to the £1100 overspend recorded in 1795, though there were problems getting the shareholders to meet their commitments. By 1796 this had risen to £4000, but in August the tramway and the canal opened to Marple.
Nevertheless at the end of 1796, funds from investors were still insufficient to finish the locks and the aqueduct at Marple and Outram was asked to suggest a temporary alternative. He produced two solutions, one to cross the arches of the aqueduct, the other assuming that the arches were unfinished. It was decided not to interfere with the ongoing construction of the aqueduct, so the railway ran from its Marple end to the proposed top lock. The arches of the aqueduct were completed in November 1798 - and the workers were given a "handsome treat" in celebration - being finally completed towards the end of 1799.
However, there was still a great of work to be done at the lower end - the driving of Hyde Bank Tunnel proving a particular problem - and the railway and aqueduct saw little use until the canal finally opened along its full length in 1800.
[edit] History
The upper level of the canal and tramway opened for trade on the 31 August 1796 and Bugsworth Basin soon became a bustling interchange between the tramway and canal.
Brown and Outram's efforts were much assisted by the appointment of Gernan Wheatcroft to manage the canal at Bugsworth and Whaley Bridge. He proved so efficient that he was able to use the threat of resignation to gain the addition of £30 to his £75 a year salary to keep and maintain a horse to assist him in his duties. In a move that would not disgrace a modern marketing organisation, the quarry owners retained Outram's future father-in-law, Dr. James Anderson, the Scottish agricultural expert, to write a treatise on the benefits of lime in farming, which they published.
Trade increased rapidly and it was becoming necessary to double the railways. Attracting suitable labour was also a problem. Cottages were rented to convert into dormitories, and Wheatcroft opened a shop where goods could be purchased cheaply. At one point, the employers offered "a good flannel waistcoat and trousers" for each worker, plus a jug of ale each day.
The Marple railway was still a serious bottleneck. The canal company still had not the funds to complete the Marple locks - and the reservoir at Combs that would be necessary. A petition to Parliament was considered but, finally, £24,000 was borrowed from Oldnow and Arkwright and the work was completed in 1805.
At Bugsworth, limestone brought down the tramway was either put into boats to be taken to Manchester and beyond or it was put into lime kilns to be burnt to produce quick lime. The trade in limestone and quick lime (also known as burnt lime), as well as the transport of coal into the basin for firing the kilns, accounted for the greatest proportion of the Canal Company's income.
With the coming of the railways, the canal began to lose its business and in the 1920s the Peak Forest Tramway and Bugsworth Basin closed. Later, the lower level of the canal and Marple locks fell into disuse but these were restored by volunteers, led by the Peak Forest Canal Society, in the late 1960s and early 1970s and they reopened on the 1 April 1974 along with the Ashton Canal, which had also become disused.
[edit] References
- Schofield, R.B., (2000) Benjamin Outram, Cardiff: Merton Priory Press
- Ripley, D., (1989) "The Peak Forest Tramway including the Peak Forest Canal" Oakwood Press
