Dukart's Canal
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Dukart's Canal was built to provide transport for coal from the Drumglass Colleries to the Coalisland Canal, in Tyrone, Northern Ireland.
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[edit] History
Dukart's Canal was built under the direction of Daviso Du Acort, a Sardinian, otherwise known as Davis Dukart, in the 1760s and '70s. At the time, horse transport over land was the only other option; this was slow and expensive. The provision of locks to overcome differences in canal elevation had caused considerable difficulties to the builders of the Coalisland Canal therefore, Dukart planned to use three gravitional inclines originally designed with wooden ramps and rollers as an alternative. These were built at Brackaville with a rise of 16.8 m (55 ft), Drumreagh with a rise of 19.8 m (65 ft) and Farlough with a rise of 21.3 m (70 ft). These are the only places where inclines were used within Ireland's waterways. The canal was almost finished in 1774 but the inclined planes were not in working order, one problem being their steepness and also Farlough lake, one of the canal's water sources was providing insufficent water. In an attempt to solve these problems, Dukart laid rails on the inclines late in 1776. The canal was finished in 1777 but legend has it that only one tub boat ever came down Dukart's Canal, that was in 1778. This exercise was completed to help save him from the accusation of serious misuse of public funds, the inclines were a failure and were dismantled by 1787. Dukart, died in 1785.[1]
[edit] Dukart's Legacy
Very little remains of the Canal, some masonry and a bridge over an incline still exist.[1] Dukart's name is still linked with Newmills and the Coalisland Canal. An aqueduct built by Dukart stands in Newmills. The remains of two of the inclines (known locally as Dry Hurries) are still visible. One can be found in Drumreagh near the Brackaville Golf Course, the largest is on the Quintaminnus Road near Newmills (although this one is largely overgrown and is hard to see). The town of Newmills was built around Dukart's failed Canal.
Dukart was in many ways way ahead of his time, inclined planes are frequently used today in different parts of the world in many different guises, it was a very ambitious gamble that unfortunately for Davis Dukart didn't pay off.[1]
[edit] See also
[edit] References and sources
- Notes
- Sources
- Uhlemann, Hans-Joachim (2002). Canal lifts and inclines of the world, English Translation, Internat. ISBN 0-9543-1811-0.
- McIlvenna, Thomas (2005). This Wonder-Working Canal, A History of the Tyrone Navigation, First, Coalisland Canal Branch IWAI.
