Aegre March 2013

Aegre 135 - Mar 2013

N o . 1 3 5March 2013

AEGRE

A Journal from the East Midlands Region of

Aegre 135 - March 2013

Aegre is published © 2013 by the East Midlands Region Committeeof the Inland Waterways Association for members of Leicestershire,

Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Branches.

The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Inland Waterways Association or ofthe East Midlands Region. They are published as being of interest to our members and other readers.

Inland Waterways Association: Registered Office; Island House, Moor Road,Chesham HP5 1WA. Registered as a Charity No: 212342.Tel: 0845 4501146 Website: http://www.waterways.org.uk

Editor for Aegre: Peter Hill, 7 Lock Keeper’s Way, Louth, Lincolnshire LN11 0GQTel: 01507 602713; e-mail: [email protected]

This is the web version, with colour pictures (where available) at 96dpi forscreens. Picture credits: Front cover: At Cotmanhay on the Erewash, from David

Murray-Rust. Page 3: Nottingham Symphony Orchestra, conducted by AlastairParnell, on board Bath and Petrel at the 2008 Erewash celebrations, from Paul King

(sorry no sound track). Other picture credits page 9.

Chairman John Pomfret, db Drijfhuis, Braunston Boats Ltd, Bottom Lock, Dark Lane, Braunston, Daventry NN11 7HJ Tel 01788 891027

Vice-Chairman Dave Carnell, Conifer Cottage, North End, Goxhill DN19 7JX Tel: 01469 530138

Leicestershire John Evans, Highfields Farm, Woodhouse Road,Branch Quorn, Loughborough LE12 8AL Tel 01509 416647Chairman

Lincolnshire Dave Carnell (as above)Branch Chairman

Notts. & Derbys Vacant. Contact Mike Snaith, below.Branch Chairman

Region Planning Mike Snaith, Hawthorne Cottage, 70 Main St,Officer & Notts Gunthorpe, Nottingham NG14 7EU& Derbys Branch

Secretary & WRG John Baylis, 215 Clipstone Rd West, Forest Town, Mansfield NG19 0HJ Tel: 01623 621208

Member Ian McDonald, 68 Leicester Road, Thurcaston, Leicester LE7 7JG Mobile: 07950 003383


AEGRE

Next issue probably to be publishedin June 2013. Contributions to theeditor by the end of April 2013please.

The space on the right is for localcontact information.

Contents

Canal Societies and Trusts in the EM Region.............................4Journals Received........................................................................4Erewash Restoration - Forty Years On........................................5A Monumental Canal....................................................................7The Editor’s Flotsam and Jetsam.................................................8Picture Credits..............................................................................9News from Leicestershire...........................................................10New Bridge Unlocks Waterway's "Front Door"..........................11Chesterfield Canal News............................................................12Lincolnshire Happenings............................................................14River Slea Future Projects.........................................................15News from Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire.............................17Complete passage of Chesterfield Canal after 104 years?.......20Obituaries ..................................................................................22Derby & Sandiacre Canal Meetings...........................................24Lincolnshire Events....................................................................24Northampton Branch Events......................................................24Leicestershire Branch Meetings.................................................25Cromford Canal Meetings..........................................................26Canal Reservoirs ......................................................................27


Canal Societies and Trusts in the EM RegionDerby & Sandiacre Canal Society Chris Madge, c/o 62 Broadway, Duffield, Derby

DE56 4BU Tel: 07827 946444 www.derbycanal.org.uk

Erewash Canal P & DAssociation

Howard Smith, 1 Millfield, Kimberley, NottinghamNG16 2LJ Tel: 0115 9384129

Foxton Inclined Plane TrustFoxton Canal Museum, Middle Lock, Gumley Road,Market Harborough LE16 7RA Tel: 0116 2792657www.fipt.org.uk

Friends of the Cromford Canal Mike Kelley, 50 Beech Avenue, Alfreton, Derbyshire,DE55 7EW www.cromfordcanal.org.uk

Mike Stone, 7, Crow Park Drive, Burton Joyce,Nottingham NG14 5AS; Tel: 0115 931 3375www.granthamcanal.com

Grantham Canal Society

Melton & OakhamWaterways Society

Richard Booth, Sysonby Knoll, Asfordby Road,Melton Mowbray LE13 0HP Tel: 01664 503330www.meltonwaterways.co.uk

Steve Hayes, 10 Chelmer Close, N Hykeham,Lincoln LN6 8TH Tel: 01522 689460www.sleafordnavigation.co.uk

Trent and Mersey Canal Society 10 Long Lane, Middlewich, Cheshire CW10 0BL.Tel: 01606 834471www.trentandmerseycanalsociety.co.uk

John Stanbridge, Navigation Warehouse, Riverhead,Louth LN11 0DA Tel: 01507 605496www.louthcanal.org.uk

Louth Navigation Trust

Sleaford Navigation Trust

�

Journals ReceivedWe are very pleased to acknowledge copies of journals from various canal andriver societies and trusts. They include “The Portal” from Friends of the CromfordCanal; “The Packet” from the Derby & Sandiacre Canal Society; “The Cuckoo”,from the Chesterfield Canal Trust; “The Bridge”, from Grantham Canal Society;“Sleaford Navigation Trust” journal; the “Melton and Oakham Newsletter”; and“The Wharfinger”, from Louth Navigation Trust, as well as “Navigation” fromour neighbours at West Midlands, the “Easterling” from our Eastern neighbours,and “Endeavour” from Northampton Branch. Anyone interested in receiving acopy of one of these journals should contact the relevant address given above.For “The Cuckoo” contact the editor John Lower at 92a Tapton View Road, Ches-terfield S41 7JY.

www.erewashcanalpreservationanddevelopmentassoc.org.uk


Erewash Restoration - Forty Years On

In May there will be a special celebration at a site very close to the centre ofour Region, and very close to the hearts of many of our members. To recog-nise this important event, we are giving prime spot in this issue of Aegre to theErewash canal and that Association with the long name. Maybe you haven’tvisited it, whether by boat, bike or foot - or even train. We hope to encourageall to come and support.

In 1968 the Erewash CanalPreservation & DevelopmentAssociation was formed inresponse to a threat by theBritish Waterways Board toclose the canal. In just fiveyears following the formationof the ECP&DA they had notonly saved the canal but alsorestored Langley Bridge lockand the Great Northern basinand swing bridge. This wascelebrated by an opening cer-emony and their first boatrally at Langley Mill in 1973. The canal was upgraded to a Cruiseway by theBritish Waterways (1983) Act.

Since then ECP&DA members have been and still are involved in restorationwork on many canals allover the country, and notleast in work to maintain thecanal, locks and other fixedequipment, and clearing outrubbish and the traditional“towpath tidies”. For thosewho are not familiar with thecanal, and think it is still allcoal mines and coal trainsalong the valley, here a fewfacts and pictures to setthings straight.


Bridge 23

Stanton or White House Lock

Bridge at Hallam Fields

Green’s (Sough Close) Lock

At Gallows Inn

Early picture ofboats leaving Stenson Lock

Former GNR bridge overNottingham Canal

Mill Lane Bridge


A Monumental CanalMost canals have a few listed buildingsalong them, but the Erewash is quiterich in these. Here are a few to watchout for if you are visiting (not all ofthem are pictured here).

Long Eaton Lock, near Leopold Street

Canal Bridge and Lock at Dockholme,Bennett Street / Willoughby Avenue.

Bridge and Beech House at SandiacreLock, Lock Lane

Offices to Springfield Mill Factory withAttached Wall and Lavatory Blocks,Canal Street, Sandiacre

25, Town Street, Sandiacre

Canal Bridge at SK 481367, Mill Lane

Hallam Fields Bridge and Lock, HallamFields Road

Potters Lock Bridge, off HeathfieldAvenue by Monks Close

Bennerley Viaduct (both ends).

Canal Bridge, Lock and Cottage atShipley Gate SK 463454, NewmanleysRoad

Aqueduct over the River Erewash andunder Erewash Canal at SK 462455,Newmanleys Road

Sandiacre Lock Cottage and Junctionand the Great Northern Basin are bothconservation areas.

At Sandiacre

Shipley Lock

Rail bridge near Poplar Farm

Early picture ofBennerley Viaduct


The Editor’s Flotsam and JetsamStraight and level.These are words I usually associatewith aeroplanes,even though I some-times feel the need to duck when aRyanair plane passes low overhead onthat long straight below Zouch, and Ihope it’s level enough. But thesewords can apply just as well to manyforms of civil engineering from theRomans onwards. Their roads weremostly straight and as level as possi-ble with no JCBs to help, and theiraqueducts had a crafty gradient. Thena gap while the “rolling Englishdrunkard made the rolling Englishroads”, until the canal engineersneeded level pounds to keep theirwater in. Initially not straight ofcourse, but soon embankments andtunnels helped.They also tended to follow easy routesalong valleys if possible. Similarly therailway engineers looked for easyroutes with limited gradients, whichexplains why canals and railwaysoften run broadly parallel. I think myleast favourite bit of canal is wherethe Trent and Mersey runs parallel tothe A38 road (itself the RomanRyknild Street) with the rail line fromBurton to Tamworth not far away.Noise from the St Pancras line heardfrom Trent Lock pales into insignifi-cance by comparison.

Why all this? Well the civil engineersat Arup face the same problems as theRomans, the canal engineers and theearly railway engineers when plan-

ning a route for their new railway line- their trains just need it more“straight and level”. So we shouldn’tbe surprised if the draft HS2 routeseems to choose existing canal andrail alignments.This is not the place for arguments foror against, but in case you have notseen any details (what has been pub-lished in newspapers is best summedup as “approximate”) the proposedroute enters Leicestershire near NoMan’s Heath on the old A453 (nowB5493) close to the M42, then runsclosely with the motorway and A42before tunnelling under the runway atDonington, then on viaduct over theSoar valley and in a short tunnel inRedhill and over the Trent to the yardat Toton. Then pretty straight north-wards along the valley close to the M1and names familiar to all interested incanals such as Staveley, where it veerswest from the M1 line to run west ofKillamarsh and then turn towards Cat-cliffe into Sheffield.Anyone interested in the details couldlook at https://www.gov.uk andHS2-ARP-000-DR-RT-55001 for anoverall picture. Good luck.News on the East WindOur neighbours of the East AnglianWaterways Association have worry-ing news about progress on the NorthWalsham and Dilham Canal. TheEnvironment Agency has issued an“Anti-Pollution Works Notice” affect-ing clearance works done upstreamfrom Ebridge. This is based on a


Picture CreditsWe are most grateful to all of the following, who have contributed photo-graphs or other illustrations to enhance this edition of Aegre: Mick and CaroleGolds; Stuart Squires; Ian McDonald; Dave Carnell; Mike Snaith; John Baylis;John Wilkinson; Rod Auton; David Brown, and as noted for specific articles.Some photographs in this issue on pages 1, 6 and 7 are licensed under the Cre-ative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic Licence. To view a copyof this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/. Theauthors concerned are: Shipley Lock and Greens Lock - Stephen McKay;Bridge 23 - David Lally; At Cotmanhay - David Murray-Rust; At Gallows Inn- David Hallam-Jones; Mill Lane Bridge - Christine Johnstone; Sandiacre andStanton Locks - Trevor Rickard; Rail Bridge - Alan Heardman; Hallam Fields- Oxymoron; other Erewash early illustrations from the Golds collection.

premise that the Agency’s powers torequire consent for such works underland drainage legislation override anyCanal Acts. Their concern is driven byhydromorphology targets establishedby the “Water Framework Directive”.

They also draw attention to a questionconcerning the validity of the “Envi-ronment Agency (Inland Waterways)Order 2010” as being possibly outsidethe scope allowed by the Transportand Works Act 1992. The Order isone which creates for the Agency

some 84 criminal offences concerningsuch matters as the registration of ves-sels. As a non-expert in these areas, Ipass it on “to whom it may concern”.

The Trent AegreNormally in this issue of Aegre wegive the forecast times of the actualaegre on the Trent. This year is a quietone, with only “one star” waves untilthe end of July, so we will try to bringyou up-to-date in the next issue.Best wishes for the new season,

Peter

�

Kegworth Shallow Lock -not quite so shallow

�


News from Leicestershire(Notes from a retiring chairman)

The Leicestershire branch AGM washeld on St Valentines Day when sev-eral local roads and part of the pub’scar park were under a significantamount of water. But somehow Idon’t think I can blame Cupid, Eros orZeus for the abysmal attendance(4.5% of the membership!).It was my turn to retire from the Com-mittee ‘by rotation’ and I had previ-ously made it clear that I was unableto stand for re-election.

I was particularly saddened, therefore,that Maggie Young and BerylMcDowall announced their resigna-tion from the Committee during theweek prior to the meeting. Maggie, arelatively recent recruit, has changedher employment situation and has tocut down on non-essential activities.Her input over the last couple of yearshas been appreciated. Thank youMaggie.

Beryl has been a tower of strength as,among other things, a very capableSocial Secretary for many years and Ican’t find the words to thank her ade-quately for all the support she hasgiven to both the Branch and to mepersonally, in difficult times. She haskindly agreed to honour existingarrangements and to continue to helpthe branch in other ways. We wish herwell with her increasing commitments

to the local CRT Partnership.So that leaves a committee of IanMcDonald, Herbert Eppel and JimEvans with something of a dilemmaas to which direction to take. It alsoleaves me extremely disappointed,both with Branch members for ignor-ing my many pleas for support, butmore so with myself for not havingachieved the vision I had for theBranch when I inherited the chair.

May I, one last time therefore, beg allLeicestershire Branch members tointerrogate themselves and establishwhat it is that prevents them fromoffering the waterways a couple ofhours of their time once in a while.The Branch may not survive withoutyour support.

PLEASE pick up the phone or fingeryour key-pad now. I will continue toact as a contact point during the inter-regnum so call me on 01509 416647or [email protected] andlet me know if you can help or haveany constructive ideas. It would betragic if all the hard work of eighteenyears were to be lost.

On a brighter note there are somedates for your diary on page 25.

John Evans


New Bridge Unlocks Waterway's "Front Door"Work is now complete onon the rebuilding of theWreake End Footbridge offMeadow Lane, Syston inLeicestershire (grid ref 609121) and, at a stroke,unlocks the hidden potentialof the disused MeltonMowbray Navigation.

The old bridge had steps atone end denying access toprams, pushchairs, bicycles,

the elderly and, crucially, wheelchairs. Following a television appeal and tel-ephone vote the People's Lottery Fund awarded £50 million to SustransConnect2 Schemes which has allowed the completion of many unfinishedprojects up and down the country, including the Watermead Park area inLeicestershire.

The work included: resurfacing paths within the park, improving signage andcar parking facilities, plus improvement to all routes into the venue. Thecanal towpath at Syston provided easy ingress into the park, but the steps atthe bridge were prohibitive to some groups of people.

The new bridge addresses these problems with easy access ramps, a widerdeck and, in keeping with the Sustrans ethic, green and sustainable character-istics.

The old flat deck concretestructure was removed lastautumn and followingextensive ground-works,the bridge was lifted intoplace on Thursday6 December. A spokes-person for the LCC thensaid "The bridge is due tobe open to the public byChristmas, with an officialopening early in the newyear".


The Melton and Oakham WaterwaysSociety (MOWS) has worked along-side Sustrans, British Waterways andLeicestershire County Council toensure the new bridge also comes with2.4 metres of navigable headroom,unlocking the potential for future resto-ration. MOWS has worked sinceinception in 1997 to clear the naviga-tion and stabilise the lock chambers.

MOWS Chairman, Mick Clowes, said"This new bridge will accelerate plansto open up the river corridor for the useof all and exploit the underused leisurepossibilities that the Wreake Valleyholds." Linda Hulme

Pictures from Sam Ireson and Leices-tershire CC. For further informationwww.meltonwaterways.org.uk

Chesterfield Canal NewsStret Lock passes the test

The first boat has successfully gone through the re-opened Stret Lock on theChesterfield Canal in Worksop.

Stret Lock was restored in the 1990s. However for very many years someboats have got stuck. These boats might have been slightly wider or deeperthan normal. There were lots of theories about the problem, some even sug-gesting that the lock was banana-shaped. This was somewhat ironic becauseStret Lock is thought to be a corruption of Straight Lock. The general consen-sus was that, in the 240 years since the lock was built, the ground pressure hadforced the walls inwards.

British Waterways undertook a major inspection in 2011. Infra-red photo-graphs were taken. These were used to create a computer simulation of thelock. A virtual boat was then introduced so that any problem areas were high-lighted. The lock was indeed found to be narrower than it should have been.


The Canal & River Trust started a widening scheme in October last year. Thisinvolved taking down two of the of the outer brick courses on the towpath sideand replacing them with one course, increasing the width by 50mm. There wasan Open Day in November at which about 250 people went down inside thelock to inspect the works.

The final welding was done on the paddle gear early on January 3rd. At lunch-time that day, the Chesterfield Canal Trust’s historic boat, Python, approached.This boat had previously got stuck every time it tried to get through. This timeit went like a dream, slipping in and out perfectly.

It might only be two inches, but it will make all the difference for full sizedboats which should now be able to get all the way to Kiveton Park past theidyllic hamlet of Turnerwood and up the historic Turnerwood and Thorpeflights of locks that were restored a decade ago.

For our Events Calendar, go towww.chesterfield-canal-trust.org.uk/index.php/events-diary/month.calendar .

�


Lincolnshire Happenings

Welcome to 2013 and what a wel-come. Winter has come with a venge-ance and follows much rain thatcaused flooding problems and moor-ings to become inundated leaving lay-ers of mud to be cleared away.Despite the weather Drakes Dredginghave removed over one 1,300 cubicmetres of material from the site ofLincoln Boat Clubs moorings in Bray-ford Pool. The old moorings havebeen replaced with floating pontoonsand services. Some re-allocation ofmoorings will permit a number ofmuch-needed visitor berths.

Recently a number of thefts and dam-age to boats on the Foss Dyke havetaken place. For some time we havebeen in discussion with the Lincoln-shire Police regarding the formationof a “Boat Watch” scheme. Progresshas been made with a link to their“Links Alert” website. Details of thisand the anti-terror-ism and smuggling“Project Kraken”were the subject ofa presentation fol-lowing our Febru-ary AGM. Detailswill be publishedin the next editionof Aegre and thewaterway press.

After many hours of research andapplying to the EA for monies fromtheir Catchment Restoration Fund, todeal with the aquatic weed problemon the River Witham, it was disap-pointing to learn all the availablemonies had been spent, and roundthree in March 2013 would not be tak-ing place unless more funding becameavailable. The lack of approvedchemicals to deal with this problem iscausing concern with all those respon-sible for flood control, land drainageand leisure activities. Reports of newacceptable chemicals being tried inthe US are being investigated.

Last year Cow Bridge Lock on theWitham Navigable Drains was closedto enable the Internal Drainage Boardto carry out major works to the guillo-tine (below). Although the Boardreceives no funding toward leisure


activities, they have always encour-aged use of their waters; their com-mitment in spending nearly £70,000in renewing the guillotine gate andsupports at the lock is commendable.The lock is again available from Mayto September 2013. Although our pic-ture on the left appears to show waterin the channel, the brown surface isactually water completely coveredwith weed!

A Waterways Trust has been estab-lished for Yorkshire and the Humberarea. Advice received indicates thatbecause the River Ancholme dis-charges into the Humber at South Fer-riby funding applications forimprovements there may be consid-ered.

The IWA Club 500 raises valuablefunds for IWA work, Members areentered into draws which take placethree times per year. I am pleased toacknowledge that two of our Branchmembers were successful in the Sep-tember 2012 Draw. Congratulationson your prize and for supporting theAssociation. Any one interested intaking part should contact HeadOffice.

The annual Boat Gathering on theRiver Slea takes place over May DayBank Holiday May 4th 5th and 6th.Details from Chris Hayes on 01522689460.

River Slea Future Projects

As part of a forward planning exercisea number of projects are beingresearched to enable us to identifyfunding options that may becomeavailable.One of these projects relates to therestoration of Haverholme Lock.Those members familiar with the areawill realize how popular the footpathsare, using the bridges to cross the lockand by-wash channels, and may havenoticed an unusual metal structure atthe lock side.

Research to establish the boundariesand ownership of the structures andRights of Way has produced someinteresting and unusual information.


Haverholme Priory, Stables andHome Farm had their water suppliedfrom the river and this metal structure,known as a Hett pump, used the dif-ference in water height between thehead and tail of the lock to this end.

An IWA member, Stuart Squires, hasfound that the pump is a double actingone that pressured the water to theestate. It was built in the late 1800`sby hydraulic engineer, Charles Hett ,at his foundry in Brigg, Lincolnshire.His pumps used a number of designsto pump liquids, others being self reg-ulating wind pumps, pelton wheels,iron water mill wheels, chain pumps,turbines and centrifugal pumps. Hisworks were not confined to Englandbut sold across Europe, South Amer-ica and the United States.

It also seems that a number of largecountry houses used waterways tosupply coal to their private GasWorks. Was this the case at Haver-holme?More research is needed, anyone hav-ing knowledge ofthis is asked tocontact me for afuture article.

During thisresearch Stuart alsoproduced a photo-graph of Haver-holme Lock, takenin 1968, showingthat a roof hadbeen installed over

the chamber by the estate owner, theEarl of Winchelsea, in 1915 to form aboathouse. This would have precludedthe use of the lock for navigationbeyond this point but indicates the useof the navigation up to this point.


News from Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire

The winter snows have made their presence felt and several activities plannedfor January had to be re-thought. So with the snow and the cold it’s been arelatively quiet period over the winter but the New Year is now upon us withthe snow drops already in full bloom heralding springtime along the local wa-terways. A wonderful time of year to be enjoying the outdoors and the water-ways.

After fundraising throughout last year it was a great pleasure to be able to do-nate funds to the Friends of Cromford Canal towards their new trip boat. Theboat will be used for horse-drawn trips along the canal from Cromford wharfto High Peak Junction near the Leawood pump. It will also be powered byelectric motor and have a major educational role as well as providing passen-ger trips. It is hoped that continued fund raising will enable the boat to becompleted and in service by the sum-mer, so it was with high hopes thatacting chairman Brian White and Ipresented a £500 cheque to theFriends to boost their endeavours attheir monthly meeting at Ironville inNovember. It fell to me to give abrief speech before Brian presentedthe cheque to Pat Morriss, chairman of the Friends and Mike Kelley, secretary.With the kind words of appreciation from Pat and the applause from the 85strong audience it made the whole evening memorable and worthwhile.

As has been mentioned in this column before, coincident with the purchase ofa trip boat Derbyshire County Council are also funding the dredging of theCromford canal from Cromford wharf to Leawood pump and this should be inprogress as I write this article in early February. So provided the much neededfund raising succeeds, further restoration progress on the Cromford canal willbe evident very soon.

Looking ahead to the Social calendar we have Steve Morley from WaterwaysRecovery Group (WRG) presenting the canal restoration activities carried outby WRG volunteers using the recent works on the Chesterfield and Hereford& Gloucester canals as examples on March 15th. Then April 19th will seeNigel Lowey giving an illustrated talk on St. Pancras station. Get there earlyfor this one, the engineering and architectural genius that went into such a


building is something to behold. In form and function it is a transport master-piece.

Further ahead in the warmer weather we also have some great visits planned.On May 19th we will be visiting the Newark Heritage Barge Project on boardthe barge, Leicester Trader on the River Trent in Newark. The project aims torestore Leicester Trader, the last remaining Trent barge, and create within it aRiver Heritage Centre. We will be given a tour of the barge followed by anillustrated talk by Les Reid concerning progress to date and plans for the fu-ture. All are welcome; meet us on board at 7.30 pm on the day.

Then on June 21st we will be assembling at Staythorpe Power Station, adjacentto the Trent near Newark, for a guided tour. For those interested in water-borne freight you may recall the large indivisible loads transported up theTrent a few years ago whilst the Power Station was under construction. Now isyour chance to see all that equipment installed and on line. Meet at StaythorpePower Station at 7.30 pm on the day. All are welcome. Further details aboutour enlightening events can be found in the full calendar at the rear of thismagazine.

After many a long year tirelessly and successfully organising the Social Calen-dar of events, Mavis White has retired from the committee to pursue other in-terests. It is a great honour to be able to thank Mavis here for all her time andeffort involved in creating a wide and varied entertainment programme foreveryone for nigh on 12 years. She has always been in the background, check-ing and making sure everything just happens. Well things just don’t happen,they are planned and organised and actioned by a dedicated person who is ex-tremely proficient, so much so that no one has ever seen the join on those oddoccasions when it’s all gone wrong and plan B “just happens”. Mavis, thankyou, your talents are both recognised and very much appreciated. In yourwell-earned retirement you will be sadly missed and we all wish you the verybest in your new endeavours.

So there is now a further vacancy on the Branch organising committee. If youare interested in following in Mavis’ footsteps as Social Secretary please letme, or another committee member know. You will be given a great deal ofsupport and have lots of fun to boot and I have a feeling that Mavis will onlybe a phone call away if greater knowledge is required.

Remember, put the evening of the third Friday in the month in your diaries andsee the calendar of events on pages 19 and 26 of this magazine. As a taster,


when we recommence the programme after the summer break in October, SeanMcGinley, Waterways Manager, East Midlands, Canal and River Trust willpresent an illustrated talk on “12 months on from the start of the Canal andRiver Trust.” So if you want to ask questions and talk to an influential Canaland River Trust manager, you now have your chance. Do come and join us,everyone is most welcome, I look forward to seeing you there.

Mike Snaith

Branch Programme

The Notts and Derby branch of the IWA organises a series of public meetings. Weare hoping to attract lots of new faces to the meetings and have arranged a veryinteresting and varied group of speakers. Non IWA members will be very welcometo attend. You will find us a friendly bunch! We meet on the third Friday of themonth throughout most of the year.

Meetings are held at 7.30 pm at Rushcliffe Arena, Rugby Road, West Bridgford,Nottingham NG2 7HY. This is not far from the A60 (Loughborough Road) and theArena entrance road is roughly opposite Greythorn Drive. It would take about 25minutes from M1 Junction 24 up the A453, Clifton traffic permitting. Don’t bealarmed by a barrier at the entrance - they will let you out again.

For SatNav equipped vehicles try 52° 55.328’ N, 01° 08.673’ W, or SK 5761036424. Note that Rushcliffe Leisure Centre is a different place. Further informationabout meetings can be obtained from Mavis White on 01636 671726.

Friday, March 15th 2013Work with WRG (Waterways Recovery Group). Working on Two CanalCamps (Hereford & Gloucester and the Chesterfield); an illustrated talk byWRG’s Steve Morley.

Friday, April 19th 2013“St. Pancras” an illustrated talk by Nigel Lowey. A talk for everyone with aninterest in history, world class architecture, clever engineering and a greatstory.

For events later in the year, see page 26.�


Complete passage of Chesterfield Canal after 104years?

Andy Robinson, James Woods andChris Capon have just taken theircanoe the full 46 miles of the Ches-terfield Canal from Chesterfield toWest Stockwith on the River Trent.They carried it, full of kit, round 52locks and wheeled it on a specialtrolley on the unrestored sectionbetween Staveley and Kiveton Park.They camped overnight.

We believe that this may be the firstend-to-end passage of the Chesterfield Canal by a boat since the NorwoodTunnel collapsed in 1907.

They did this for fun, as a challenge, and to raise money - half will go to Fair-play and half to the Chesterfield Canal Trust. To donate, go tohttp://www.justgiving.com/sponsored-canal-dawdle or send a cheque to AndyRobinson, Hollingwood Hub, 22 Works Road, Hollingwood, Chesterfield,S43 2PF.

They set out from Andy’s home in Chesterfield at about 7.20 a.m. on Friday10th June last year. Having paddled four miles and carried the canoe roundfour locks, the first stop was Nona’s Coffee Shop at Hollingwood Hub. Herethey had a Full English Breakfast on the house.

After another mile, they came to the unrestored section. This required thecanoe to be pushed and pulled on its trolley for nine long miles. Arriving at

Kiveton Park meant more paddling,now in the pouring rain, but alsocarrying it round a further fifteenlocks in the three mile stretch toTurnerwood. Here they met Andy’sfamily and camped overnight, hav-ing had a barbecue courtesy ofDiane Gleeson who runs the icecream stall at Turnerwood.

Here is Andy's account of the Satur-day and Sunday:


"After leaving Turnerwood we trolleyed to the bottom lock and then paddledinto Shireoaks. We stopped for lunch at the Lock Keeper and replenished sup-plies at the local Sainsbury’s before paddling on through Worksop.

We had a nice steady day; we couldn't be anything other than steady with theboat loaded to capacity. We 'wild camped' at bridge 52 and enjoyed a verypleasant evening with our disposable barbecue and a few beers.

We'd left a lot of distance to cover on Sunday (19 miles). We were off by 7.30a.m. and it was nice to have fewer locks to port around. The day started warmand sunny and we were determined to cover as much distance as possiblebefore the weather changed. As we encountered our first narrow-boat travel-ling towards us, to my horror the boys took my instruction to pass left-to-leftas “go left” which meant they tried to veer across in front of several tons ofoncoming steel! We quickly put ourselves right - lesson learned.

It appeared to me that everyone was on the move until midday when it startedto rain. If you were steering a narrow-boat on Sunday and you passed threemen in a canoe, my thanks to you. Everyone slowed down while we passed!

Oh boy did it rain and it never stopped. At Drakeholes we found ourselves in apub trying to warm up and drinking tea! Three hours later, after a difficult portaround the final lock, we turnedonto the home straight. Wet andcold, but elated, we chargeddown the last half mile like menpossessed. Joanne, my wife, waswaiting by the final bridgejumping up and down withexcitement. Finally we cameinto West Stockwith Basin at5.15 p.m. and performed a lap ofhonour just for ourselves.

So we did it. The first boat in over one hundred years to traverse the wholecanal? I would like to think so."

Incidentally, as a warm up, James and Andy walked from West Stockwith toChesterfield three weeks ago. They did the 46 miles in 15 hours!

Surely this titanic effort deserves your support. Please sponsor them.


Ron WarhurstI am sorry to report the death of Ron Warhurst, one of the last andlongest serving British Waterways permanent lock keepers on theRiver Trent. Ron was born in Hull in 1930, and after the bombing ofthe city during World War II he was evacuated to live with his eldersister in Newark. After leaving school Ron served for some years onthe Trent barges before taking over Newark Town Lock in 1956. Ronlived in the cottage by Town Lock until his retirement in 1995. Ron’sfuneral just before Christmas was attended by his retired and still serv-ing colleagues and a number of boaters who had known Ron for manyyears.

John Baylis

Keith Broughton 1944 - 2012We are sorry to report the death of Keith Broughton, Commodore ofthe Soar Boating Club, at the age of 68. Born in Eastwood, Keithstarted work at John Player and then moved to the National CoalBoard, where he obtained his degree part time and became an assist-ant manager. He and his first wife Phillipa shared a passion for boatsand boating, which was to mould both of their lives. This wasactively encouraged by his father-in-law, Jack Lynam, who helpedKeith to restore “Gambler” his first boat. Keith was involved with theIWA National Rally of boats in Marple in 1966 and working on LimeKiln lock in 1967 for the Leicester National.

Phillipa and Keith separated after 10 years and he married PatArgent in 1980, gaining another exceptional mentor, his new father-in-law Ike Argent, well respected boatman and later dedicated BWforeman on the Erewash Canal. Keith moved to the NCB researchunit at Bretby, where he became an expert on noise and vibration

Obituaries


control. Following contraction of the coal industry, he found a naturalhome with the Health and Safety Executive. Keith became an expertin his field and was able to travel the world lecturing and offeringconsultation. Keith retired at 60 and decided to return to Melbourneto their old house, taking a more active role in the running of the boatclub. Keith became treasurer and subsequently Commodore.

Throughout this time Pat and Keith remained keen members of theSoar Boating Club and rarely if ever missed the social and boatingevents. They boated on hire boats with their family and with John andPhyll Saxon and ourselves. When we started boating in France theywere keen to join us and we had further adventures in Burgundy andon the Canal du Midi, culminating in an epic trip down the Rhone in2009. Following diagnosis of his final illness Keith and Pat fulfilledhis ambitions to boat on the Irish waterways and the Canal du Midi toCarcassonne.Keith died on December 16th and his funeral service took place at St.James Church, Normanton-on-Soar on January 3rd. The celebration ofKeith’s life followed at the Clubhouse. Needless to say it wasextremely well attended. I can’t remember the room ever being sofull. We will all miss Keith in our own ways but most will rememberhim as a loyal friend who could always be relied upon to “tell it as itis”. I will miss him for his sense of humour and the knowledge that hewas always on hand to offer help where and when it was needed.

John Wilkinson


Derby & Sandiacre Canal Meetings

All meetings except working parties are held at the Wilmot Arms, DerbyRoad, Borrowash. DE72 3HA. For more details please call Chris Madge on01332 840502.March 26th. Birds of Prey, by Ken McLoughlin.April 23rd. Days of Steam, by Philip Lee.May 28th. Seaside, Skegness and Hand-knitted Bathing Costumes, by BillAllen.

�

Lincolnshire Events

Sleaford Navigation TrustRegular work parties on the second Sunday of each month.Contact Mel Sowerby (01522 856810) for latest details.

Slea Boat Gathering. May 4th - 6th. Call 01522 689460

Louth Navigation TrustSat 1st June 2013. Louth Walking Festival: - Canal WalkStart at 1.30pm at Crown and Anchor Inn, Tetney Lock DN36 5UW

Thursday 27th June 2013AGM. 7.30pm Louth Conoco Rooms above Library, Northgate LN11 0LY

Northampton Branch events.

All meetings are held at 8pm at The Walnut Tree Inn, Blisworth, Northants,NN7 3DS unless otherwise stated.See www.waterways.org.uk/northampton/diary for more information.

March 12th AGM followed by Speaker to be announced

April 9th Speaker: Richard Thompson - the Manchester Ship Canal�


Leicestershire Branch Meetings

Unless stated otherwise, meetings will be held at The Gate Hangs Well Pub,Lewin Bridge, Fosse Way, Syston, Leicester LE7 1NH (in the FunctionRoom). The pub is not far from the Hobby Horse roundabout on the A46. Westart our meetings at 7.30 p.m., unless specified otherwise.

Monday March 4th Friends of Charnwood Forest Canal meet at StoreyArms, Main Street, Osgathorpe LE12 9TA at 7.30 when the speaker will beGeoff Pursglove.The next meeting will be on 10th April at St Mary's Church, Nanpantan.LE11 3YF. Speaker Brian Williams.

Thursday, 14th March, 2013An illustrated talk, updating us on progress on the Ashby Canal in the past fewyears.

Thursday, 11th April, 2013The Canal & River Trust - One Year On - with updates from the Central ShiresManager, Darren Green, and Waterway Partnership Chair, Charlotte Atkins.

May 4th-5th

Loughborough Canal and Boat Festival.*

Thursday, 9th May, 2013A walk along part of the Wreake Navigation. Meet at 7.00 p.m. (Details nearerthe time)

May 25th – 27th

Crick Boat Show.*June 1st – 2nd

Leicester Riverside Festival.*June 29th – 30th

Foxton Festival.*

*Regrettably, without additional support we will be unable to maintain anIWA presence at these events.


Cromford Canal MeetingsAll social meetings are held at Ironville Church Hall (SK435518) at 7.30 pmunless otherwise noted. For any queries contact Mike Kelley on 01773833425. A contribution of £2 is asked for, except at The Hayes, where ticketsare £3.

March 18th. The Butterley Company, by Gwilym Roberts. This special meet-ing will be at The Hayes Conference Centre, Swanwick DE55 1AU.April 15th. AGMMay 20th. Future of the Cromford Canal, by Matthew Rogers.June 17th. The Chesterfield Canal, by Dr Geraint Coles.September 16th. Fame within five miles of Alfreton, by Ray Sunderland.October 21st. Black Diamonds, by Wendy Freer.

Leawood Pump steam days are planned for March 31st/April 1st; May 5thand 6th; June 1st and 2nd; August 3rd, 4th, 25th and 26th; October 5th and6th, and November 2nd and 3rd.

Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire BranchExtra Off site Events:

Friday, May 19th 2013

A visit to the Newark Heritage Barge Project. An illustrated talk and tour withLes Reid on board the barge “Leicester Trader” on the riverside in Newark.The project aims to create a River Heritage Centre which is open to the publicand can be used by schools, research students and other interested parties.Meet on board at 7.30 pm

Friday, June 21st 2013

A guided tour around the new Staythorpe Power Station by the R. Trent nearNewark. Meet at the Power Station 7.30 pm

�


Canal Reservoirs

Note:Following the problems of water supply in Spring 2012, David Brown of theCanal & River Trust has allowed me to edit a paper prepared by him someyears ago for the Institute of Civil Engineers into a reduced form for Aegre. Inthis paper he considers the development of canal reservoirs in England froman historical perspective and reflects how they developed in the light of chang-ing requirements and engineering advances. About 70 reservoirs remain theresponsibility of the Canal & River Trust, although there are many more whichhave found other uses or been discontinued. JB

Until the late 18th Century, inland navigation was based around estuaries andriver systems. Navigation was affected by flood and drought, but wasimproved by the construction of weirs and locks. The industrial revolutionrequired the movement of coal and raw materials to manufacturing districts andthe provision of arteries for trade; this need was met by the construction ofcanals. The St. Helens Canal, opened in 1757, was 9 miles long and connectedSt. Helens with the Mersey estuary. The canal was parallel with the Sankey

Rishton reservoir, showing stonepitching protection on dam


Brook and drew its water suppliesfrom that source. The Erewash Canalin 1779 used the River Erewash.Transport routes did not necessarilyfollow natural water courses. TheBridgewater Canal was constructed asa direct link from the coalfields atWorsley to the markets at Manchester,independent of natural watercoursesand crossing the Irwell on an aqueductat Barton. The canal, which wasseven miles long, opened to traffic in1761, but with no locks the water sup-ply from mines drainage was suffi-cient.

Numerous canals were built in thenext few decades, with the peak yearfor construction being 1794 during‘canal mania’. Canals such as the

Trent & Mersey crossed watersheds,rising to a summit level by means ofnumerous locks. These required copi-ous quantities of water for their opera-tion. The early canal promotersoptimistically thought that they couldcollect sufficient water by tappingstreams and by on-line storage indeepened summit levels. The Trent &Mersey was at first reliant on drainageof ground water from the summit tun-nel at Harecastle. It was 13 years afterthe canal opened in 1777 that its firstreservoir, Rudyard, was completed bySir John Rennie, whereas Pebley Res-ervoir on the Chesterfield Canal wasbuilt at the same time as the Turner-wood flight of locks. Later canals suchas the Shropshire Union Main Line,included reservoirs from the start, Bel-

2. Barrowford spillway


vide and Knighton Reservoirs beingcompleted in 1832/3.

There was no precedent for the con-struction of major earthworks in theUK in the late 18th Century; the earlyengineers followed the contour, avoid-ing embankments and cuttings wher-ever possible. Francis Egerton, 3rdDuke of Bridgewater (1736-1803), thepromoter of the Bridgewater Canal,would have been familiar with artifi-cially constructed ornamental lakes oncountry estates, but his engineer,James Brindley, was the first to tackleEnglish canal construction on a largescale. Brindley started as a millwrightbefore he became a canal engineer butwas familiar with the construction ofmill ponds and feeder channels.

The first canal reservoirs had embank-ments of whatever material could bewon locally. Whilst clays would havebeen used where available, the head-bank of Cofton Reservoir in Worces-tershire was built of sand. Certainreservoirs suffered from excessiveleakage as a result; Smethwick GreatPool on the Birmingham Canal neversatisfactorily held water and was aban-doned after the construction of RottonPark Reservoir in 1826. The first damwith a central core of puddle clay mayhave been Butterley Reservoir (1848)on the Cromford Canal in Derbyshire.Little or no attempt was made to exca-vate cut-off trenches down to imper-meable strata nor was the topsoilremoved. However the section of Rot-ton Park Reservoir (1828), designed

by Thomas Telford, shows not only apuddle clay core but also a shallowcut-off trench.

Ornamental lakes needed draw-offsfor maintenance purposes only. Mill-ponds were of modest size, but canalreservoirs were on a much biggerscale and needed outlets which wouldenable a controlled outflow to be pro-vided to feed the canal. The systemcommonly adopted was to lay ajointed cast iron pipe in a trench innatural ground and construct the damabove it with a valve at the down-stream end of the pipe to control theflow. This arrangement has manydrawbacks, including movement ofthe pipe due to settlement and spreadof the fill above. As the pipe containswater under reservoir head pressureany faults in the pipe could lead toleakage and erosion of the embank-ment material.

Following the 1864 Dale Dyke failure,the engineers decided that a masonrytunnel under the dam with a centralmasonry bulkhead pierced by a shortlength of pipe with a valve could besubstituted to address the problem.However, later reservoirs were pro-vided with upstream valves and thefinal dams, such as Upper Foulridge(1866) and Winterburn (1891) hadwaterworks type upstream valve tow-ers from the start. Most old draw-offsystems have been upgraded over theyears to improve the safety of the res-ervoir.


Whilst most canal supply was by grav-ity, some reservoirs such as Wilstone(1803) and Earlswood (1815) hadsteam pumping stations to lift thewater to the necessary height. RottonPark and Cannock Chase Reservoirs,which supply the Birmingham CanalNavigations, had steam plant onstandby to transfer surplus canal waterto the reservoir in times of heavy rain-fall.

The magnitude of floods was not com-prehended in the late 18th century;overflow spillways were small andfreeboard low. Commonly, there wasa small weir at one end of the damwith a masonry channel to conductsurplus water away. Stop planks wereoften used to store additional waterabove weir level, for example atLower Gailey (1855), further compro-mising freeboard. Protection againstwave erosion of the upstream faces of

the dams was provided in most casesby hand-laid stone pitching. Head-banks were often raised to provideadditional storage, and sometimes anear vertical brick wall was built toprotect the upstream face and retainthe earthworks which were extendedon the downstream side only.

In order to collect additional water,streams in adjacent catchments wereoften intercepted and carried by feederchannels to the reservoir; Bosley Res-ervoir on the Macclesfield Canal has8km of feeders from these indirectcatchments. Constructional difficul-ties and design inadequacies led to anumber of failures in the early years.Diggle Reservoir on the HuddersfieldNarrow Canal was built with an inade-quate spillway and was overtoppedand breached in 1799. It was rebuilt in1803 but was again damaged byfloods in 1806. It was eventually

3. Townhead spillway


rebuilt in 1830 but the feeder streamwas allowed to flow past the reservoirrather than through it.

The worst failure in terms of loss oflife was at Cwm Carn Reservoir on theMonmouthshire Canal on 14 July1875. The dam had settled due toconsolidation of the fill after construc-tion and flood water flowed over thecrest after heavy rain. For a fewhours, local people put up with theinconvenience of having to wadethrough the water as they walkedalong the crest. Around 11pm, thedam failed. The water ponded upagainst a road embankment anddrowned three people in a cottagebetween the two earthworks. The roadembankment then breached, drowningeight people in a house and an appren-tice sleeping in a flannel mill.

Following reservoir failures in 1925 atSkelmorlie and Dolgarrog, resulting in31 deaths, the Reservoirs (Safety Pro-visions) Act was passed in 1930.Independent inspections by empan-elled 'qualified civil engineers' wererequired for all large reservoirs. Theseinspecting engineers had the powers torequire works to be carried out ‘in theinterests of safety'. Some of the earlyinspectors were eminent consultantssuch as Sir William Halcrow, W J EBinnie, H J F Gourley and Col. J ASaner (the Engineer and Manager ofthe Weaver Navigation) . As a resultof these inspections some reservoirswhich were no longer needed werediscontinued by cutting through the

dams. Safety in extreme flood eventswas a key issue. Spillways wereimproved and sometimes duplicated,as at Townhead where an auxiliaryspillway was built over the dam crestin 1934 (Photo 3). Headbanks werealso raised and wave walls were builtalong the upstream edge of the crest toprovide additional freeboard. Somereservoirs, such as Lower Bittell andCodnor Park, had their levels perma-nently lowered as an alternative.

The Canal and River Trust canal reser-voirs provide a significant group ofolder dams, many of which are still inuse for their original purpose. CRT isrequired to maintain and keep them ingood order, doing work as required inaccordance with the standards oftoday, but the canal system is nowbusy with leisure traffic and waterdemands have never been higher.Some of the 200 year old reservoirsare being used more than in their com-mercial heyday. Most canal reservoirsare accessible to the public; many aresituated in scenic areas and are wellworth a visit; some are now used forsailing or angling, Many original fea-tures survive but these are often sub-merged. Barrowford Reservoir inLancashire is little changed since itwas raised in 1896 and the originalintake, pitching, drop-shaft weir(Photo 2) and the operating mecha-nism for the draw-off valve can beseen.

David Henthorn Brown BSc, CEng,FICE

�


EREWASH CANAL PRESERVATION& DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION

Invite you to their

24-27th May 2013to celebrate 45 years of the Association

&the 40th Anniversary of the re-opening of

The Great Northern BasinLangley Mill

Historic Working Boats &The Allen Register Boat Gathering

have been invited to join withE.C.P & D.A. to celebrate this event

If you attended the re-opening 40 years ago and have memories or photo-graphs of this occasion we would be very pleased to hear from or see you at

this special event

Boat entry forms are available on our web siteerewashcanalpreservationanddevelopmentassoc.org.uk

General enquiries: 0115 938 4129

Boat Rally

Aegre March 2013

Documents

Transcript of Aegre March 2013