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Canals of Birmingham

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Many unused basins on Britain's canal system were used as graveyards. After WW2, those canals which hadn't already declined and were nominally abandoned, had little or no traffic on them. Consequently a large number of boats were no longer in use and there was little work for those that did remain in use. Sinking was an easy and cheap way out. The Birmingham and Black Country areas managed to hang on to work longer than most other canal served places.
Thanks to the early pioneers of the IWA and other groups canal restoration and campaigns against closures have given us the system that now exists, primarily for recreational use.
 
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Another view of the closed Broad Street Tunnel from the Brewmasters Bridge. Maybe another month of it being closed?

Also Farmers Bridge Locks no's 1 and 2 at Cambrian Wharf of the Birmingham & Fazeley Canal is still closed for another couple of weeks of repairs.

 
Farmers Bridge Locks 1 & 2 at Cambrian Wharf on the Birmingham & Fazeley Canal. Closed for repairs and lock gate repair from the Saturday Bridge to the Tindal Bridge. Started 4th February 2019 for 6 weeks, so 2 weeks left I think.

















 
Popped back to Cambrian Wharf to check out Farmers Bridge Locks 1 & 2. They have new lock gates installed, but not painted. But looks like this stretch of canal is reopen to boat traffic!

Lock no 2.



Lock no 1.



Some kind of portal gate entry thing was there.



Looking good!

 
Oh, and last week from the train near Dudley Port Station, noticed a section of the Birmingham Canal Navigations was closed for maintenance (no photos). I just recall seeing it happening.
 
DavidGrain said:
I posted the note about the location of the junction for the benefit of those who did not know the correct location. I think for most of the 20th century most people thought that the Birmingham & Fazeley came right through to Old Turn Junction and that junction was misnamed as Farmers Bridge for many years. There was a report about 20 years ago that the misnaming had been discovered which was probably the time the plaque was positioned where it is. I have discovered the misnaming in Bradshaw's canal guide from the early 1900s. When I first started walking the canals of Birmingham the only access point was Gas Street as all the bridges had been sealed. To me having lived in the Black Country where all the canals were open this came as a surprise. It is only in more recent times that the canals have been opened up as a public attraction.
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Looking at the Bradshaw Guide (1904) there doesn’t seem to be an actual misnaming of Farmer's Bridge Junction. The Guide does not mention a Farmer’s Bridge Junction. For example under description of the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal the start of the canal is given as Farmer's Bridge, junction with the Main Line. Again under the description of the Main Line, the start is given as Paradise St....on to Worcester Bar, the junction with the Worcester and Birmingham Canal....on to Farmer's Bridge, junction with the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal, and then to the junction with Oozells St Branch....
As far as I can see the Guide gives all the junctions it mentions, such as Aston Junction, a capital “J”.

The description of the Newhall Branch just gives the length as being 2 furlongs from the junction of the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal. So as far as The Guide is concerned it seems that Farmer’s Bridge is a point on the Main Line.

Going back to the building of the Main Line it is said (The Birmingham Canal Navigations through Time, by RH Davies) that the Main Line had two termini. The southern terminus ended at a forked wharf opposite Paradise Street, and the northern terminus ended at Friday Bridge, just beyond Crosby's Wharf. He goes on to say the junction of the two termini is "now" called Old Turn Junction.
The doesn’t seem any reference in the Press to a Farmer's Bridge Junction up to at least the 1970s, but there are numerous mentions of Farmer's Bridge and Farmer's Bridge locks. The first reference I can find is in the OS Guide to Waterways from 1983.

I can't see any mention of an Old Turn Junction in the Guide or the Press, so it could well be, as far as the age of canals is concerned, a relatively modern naming confusion.
 
The Canal and River Trust seem to be doing repairs and renovations country wide at the moment.
Today I walked along the River Lea in London which has been 'canalised' as it goes towards the Thames and they are resurfacing the tow path which was full of potholes that became big puddles after any rain.
Have the Trust been allocated some money from somewhere to do all this work in 2019?!
 
Pedrocut said:
Looking at the Bradshaw Guide (1904) there doesn’t seem to be an actual misnaming of Farmer's Bridge Junction. The Guide does not mention a Farmer’s Bridge Junction. For example under description of the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal the start of the canal is given as Farmer's Bridge, junction with the Main Line. Again under the description of the Main Line, the start is given as Paradise St....on to Worcester Bar, the junction with the Worcester and Birmingham Canal....on to Farmer's Bridge, junction with the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal, and then to the junction with Oozells St Branch....
As far as I can see the Guide gives all the junctions it mentions, such as Aston Junction, a capital “J”.

The description of the Newhall Branch just gives the length as being 2 furlongs from the junction of the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal. So as far as The Guide is concerned it seems that Farmer’s Bridge is a point on the Main Line.

Going back to the building of the Main Line it is said (The Birmingham Canal Navigations through Time, by RH Davies) that the Main Line had two termini. The southern terminus ended at a forked wharf opposite Paradise Street, and the northern terminus ended at Friday Bridge, just beyond Crosby's Wharf. He goes on to say the junction of the two termini is "now" called Old Turn Junction.
The doesn’t seem any reference in the Press to a Farmer's Bridge Junction up to at least the 1970s, but there are numerous mentions of Farmer's Bridge and Farmer's Bridge locks. The first reference I can find is in the OS Guide to Waterways from 1983.

I can't see any mention of an Old Turn Junction in the Guide or the Press, so it could well be, as far as the age of canals is concerned, a relatively modern naming confusion.
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Thank you for those comments. Yes I agree that Bradshaw 1904 Guide gives the Newhall Branch as a branch off the Birmingham and Fazeley. I have read somewhere, but I can't now remember where, that the Birmingham Canal had two termini in Birmingham, Paradise Street and Newhall. I have also read references to the junction being called both Old Turn Junction and Deep Cutting Junction. I assumed that the two names was a reference to the fact that it was a double junction, between the Old Main Line and the New Main Line and between the Main Line and the Farmer's Bridge line.

One thing of note is that the Toll House is at the top of the Farmer's Bridge locks not at the junction with the Main Line.

Have just checked Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birmingham_Canal_Navigations
lists Newhall and Paradise Street as the termini 1768-72. The Birmingham and Fazeley Canal was built later in 1784. On this basis Bradshaw is wrong. (Don't tell Michael Portillo!)
 
The naming of the Junction at Farmer's Bridge is a later terminology. the canal distance tables give the junction 2 titles as it was effectively the meeting point of four canals, Old Turn Junction applies for the turning to the Oozells Branch, whilst Deep Cutting Junction applied for the route to Paradise Street Wharf.

Farmer's Bridge spanned the canal near the Flapper, and is now demolished. The junction then was between the Birmingham & Fazeley Canal at the top lock, Farmer's Bridge, and the Newhall Branch. Distance tables call this Newhall Branch Junction. Little is left of the Newhall Branch beyond the moorings there. It did go onto the terminus of the Newhall Branch in Newhall Street, although the last section was built for the Colmore family. As Robert Davies indicates the canal at first terminated by the aqueduct over the original turnpike to Dudley. It was this section that opened first in 1769. That to Paradise Street was later. The Colmore family capitalised on the wharf land and arranged for various coal yards and warehouses to be built. Such warehouses included both the Henshall and Worthington warehouses for canal trade to the Potteries and the North West. Both warehouses faced Great Charles Street. Fellows, Morton were the last canal carriers based there before they moved their warehouse to Fazeley Street.
 
Just in case anyone was thinking of towing canal boats by hand...a salutory lesson....PART 1......

A story about my old family connections to the Black Country and the Canals....Issac Bridges-Boatman...GGGGfather...
read on...
....our scene now shifts to THE OLD BAILEY. London, 1847

Reference Number: t18471122-75

75. WILLIAM HICKMAN, feloniously killing and slaying Ann Bridges; he was also charged on the Coroner's inquisition with the like offence.
MR. HUDDLESTON conducted the Prosecution.

ISAAC BRIDGES. I am in the employment of Messrs. Bissell, of Tipton, and am captain of a boat which is used for the conveyance of iron upon the Grand Junction Canal, from Tipton to London. On Friday, 29th Oct., I had a loaded boat on the canal, drawn by one horse, going from London towards Birmingham—when I got near to a place called Dawley-deep, I saw two boats coming in a direction from Birmingham—I was at that time driving my horse—it was about six o'clock in the evening—it was not over dark, it was dusk—my wife was steering the boat—I know the prisoner, but can't say how long he has been on the canal—it is the practice for any boat going from London to Birmingham to keep the road to Branston—the boats coming into London should drop their line and let the other boats swim over their rope—the horse drawing the boats from London should go on the canal side, and the horse drawing the boat towards London should keep the hedge side, drop the line, and let the horse pass over it—the prisoner was with the second of the two boats, which was thirty or forty yards from the first—I passed the first man's boat in the right way, when I met his horse he turned my horse over the line and dropped his rope in the correct way, his horse keeping the hedge side of the towing-path—that was a boat called the Thistle—the prisoner's boat was the Wellington—when I met him, his horse was against the water's edge—that was its wrong place—there was not space enough left between his horse and the water's edge for me to drive my horse on the inside—he did not stop his horse—I hove my line over his horse's head, and then my line was in its right place, exactly as if my horse had gone over his line—his line was under mine—if the had stopped then and sunk his line, my boat would have gone over it as it did over the first—he did not stop—I called out to him loud enough for him to hear—I hooted fro him to stop his horse, and he did not—the rope by which the boat is drawn is attached to a small mast, which you cannot pull forward, but a little thing will pull it back—that is to enable the rocks to fall off—the prisoner's line loosed my from the boat, swept the deck, and made fast to my wife who was steering—the line fastened round her wrist and pulled her completely out of the boat into the water—I do not know what became of the prisoner—he did not stop to assist in getting my wife out of the water—my wife died on the next Friday night—her name was Ann Bridges.

Cross-examined by MR. PRENDERGAST.Q. Did you jump into the water?

A. Yes—I did not see the prisoner when I came ashore, not to notice him—my boat was coming from Paddington—I ought to have been on the side nearest the water, instead of which I was on the outside, because there was not room for me on the other—the prisoner knew he was on his wrong side, because he saw me heave the line over the horse's head—his boat was on the right side, but he was on the wrong—I called to him before I met him to put his horse on the right side, and he pulled his horse in to the water's edge—it is a common thing, when two horses meet, for the opposite party to put their horse on the right side—I relied upon his doing that—I was behind my horse, minding my line over the other boat—we are not always at our horse's head—that was not the reason of my being on my wrong side; but he pulled his horse so near the water's edge, that my horse could not get on the right side—my horse was not further form the water than it ought to have been—=if I had been at his head I could have put him in a different position, if the prisoner would have let me—I cannot say whether he would or not—it was not owing to my looking after the rope that my horse got wrong—my horse would have been on his right side if the prisoner had kept his horse away—my looking after the rope had nothing to do with it—if he had kept his horse right, mine would have been right—I relied on his keeping his horse right, and I told him to do so—it is a usual thing to say, "Put your horse on your right side"—I swear that I said so to him—he made no answer—I do not know that I had ever seen him before—I did not know his name, and cannot say that I ever spoke to him—I knew him again when I saw him afterwards—I told him to stop his horse after I hove the line over his horse's head—we do not generally throw the line over, but such jobs are frequently done—it ought not to be done—the usual thing is to put the horses the right way and then the lines will be right—the lines cross when we meet—that is the signal for the man coming towards London to stop, and let the rope slacken in the water—each boat had one horse—the horse going from London should be nearest the water—I was pulled out of the water by a rope which I caught hold of—it was my brother who pulled me out—people sometimes follow the rule about going to and from London, and sometimes not—many frequently follow it—it is quite as often neglected as followed.

continued below...


Dawley Bridge.jpgIsaac Bridges GGG Gfather copy.jpg
 
Part 2 of the above

MR. HUDDLESTON. Q. How would the ropes go if a person did not follow that rule? A. If they do not follow that rule there must be some mischief—they ought to follow it—it is a rule well known among the boatmem—there are public notices of it at every toll-clerk's office—there are very few that do not know it—the notices are printed papers stuck up inside the offices—there was room enough on the hedge side of my horse for the prisoner's horse to have gone.
ALFRED BRIDGES. I am the brother of the last witness, and am captain of the boat George, on the Grand junction Canal. My boat was behind my brother's, and going in the same direction—when we got Dawley-deep we met the Thistle and the Wellington—the Thistle was the first—she cleared my brother's boat by dropping her line under it—the horse of the Thistle took the hedge side of the towing-path—I have been a boatman all my life—I do not know the prisoner—I have seen him on the canal for a few months—the rule on the canal is for the boats that go to London to take the way to Branston—that is on the water side of the towing-path—that rule has been established ever since I can remember, which is twenty-five or twenty-six years—I was not near enough to see on which side of the towing-path the prisoner's horse was when he met my brother, nor did I see the ropes till the woman was in the water—the prisoner was with his horse—he stopped his horse after the woman was in the water—she was entangled in the rope—I and my brother got into the water, and after disengaging her from the rope the prisoner went off with his horse—he waited till we got the woman out—the rope was foul of her till we got her out—I and my brother called out to the prisoner, "Stop the horse, stop the horse!"—that was after she was in the water—I did not hear my brother call out before that—I was twenty or thirty yards behind—he ought to have stopped, and allowed my brother's horse to go over his rope.
Cross-examined. Q. You know that this rule you speak of is quite as much neglected as it is followed?
A. I do not know; it ought to be followed—the signal for stopping the horse is the meeting of the ropes—the horse going to London ought then to stop, and let the line slacken, for the other to go over it.
WILLIAM RAYNER. I am a surgeon, at Uxbridge. I attended the deceased—the cause of death was mortification, arising from the injury she received from the rope—there was mortification of the arm, and gangrene of the lungs in consequence.
Cross-examined. Q. Did you find quite enough to show that she must have died of that?
A. Yes—there was a deep broad impression round her wrist, showing that a very tight ligature had been round it—the place was not mortal—she died on the Friday following the accident, from a shock to the nervous system, produced by that wound—I could not trace any connection between the shock to the nervous system and the wound—whether she died of fright form being knocked into the water I cannot tell—the mortification extended the whole length of the arm to the shoulder, and reaching to the longs death ensued.
RICHARD ROADKNIGHT (police-sergeant, T, 11.) I apprehended the prisoner on 31st Oct.—I asked him if he was the man that was driving the horse at the time the woman was injured near Uxbridge—he said he was—I said he must go with me to Uxbridge, as she was not likely to live—he said he knew he was wrong by not stopping the horse, and letting the line under their boat instead of over it.
Cross-examined. Q. What else did he say?
A. He said after the woman was in the water the husband jumped in, and if it had not been for his throwing the rope they would both have been drowned—he did not say that he did not perceive the rope.
ALFRED BRIDGESre-examined. It was I who threw the rope to my brother and his wife when they were in the water—the prisoner was on the spot, about ten or twelve yards off, with his horse.
MR. LOCK. I am a clerk to the Grand Junction Canal Company. I produce the Act of Parliament constituting the Company, and also the original by-laws—I have not myself seen copies of those by-laws posted along the line—(The Act empowered the Company to make be-laws, one of which imposed a fine upon any person in charge of any loaded boat passing toward Paddington who should not give way to a loaded boat proceeding in a contrary direction.)
ISAAC BRIDGESre-examined. My boat was loaded with corn—the prisoner's boat was also loaded, I cannot say what with, but I could tell she had a goodish load by her depth in the water.
JAMES ROADNIGHT. I am a clerk on the Grand Junction Canal, stationed at Cowley. I have a printed copy of the by-laws posted up in my office—I have not been to any of the other stations.
Cross-examined. Q. You have never seen the prisoner at your station?
A. Not until the accident, to my knowledge.
(The prisoner received a good character.)
NOT GUILTY.
Before Mr. Justice Coltman.

So in the intereests of Elf'n Safety, for anyone who likes lugging barges or longboats by horse and rope, up the cut for their holliers, you now know who has right of way, and what can happen if you are not careful...
 
The not guilty verdict, would probably not be the case today and may be manslaughter be the verdict. Bissell was a Tipton Carrier with a base near the Junction with the Dudley Canal. They were merchandise carriers on the canal and were often kept busy moving iron by boat to London, as were several other carriers. The grain would have been a load to a canal side flour mill.

This is a useful piece of proof how boatman passed each other when horses were used for towing craft. The Grand Junction Canal was built to barge dimensions and had wide locks where two narrowboats could pass at a time.

Horses are rare on the waterway these days with the Horse Boating Society trying to keep the skills alive and a few trip boats are also horse drawn. I suppose the only place a horse boat may pass another these days, is on the canal from Llangollen to Pentefelin, where trip boats are horse drawn.

With motor boats the task of dropping lines was not required as the power system was on board.

Bissells trade was acquired by the Grand Junction Canal Carrying Co, as was others. This carriers did use steam powered craft and again had no reason to drop its lines, yet the protocol must have been amended to pass the steam boat.

Looking at the news paper reports for the time, the boat worked by Hickman, the WELLINGTON, was a Crowley fly boat, whilst Bridge's boat, the RUTH was slow/ stage boat.

The inquest that followed Ann Bridge's death recommended a charge of Manslaughter and Hickman, a young man of 20, was remanded to Newgate Goal. At his trial Mr Prendegast for the defence argued that the rule of dropping ropes was often ignored. He also noted that it was getting dark and Hickman did not see the oncoming RUTH until the last moment. He asked for the charge of Manslaughter be dropped and this was agreed.

It would be of interest to see if Crowley found the legal team for this case. Crowley were major canal carriers, and also by this time were associated with railway carriage as well. Their financial status may well have been a factor in this case.
 
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Wonderful pictures Ell and fully appreciated by my wife and I as this year we are not doing one of our week long canal trip and we are missing it. There is a serenity on the canal and the world looks a different place, most surprisingly Spaghetti junction, amazingly quiet as well. In Birmingham the stretch of the Grand Union to Salford Bridge is a bit murky as is the Birmingham Main Line towards Dudley, but other urban stretches are remarkably green and tidy, a good example is through Brierley Hill and out of Wolverhampton towards the Worcester and Stafford Canal. Strangely enough overnight around Gas Street Basin and Brindley Place ia as quiet as being deep in the country. The fun side is the locks, although last time out having done 15 locks on the Birmingham and Worcester at 4pm we started Tardebigge....29 locks 2 miles uphill, nuff said, my popularity was at its lowest. My wife and I always do the locks while my son in law is at the Helm, unfortunately his wife, my daughter is disabled and cannot help. Funnily enough sections without locks become boring, so please all of you keep the pictures and stories coming.

Bob
 
Thanks both!

This is what the Grand Union Canal near Warwick was like during April 2019. The walk from Warwick Station to Warwick Parkway Station.

Starting from the Coventry Road in Warwick.



Cape Bottom Lock Footbridge - Cape Bottom Lock



The Cape of Good Hope - Cape Top Lock



Saltisford Arm of the Grand Union Canal - Budbrooke Road, Warwick



Birmingham Road Bridge - Grand Union Canal, Warwick



Old Budbrooke Bridge - Grand Union Canal, Warwick - Hatton Bottom Lock

 
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