The Industrial Revolution of the late 18th century demanded serious transportation for goods and the extraordinary construction of some difficult canal routes is now a wonder to behold.
The Standedge canal and railway tunnel
Running between Marsden in West Yorkshire and Diggle in Greater Manchester, The Standedge canal and railway tunnel under the Pennines , is the longest tunnel in the UK . Tunnelling began in the 1790’s from each end and was finished in 1811. The cost of this project was £400,000 and the tunnel is 17,094 feet long (some 3 miles), 9 feet wide and 9 feet high. There is no tow path to the canal and the horses had to go over the top, whilst the boats were ‘ legged’ through by men laid on their backs who pushed their legs on the roof to propel the boats through the tunnel. Whilst railway service was maintained, the canal fell into disrepair until its recent restoration.
The stairway to heaven
Hatton Locks, climbing the hill from Warwick towards Birmingham , on The Grand Union Canal, are a flight of no less than 21 locks. This spectacular feat of 18th century engineering was constructed around 1790 and the locks are still very much in use by leisure canal boats. They are known as ‘The stairway to heaven’.
Born of the Industrial Revolution, the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct took 10 years to build between 1795 and 1805. Poised above the
Pontcysyllte, pronounced ‘pont-ku-sih-hl-ter’, means,’the bridge that connects’.
This magnificent example of Georgian architecture is the UK nomination for World Heritage Status of 2008.
Pontsysyllte Aquaduct
No comments:
Post a Comment