2 minute read
History on the Canals
Messing About on Canals
As we contemplate the great outdoors during lockdown, many people’s thoughts will be drawn to happy days spent on and along the canal at Tardebigge.
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The Worcester and Birmingham Canal is a notable feature of the Worcestershire landscape. From Gas Street Basin in Birmingham to Tardebigge, the canal runs on the level for some 15 miles. It then descends by 58 locks in another 15 miles to the River Severn at Diglis on the south side of Worcester.
At Tardebigge the canal passes through two tunnels and there are two wharves which used to be busy with working boats. The first lock is below Tardebigge Church and after a short level stretch the canal continues its descent of over 200 feet by 29 more locks, one after the other, to Stoke Pound. The whole flight of 30 locks is famous as the longest succession of narrow locks in the country. It provides hard work for those travelling by boat up and down the canal, but they are rewarded with spectacular views over the Worcestershire countryside to the south and west
Work on the canal commenced in 1792 following the passing of an Act of Parliament. Construction began at the Birmingham end and the canal was opened as far as Selly Oak in 1795. But shortage of money caused significant delays and it was not until January 1811 that Tardebigge Tunnel was finished and boats were able to travel through it to the New Wharf. The whole canal was opened to traffic on 4 December 1815.
The canal became a vital distribution route for Birmingham manufacturers, enabling them to ship their products to Worcester, and then on down the River Severn via the port of Bristol to customers across the world. Local industries also benefitted: the canal’s arrival prompted John Corbett, ‘the Salt King’, to establish his salt works alongside the waterway at Stoke Prior. There were also several brick and pottery works. But like canals across the country, it was
unable to compete with the railways and from the mid 19th century traffic began to decline.
In 1809 an experimental boat lift was erected at the top of the Tardebigge flight. It was intended to raise and lower boats 12 feet but after several accidents was dismantled and replaced by a standard lock, albeit deeper than all the others. Whilst moored at Tardebigge in 1945, two enthusiasts, Tom Rolt and Robert Aickman, decided to form the Inland Waterways Association (IWA) to maintain the country’s canal network. The event is marked by a stone plinth near Tardebigge Wharf.
In the 1990s, a major programme began, to restore the Tardebigge locks. Work on the top nine, numbered 50 to 58, was completed in time for the reopening of the canal in the spring of 1996. The remainder were completed within a further two years at a total cost of around £300,000. Today, the Tardebigge locks provide recreation for locals and tourists alike. Can’t wait to get back there!
For a detailed history see The Worcester and Birmingham Canal: Chronicles of the Cut, by Alan White, available from the Bromsgrove Society’s online bookstall:
