Chichester Ship Canal Trust Page

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Chichester Ship Canal Trust

Chichester Ship Canal celebrates 200th anniversary!

The Chichester Ship Canal is 200 years old in 2022! The first of the three formal opening events of the canal was held on 9th April 1822, and happily for us, 9th April 2022 falls on a Saturday, the first weekend of the school Easter Holidays. The perfect date for a celebration. Or in our case, not just one celebration, but an entire season of celebratory events. The Chichester Ship Canal Trust, the volunteer led, self-funded, charity behind the canal, is planning a season of anniversary events to help people discover more about the unique heritage and different ways to explore the canal. Events will run through the spring and summer and will feature a historical talk by local author and historian Alan Green at the West Sussex County Record Office, a year-long curated exhibition at the Chichester District Council

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Museum The Novium, hosted boat trips along the canal, a photography competition, a pub quiz, the installation of a new sign to mark the location of the famous view painted by JMW Turner, family-friendly activities through the school holidays, a guided walk with the Friends of the Old Ford to Hunston Canal, and an art partnership with a contemporary art group ARTEL. Recognising our position at the heart of the cultural, leisure and heritage sector in Chichester City, the Trust is pleased to be a host venue for Chichester District Council’s

Supporting Rotary “Spark Culture” opening Event, and a partner host for Chichester University and the Fringe performers through the summer. The Trust will also mark 20 years of its formation in September 2022, which coincides with the second formal opening of the canal and Heritage Open Days. Our flagship “200th Anniversary Celebration Event” will be on Saturday 9th April 2022. Inviting the community to the Basin, we will begin at 11am with short speeches followed by a gunfire salute from the Sussex Militia. We’re hosting a day of stalls, food, live music, entertainment, children’s activities, water-based displays including our 1950’s vintage tugs, canoe club and model boats, and land-based exhibitions which will feature knitted bunting, volunteer stories and community memories. The day will culminate in a flotilla along the canal at 3pm. We’d like to invite all supporters to join us. For more information do please contact us info@chichestercanal.com or follow us on social media Facebook @chichestershipcanal, Twitter and Instagram @chichestercanal. Contact: info@chichestercanal.com; www.chichestercanal.org.uk or Tel: 01243 771363 (Canal HQ)

Photos: Richard Gatley, Meryn Woodland, Catherine Cannon Trustee and Vice Chair, Chichester Ship Canal Trust