Castles · North West England
Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal
The Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal is a disused canal in Greater Manchester, England, built to link Bolton and Bury with Manchester. The canal, when fully opened, was 15 miles 1 furlong (24 km) lon
Alex McGregor — CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons licence
Plan your visit
- Typical visit
- 1.5 h–3 h
- Family-friendly
- Limited wheelchair access
About
The Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal is a disused canal in Greater Manchester, England, built to link Bolton and Bury with Manchester. The canal, when fully opened, was 15 miles 1 furlong (24 km) long. It was accessed via a junction with the River Irwell in Salford. Seventeen locks were required to climb to the summit as it passed through Pendleton, heading northwest to Prestolee before it split northwest to Bolton and northeast to Bury. Between Bolton and Bury the canal was level and required no locks. Six aqueducts were built to allow the canal to cross the rivers Irwell and Tonge and several minor roads. The canal was commissioned in 1791 by local landowners and businessmen and built between 1791 and 1808, during the Golden Age of canal building, at a cost of £127,700 (£9.7 million today). Originally designed for narrow gauge boats, during its construction the canal was altered into a broad gauge canal to allow an ultimately unrealised connection with the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. The canal company later converted into a railway company and built a railway line close to the canal's path, which required modifications to the Salford arm of the canal. Most of the freight carried was coal from local collieries but, as the mines reached the end of their working lives sections of the canal fell into disuse and disrepair and it was officially abandoned in 1961. In 1987 a society was formed with the aim of restoring the canal for leisure use and, in 2006, restoration began in th
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From the Wikipedia article
The Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal is a disused canal in Greater Manchester, England, built to link Bolton and Bury with Manchester. The canal, when fully opened, was 15 miles 1 furlong (24 km) long. It was accessed via a junction with the River Irwell in Salford. Seventeen locks were required to climb to the summit as it passed through Pendleton, heading northwest to Prestolee before it split northwest to Bolton and northeast to Bury. Between Bolton and Bury the canal was level and required no locks. Six aqueducts were built to allow the canal to cross the rivers Irwell and Tonge and several minor roads. The canal was commissioned in 1791 by local landowners and businessmen and built between 1791 and 1808, during the Golden Age of canal building, at a cost of £127,700 (£9.7 million today). Originally designed for narrow gauge boats, during its construction the canal was altered into a broad gauge canal to allow an ultimately unrealised connection with the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. The canal company later converted into a railway company and built a railway line close to the canal's path, which required modifications to the Salford arm of the canal. Most of the freight carried was coal from local collieries but, as the mines reached the end of their working lives sections of the canal fell into disuse and disrepair and it was officially abandoned in 1961. In 1987 a society was formed with the aim of restoring the canal for leisure use and, in 2006, restoration began in the area around the junction with the River Irwell in Salford. The canal is currently navigable as far as Oldfield Road, Salford.
Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.
Background
Architecture
along the Bury arm]] The canal was originally supplied by the River Irwell in Bury, at the Weddell Brook tributary. This proved insufficient for local industry and in 1842 Elton Reservoir at Bury was built to become the canal's principal supply. Robert Fulton had proposed an inclined plane at Nob End, but this design was rejected. The connection with Fletcher's Canal near Clifton Aqueduct was made by a single lock Through these sections the towpath is normally on the side of the canal closest to the river. Six aqueducts were required to allow the canal to cross the River Irwell, the River Tonge and four roads. On the Bolton arm these were Hall Lane Aqueduct, Fogg's Aqueduct and the larger…
Description
There are several notable features along the canal, including Prestolee Aqueduct and Clifton Aqueduct, both of which are Grade II listed structures. Nob End Locks (sometimes referred to as Prestolee Locks) sit at the junction of the three arms of the canal at Nob End. They comprise two sets of three staircase locks, separated by a passing basin. These locks served to lower the level of the canal by 64 ft over a distance of 600 ft. The upper staircase is still visible, but most of the lower staircase was filled in at some point in the 1950s, and much of the stonework was removed. A major breach of the canal along the Bury arm revealed the scale of the engineering used in the construction of…
Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Coordinates
- 53.5082, -2.2959
- District
- Salford
- Parish
- Salford, unparished area
- Postcode
- M27 8BY
- Parliamentary constituency
- Salford
- Established
- 1808
Sources
- wikipedia: Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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Frequently asked questions
- Where is Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal?
- Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal is in North-West England, United Kingdom (postcode M27 8BY), in the parish of Salford, unparished area.
- When was Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal built?
- Built or established in 1808.
- Does Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal charge admission?
- Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal typically charges admission. Check the official site for current ticket prices and opening hours.
- How do I get to Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal?
- Drivers can navigate to postcode M27 8BY. It sits within the Salford parliamentary constituency.