Gloucester and Sharpness Canal
Encyclopedia
The Gloucester and Sharpness Canal or Gloucester and Berkeley Canal is a canal
in the west of England, between Gloucester
and Sharpness
; for much of its length it runs close to the tidal River Severn
, but cuts off a significant loop in the river, at a once-dangerous bend near Arlingham
. It was once the broadest and deepest canal in the world.
period of the late 18th century, the Gloucester and Berkeley
Ship Canal scheme (as it was originally named) was started by architect
and civil engineer
Robert Mylne
. In 1793 an Act of Parliament was obtained authorising the raising of a total of £200,000. The project rapidly encountered financial difficulties - to such an extent that Mylne left the project in 1798. By half way through 1799 costs had reached £112,000 but only 5½ miles of the canal had been completed. Robert Mylne's role was taken over by James Dadford
who had originally been engaged as resident engineer on the project in 1795. Lack of funds resulted in the company ceasing to employ Dadford in 1800.
By the middle of the nineteenth century it proved possible to pay a small dividend; the debt to the Exchequer Bill Loan Commission having being repaid with the help of a loan of £60,000 from the Pelican Life Assurance Company. In 1871 the last of the debts incurred in the course of funding the canal including the Pelican Life Assurance Company loan were paid off. Where the Severn Railway Bridge
(completed in 1879) passed over the canal a swing section was constructed to avoid restricting headroom.
and HMS H49
.
The canal was nationalized in 1948. At the same time the Sharpness Dock Police which had policed the dock since 1874 were absorbed into the British Transport Police
.
In 1955 the Board of Survey of Canals and Inland Waterways released a report that, among other things, described the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal as carrying substantial traffic and offering scope for commercial development.
In 1909, following a collapse in the bank of the river, the canal company's chief engineer Mr A. J. Cullis called for old vessels to be run aground along the bank of the Severn, near Purton
, to create a makeshift tidal erosion barrier to reinforce the narrow strip of land between the river and canal. Barges, trows and schooners were "hulked" at high tide, and have since filled with silt. More boats have been added, including the schooner "Katherine Ellen" which was impounded in 1921 for running guns to the IRA, the Kennet Canal barge "Harriett", and ferrocement barges
built in World War II. 1999 saw Louis Paul Barnett commence a privately funded research project which saw the sites 81 vessels recorded and recognized as the largest ships graveyard within the country. In 2010 British Waterways
took control of the site in an attempt to protect it.
By the mid 1980s commercial traffic had largely come to a halt with the canal being given over to pleasure cruisers with the exception of a few passages by grain barges.
The oil trade ceased in 1985 with the closure of the petroleum depot at Quedgeley
.
In order to allow the A430 south-west bypass to be built the canal had to be diverted. The new section of channel was opened on 6 May 2006. In January 2009 a project began to replace the Patch Bridge swing bridge
with a motor powered design instead of the current hand cranked system.
The canal links directly to the Stroudwater Navigation
at Saul
junction.
Canal
Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:#Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:...
in the west of England, between Gloucester
Gloucester
Gloucester is a city, district and county town of Gloucestershire in the South West region of England. Gloucester lies close to the Welsh border, and on the River Severn, approximately north-east of Bristol, and south-southwest of Birmingham....
and Sharpness
Sharpness
Sharpness is an English port in Gloucestershire, one of the most inland in Britain, and eighth largest in the South West. It is on the River Severn at , at a point where the tidal range, though less than at Avonmouth downstream , is still large .The village of Sharpness is pronounced with the...
; for much of its length it runs close to the tidal River Severn
River Severn
The River Severn is the longest river in Great Britain, at about , but the second longest on the British Isles, behind the River Shannon. It rises at an altitude of on Plynlimon, Ceredigion near Llanidloes, Powys, in the Cambrian Mountains of mid Wales...
, but cuts off a significant loop in the river, at a once-dangerous bend near Arlingham
Arlingham
Arlingham is a village and civil parish in the Stroud District of Gloucestershire, England. The 200 Census recorded a parish population of 410. The parish occupies a peninsula on a sharp bend in the River Severn. The next parish to the east is Fretherne with Saul.In Passage Road is a fish...
. It was once the broadest and deepest canal in the world.
18th century conception
Conceived in the Canal ManiaCanal Mania
Canal Mania is a term used to describe an intense period of canal building in England and Wales between the 1790s and 1810s, and the speculative frenzy that accompanied it in the early 1790s.-Background:...
period of the late 18th century, the Gloucester and Berkeley
Berkeley, Gloucestershire
Berkeley is a town and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England. It lies in the Vale of Berkeley between the east bank of the River Severn and the M5 motorway within the Stroud administrative district. The town is noted for Berkeley Castle where the imprisoned Edward II was murdered.- Geography...
Ship Canal scheme (as it was originally named) was started by architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
and civil engineer
Civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering; the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructures while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing infrastructures that have been neglected.Originally, a...
Robert Mylne
Robert Mylne
Robert Mylne was a Scottish architect and civil engineer, particularly remembered for his design for Blackfriars Bridge in London. Born and raised in Edinburgh, he travelled to Europe as a young man, studying architecture in Rome under Piranesi...
. In 1793 an Act of Parliament was obtained authorising the raising of a total of £200,000. The project rapidly encountered financial difficulties - to such an extent that Mylne left the project in 1798. By half way through 1799 costs had reached £112,000 but only 5½ miles of the canal had been completed. Robert Mylne's role was taken over by James Dadford
James Dadford
James Dadford was an English canal engineer, as were his father Thomas Dadford and brothers Thomas Dadford Junior and John Dadford.He was engineer of the Gloucester and Berkeley Canal from 1795 to 1800.-See also:*Canals of the United Kingdom...
who had originally been engaged as resident engineer on the project in 1795. Lack of funds resulted in the company ceasing to employ Dadford in 1800.
Decade of capital raising
Between 1800 and 1810 various attempts were made to raise money to allow further building but they came to nothing. Moneys from tolls and rents allowed for some improvements to be made to the basin at Gloucester in 1813.Eventual completion
From 1817 onwards the Poor Employment Act meant it was possible for the company to loan money from the Exchequer Bill Loan Commission. This along with further share issues provided enough money to bring the scheme to completion. After these significant delays, the canal opened in April 1827. In the course of its construction the canal had cost £440,000. As opened the canal was 86½ feet wide, 18 feet (5.5 m) deep and could take craft of up to 600 tons. The longer of the two locks onto the canal proper was 115 feet (35.1 m) long.Eventual dividends
Severn Railway Bridge
The Severn Railway Bridge was a crossing across the River Severn between Sharpness and Lydney, Gloucestershire. It was badly damaged in an accident involving river barges in 1960 and demolished in 1970.-Construction:...
(completed in 1879) passed over the canal a swing section was constructed to avoid restricting headroom.
Early 20th century
In 1905 traffic exceeded 1 million tons for the first time. Oil was added to the list of cargoes carried by the canal, with bulk oil carriers taking fuel to storage tanks sited to the south of Gloucester. In 1937 the canal was navigated by the submarines HMS H33HMS H33
HMS H33 was a British H class submarine built by Cammell Laird, Birkenhead. She was laid down on 20 November 1917 and commissioned on 17 May 1919....
and HMS H49
HMS H49
HMS H49 was a British H class submarine built by William Beardmore and Company, Dalmuir. She was laid down on 15 July 1919 and commissioned on 25 October 1919....
.
The canal was nationalized in 1948. At the same time the Sharpness Dock Police which had policed the dock since 1874 were absorbed into the British Transport Police
British Transport Police
The British Transport Police is a special police force that polices those railways and light-rail systems in Great Britain for which it has entered into an agreement to provide such services...
.
In 1955 the Board of Survey of Canals and Inland Waterways released a report that, among other things, described the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal as carrying substantial traffic and offering scope for commercial development.
The Purton Hulks
Purton, Berkeley
Purton is a village on the east bank of the River Severn, 3 miles north of Berkeley, in Gloucestershire, England. The village is in the civil parish of Hinton. It lies opposite the hamlet of Purton on the west bank of the river....
, to create a makeshift tidal erosion barrier to reinforce the narrow strip of land between the river and canal. Barges, trows and schooners were "hulked" at high tide, and have since filled with silt. More boats have been added, including the schooner "Katherine Ellen" which was impounded in 1921 for running guns to the IRA, the Kennet Canal barge "Harriett", and ferrocement barges
Concrete ship
Concrete ships are ships built of steel and ferrocement instead of more traditional materials, such as steel or wood. The advantage of ferrocement construction is that materials are cheap and readily available, while the disadvantages are that construction labor costs are high, as are operating...
built in World War II. 1999 saw Louis Paul Barnett commence a privately funded research project which saw the sites 81 vessels recorded and recognized as the largest ships graveyard within the country. In 2010 British Waterways
British Waterways
British Waterways is a statutory corporation wholly owned by the government of the United Kingdom, serving as the navigation authority in England, Scotland and Wales for the vast majority of the canals as well as a number of rivers and docks...
took control of the site in an attempt to protect it.
Recent history
Today the canal can be used by boats up to 64m in length, 9.6m in beam and 32m in height. The maximum draft is 3.5 m.By the mid 1980s commercial traffic had largely come to a halt with the canal being given over to pleasure cruisers with the exception of a few passages by grain barges.
The oil trade ceased in 1985 with the closure of the petroleum depot at Quedgeley
Quedgeley
Quedgeley is a suburb and civil parish of Gloucester, England, situated southwest of the city. It is the only civil parish in Gloucester, and a has a population of 11,800.-See also:*RAF Quedgeley, a large RAF logistics site which closed in 1995...
.
In order to allow the A430 south-west bypass to be built the canal had to be diverted. The new section of channel was opened on 6 May 2006. In January 2009 a project began to replace the Patch Bridge swing bridge
Swing bridge
A swing bridge is a movable bridge that has as its primary structural support a vertical locating pin and support ring, usually at or near to its centre of gravity, about which the turning span can then pivot horizontally as shown in the animated illustration to the right...
with a motor powered design instead of the current hand cranked system.
The canal links directly to the Stroudwater Navigation
Stroudwater Navigation
The Stroudwater Navigation is a canal linking Stroud to the Severn Estuary in England and Wales. It was authorised in 1776, although part had already been built, as the Proprietors thought that an Act of Parliament obtained in 1730 gave them the necessary powers. It opened in 1779, and was a...
at Saul
Saul, Gloucestershire
Saul is a village in Gloucestershire, England at the site of the junction of the Stroudwater Navigation and the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal. It is in the parish of Fretherne with Saul in the district of Stroud....
junction.
See also
- Canals of the United KingdomCanals of the United KingdomThe canals of the United Kingdom are a major part of the network of inland waterways in the United Kingdom. They have a colourful history, from use for irrigation and transport, through becoming the focus of the Industrial Revolution, to today's role for recreational boating...
- History of the British canal systemHistory of the British canal systemThe British canal system of water transport played a vital role in the United Kingdom's Industrial Revolution at a time when roads were only just emerging from the medieval mud and long trains of pack horses were the only means of "mass" transit by road of raw materials and finished products The...