Stainforth and Keadby Canal
Encyclopedia
The Stainforth and Keadby Canal is a navigable canal
in South Yorkshire
and Lincolnshire
, England
. It connects the River Don Navigation
at Bramwith to the River Trent
at Keadby
, by way of Stainforth
, Thorne and Ealand
, near Crowle.
, close to its junction with the River Ouse
, while the other headed north to join the River Aire
near Rawcliffe. Following the work of the Dutch drainage engineer Cornelius Vermuyden
to drain Hatfield Chase, the Adlingfleet outlet was closed off, and the channel to the River Aire, passing through Newbridge, was improved to take all of the flow. The scheme was not entirely successful, and after severe flooding near Sykehouse, Fishlake and Snaith, accompanied by riots, a new channel was cut between Newbridge and the River Ouse near what became Goole. The old course of the Don gradually silted up. Navigation on the Don was improved by the construction of cuts and locks, with the lowest lock situated at Stainforth. From there to the Ouse, boats used the Dutch River, Vermuyden's artificial drain, which was hazardous due to its fast flows, its tides and its shallowness at times.
The idea of reconnecting the Don to the Trent was first raised in 1763, when James Brindley
assisted the manager of the River Don Navigation to survey a route for a canal to do this. In 1772 a second survey was made, this time by John Thompson, the Don Navigation's engineer, for a canal from Stainforth to Althorpe, some 1.5 miles (2.4 km) above Keadby on the River Trent. An agreement to build the canal, which would have had three locks and cost £14,614, was reached, but no further action occurred. The plan was revived in 1792, by which time the cost had risen to £24,200, and an Act of Parliament
to authorise the work was obtained in 1793. This allowed the Stainforth and Keadby Canal Navigation Company to raise £24,200 by issuing shares, and a further £12,000 if necessary. Work began at the Keadby end in late 1793. A second Act, obtained in 1798, allowed the company to raise an additional £20,000 from shareholders, instead of the original £12,000, and to raise £10,000 by mortgage. The canal opened without ceremony in early 1802.
The canal had a lock at Thorne and another where it joined the River Trent at Keadby. This lock had four sets of gates, so that it could be used whether the level of the river was higher or lower than that of the canal. It could take keels up to 81 by, which could carry up to 200 tons.
on the River Trent to the River Don at Doncaster, which would have bypassed the Stainforth and Keadby. There was also a plan for a lower Don bypass, to connect direct to the Goole Canal, avoiding the difficult Dutch River. Neither scheme progressed any further, but the Keadby end of the canal was improved, and a new deep water jetty was constructed on the Trent in 1833. Traffic improved, with boats using the canal as an easier way to reach the Don than the Dutch River. The Don Navigation Company then proposed a new canal from Stainforth to the River Ouse at Swinefleet in 1836. They needed to buy 2 miles (3.2 km) of the Stainforth and Keadby from the Don towards Stainforth, and started to negotiate, while applying for an Act of Parliament. The Stainforth and Keadby opposed the bill, and an agreement was reached in May 1836 that the Don would buy the whole canal for £48,000. A bill to authorise the sale was opposed by some of the Stainforth and Keadby shareholders and was rejected by the House of Lords. After several more abortive plans at amalgamation, where the Stainforth and Keadby pulled out at the last minute, agreement was finally reached, and the Don Navigation took control of the canal on 1 January 1849. A year later, it became part of the South Yorkshire Railway and River Dun Company, after the Don Navigation and the Doncaster and Goole Railway companies merged.
Under an Act of Parliament of 1874, the South Yorkshire company was absorbed into the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway
. Traffic held up surprising well, with the waterways carrying a total of 982,000 tons in 1878, but there was a growing dissatisfaction with the situation, particularly the high tolls compared to the railways, and the refusal to allow steam haulage, which had been in use on the Aire and Calder for over 50 years. In an attempt to improve the situation, the Sheffield and South Yorkshire Canal Company Ltd was formed in 1888, with the intention of buying back the canals from the railway company, and upgrading them to offer effective competition to the railways. As a result of their efforts, the Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation Co was created by an Act of Parliament dated 26 August 1889, with powers to raise £1.5 million to purchase and improve four canals. These were the Sheffield Canal
, the River Don Navigation
, the Dearne and Dove Canal
and the Stainforth and Keadby Canal. The intention was to upgrade the Don and the Stainforth and Keadby to take 300 or 400 ton barges, to investigate the use of compartment boats
, and to build a new port facility at Keadby, where coal could be trans-shipped to sea-going vessels. Negotiations with the railway company were long and bitter, and the Navigation company only managed to raise £625,000 of the £1.14 million purchase price, with the result that although they owned the waterways, the railway company still nominated five of the ten directors.
During the protracted negotiations, the company had also been talking to the Aire and Calder about compartment boats, which resulted in a proposal to jointly fund and build a canal from Bramwith to the Aire and Calder. The 5.5 miles (8.9 km) New Junction Canal
was authorised in 1891, and finally opened in 1905. This removed the need to build a new port at Keadby, and the planned upgrade to take larger vessels was also shelved, because the company were unable to raise significant working capital. Despite the lack of investment and the difficulties of the First World War, the waterways were still quite busy, with traffic recovering from 381,727 tons in 1926, the year of the general strike, to over 800,000 tons in 1937. Bramwith lock, the first on the Stainforth and Keadby, was lengthened in 1932, and a new colliery layby was constructed to enable compartment boats to reach Hatfield Main Colliery. Stainforth lock, which connected the canal to the River Don, was closed in 1939. After the Second World War, the canals were nationalised on 1 January 1948. The winter was particularly severe, and the Stainforth and Keadby was closed for a period in late 1947 due to ice.
. It is little used for commercial carrying, but as it is part of the fully connected network of English and Welsh canals, narrowboating holidaymakers can reach Keadby from as far away as Bristol
, Llangollen
, Lancaster
, Ripon
or London
.
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 South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire is a metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It has a population of 1.29 million. It consists of four metropolitan boroughs: Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham, and City of Sheffield...
and Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It connects the River Don Navigation
River Don Navigation
The River Don Navigation was the result of early efforts to make the River Don in South Yorkshire, England, navigable between Fishlake and Sheffield...
at Bramwith to the River Trent
River Trent
The River Trent is one of the major rivers of England. Its source is in Staffordshire on the southern edge of Biddulph Moor. It flows through the Midlands until it joins the River Ouse at Trent Falls to form the Humber Estuary, which empties into the North Sea below Hull and Immingham.The Trent...
at Keadby
Keadby
Keadby is a small village lying just off the A18, west of Scunthorpe, in North Lincolnshire, England. It lies on the West bank of the River Trent. It is pronounced "Kidby"....
, by way of Stainforth
Stainforth, South Yorkshire
Stainforth is a small town and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster, in South Yorkshire, England. It is located roughly north-east of Doncaster, close to Hatfield and Thorne. It has a population of 6,342.-Etymology:...
, Thorne and Ealand
Ealand
Ealand is a small village in North Lincolnshire, England. It lies within the Isle of Axholme, south-east of Crowle, and north of the junction between the A161 and the A18....
, near Crowle.
History
The River Don, which flows through Sheffield and Doncaster, had originally split into two channels below Stainforth, one of which emptied into the River Trent near AdlingfleetAdlingfleet
Adlingfleet is a village in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, that forms part of the civil parish of Twin Rivers. It is situated approximately to the east of Goole town centre.-History:...
, close to its junction with the River Ouse
River Ouse, Yorkshire
The River Ouse is a river in North Yorkshire, England. The river is formed from the River Ure at Cuddy Shaw Reach near Linton-on-Ouse, about 6 miles downstream of the confluence of the River Swale with the River Ure...
, while the other headed north to join the River Aire
River Aire
The River Aire is a major river in Yorkshire, England of length . Part of the river is canalised, and is known as the Aire and Calder Navigation....
near Rawcliffe. Following the work of the Dutch drainage engineer Cornelius Vermuyden
Cornelius Vermuyden
Sir Cornelius Wasterdyk Vermuyden was a Dutch engineer who introduced Dutch reclamation methods to Britain, and made the first important attempts to drain The Fens of East Anglia.-Life:...
to drain Hatfield Chase, the Adlingfleet outlet was closed off, and the channel to the River Aire, passing through Newbridge, was improved to take all of the flow. The scheme was not entirely successful, and after severe flooding near Sykehouse, Fishlake and Snaith, accompanied by riots, a new channel was cut between Newbridge and the River Ouse near what became Goole. The old course of the Don gradually silted up. Navigation on the Don was improved by the construction of cuts and locks, with the lowest lock situated at Stainforth. From there to the Ouse, boats used the Dutch River, Vermuyden's artificial drain, which was hazardous due to its fast flows, its tides and its shallowness at times.
The idea of reconnecting the Don to the Trent was first raised in 1763, when James Brindley
James Brindley
James Brindley was an English engineer. He was born in Tunstead, Derbyshire, and lived much of his life in Leek, Staffordshire, becoming one of the most notable engineers of the 18th century.-Early life:...
assisted the manager of the River Don Navigation to survey a route for a canal to do this. In 1772 a second survey was made, this time by John Thompson, the Don Navigation's engineer, for a canal from Stainforth to Althorpe, some 1.5 miles (2.4 km) above Keadby on the River Trent. An agreement to build the canal, which would have had three locks and cost £14,614, was reached, but no further action occurred. The plan was revived in 1792, by which time the cost had risen to £24,200, and an Act of Parliament
Act of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
to authorise the work was obtained in 1793. This allowed the Stainforth and Keadby Canal Navigation Company to raise £24,200 by issuing shares, and a further £12,000 if necessary. Work began at the Keadby end in late 1793. A second Act, obtained in 1798, allowed the company to raise an additional £20,000 from shareholders, instead of the original £12,000, and to raise £10,000 by mortgage. The canal opened without ceremony in early 1802.
The canal had a lock at Thorne and another where it joined the River Trent at Keadby. This lock had four sets of gates, so that it could be used whether the level of the river was higher or lower than that of the canal. It could take keels up to 81 by, which could carry up to 200 tons.
Development
In 1828, there was a proposal to build a canal from West StockwithWest Stockwith
West Stockwith is a village within the Bassetlaw district of Nottinghamshire, England.East Stockwith is a settlement close by, but within the county boundaries of Lincolnshire.-Etymology:...
on the River Trent to the River Don at Doncaster, which would have bypassed the Stainforth and Keadby. There was also a plan for a lower Don bypass, to connect direct to the Goole Canal, avoiding the difficult Dutch River. Neither scheme progressed any further, but the Keadby end of the canal was improved, and a new deep water jetty was constructed on the Trent in 1833. Traffic improved, with boats using the canal as an easier way to reach the Don than the Dutch River. The Don Navigation Company then proposed a new canal from Stainforth to the River Ouse at Swinefleet in 1836. They needed to buy 2 miles (3.2 km) of the Stainforth and Keadby from the Don towards Stainforth, and started to negotiate, while applying for an Act of Parliament. The Stainforth and Keadby opposed the bill, and an agreement was reached in May 1836 that the Don would buy the whole canal for £48,000. A bill to authorise the sale was opposed by some of the Stainforth and Keadby shareholders and was rejected by the House of Lords. After several more abortive plans at amalgamation, where the Stainforth and Keadby pulled out at the last minute, agreement was finally reached, and the Don Navigation took control of the canal on 1 January 1849. A year later, it became part of the South Yorkshire Railway and River Dun Company, after the Don Navigation and the Doncaster and Goole Railway companies merged.
Under an Act of Parliament of 1874, the South Yorkshire company was absorbed into the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway
Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway
The Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway was formed by amalgamation in 1847. The MS&LR changed its name to the Great Central Railway in 1897 in anticipation of the opening in 1899 of its London Extension.-Origin:...
. Traffic held up surprising well, with the waterways carrying a total of 982,000 tons in 1878, but there was a growing dissatisfaction with the situation, particularly the high tolls compared to the railways, and the refusal to allow steam haulage, which had been in use on the Aire and Calder for over 50 years. In an attempt to improve the situation, the Sheffield and South Yorkshire Canal Company Ltd was formed in 1888, with the intention of buying back the canals from the railway company, and upgrading them to offer effective competition to the railways. As a result of their efforts, the Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation Co was created by an Act of Parliament dated 26 August 1889, with powers to raise £1.5 million to purchase and improve four canals. These were the Sheffield Canal
Sheffield Canal
The Sheffield Canal is a canal in the City of Sheffield, England. It runs from Tinsley, where it leaves the River Don, to the Sheffield Canal Basin in the city centre, passing through 11 locks.- Early history :...
, the River Don Navigation
River Don Navigation
The River Don Navigation was the result of early efforts to make the River Don in South Yorkshire, England, navigable between Fishlake and Sheffield...
, the Dearne and Dove Canal
Dearne and Dove Canal
The Dearne and Dove Canal ran for almost ten miles through South Yorkshire, England from Swinton to Barnsley through nineteen locks, rising 127 yards. The canal also had two short branches, the Worsbrough branch and the Elsecar branch, both about two miles long with reservoirs at the head of each....
and the Stainforth and Keadby Canal. The intention was to upgrade the Don and the Stainforth and Keadby to take 300 or 400 ton barges, to investigate the use of compartment boats
Tom Pudding
Tom Pudding was the name given to the tub boats on the Aire and Calder Navigation, introduced in 1863 and used until 1985, which were a very efficient means of transferring and transporting coal from the open cast collieries of the South Yorkshire Coalfield near Stanley Ferry to the port of Goole,...
, and to build a new port facility at Keadby, where coal could be trans-shipped to sea-going vessels. Negotiations with the railway company were long and bitter, and the Navigation company only managed to raise £625,000 of the £1.14 million purchase price, with the result that although they owned the waterways, the railway company still nominated five of the ten directors.
During the protracted negotiations, the company had also been talking to the Aire and Calder about compartment boats, which resulted in a proposal to jointly fund and build a canal from Bramwith to the Aire and Calder. The 5.5 miles (8.9 km) New Junction Canal
New Junction Canal
The New Junction Canal is a canal in South Yorkshire, England. It is part of the Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation , although it was jointly funded by the Aire and Calder Navigation, and was opened in 1905. It links the River Don Navigation and the Stainforth and Keadby Canal with the Aire...
was authorised in 1891, and finally opened in 1905. This removed the need to build a new port at Keadby, and the planned upgrade to take larger vessels was also shelved, because the company were unable to raise significant working capital. Despite the lack of investment and the difficulties of the First World War, the waterways were still quite busy, with traffic recovering from 381,727 tons in 1926, the year of the general strike, to over 800,000 tons in 1937. Bramwith lock, the first on the Stainforth and Keadby, was lengthened in 1932, and a new colliery layby was constructed to enable compartment boats to reach Hatfield Main Colliery. Stainforth lock, which connected the canal to the River Don, was closed in 1939. After the Second World War, the canals were nationalised on 1 January 1948. The winter was particularly severe, and the Stainforth and Keadby was closed for a period in late 1947 due to ice.
Leisure
The S&K canal is now part of the Sheffield and South Yorkshire NavigationSheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation
The Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation is a system of navigable inland waterways in South Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, England....
. It is little used for commercial carrying, but as it is part of the fully connected network of English and Welsh canals, narrowboating holidaymakers can reach Keadby from as far away as Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, Llangollen
Llangollen
Llangollen is a small town and community in Denbighshire, north-east Wales, situated on the River Dee and on the edge of the Berwyn mountains. It has a population of 3,412.-History:...
, Lancaster
Lancaster, Lancashire
Lancaster is the county town of Lancashire, England. It is situated on the River Lune and has a population of 45,952. Lancaster is a constituent settlement of the wider City of Lancaster, local government district which has a population of 133,914 and encompasses several outlying towns, including...
, Ripon
Ripon
Ripon is a cathedral city, market town and successor parish in the Borough of Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England, located at the confluence of two streams of the River Ure in the form of the Laver and Skell. The city is noted for its main feature the Ripon Cathedral which is architecturally...
or London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Points of interest
See also
- Canals of Great Britain
- 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...