Titford Canal
Encyclopedia
The Titford Canal is a narrow (7 foot) canal, a short branch of the Birmingham Canal Navigations
(BCN) in Oldbury
, West Midlands
, England
.
Authorised under the Birmingham Canal Act 1768 which created the original Birmingham Canal, it was constructed in 1836-7 and opened on 4 November 1837. It now runs from Titford Pool, a reservoir made in 1773-4 which now lies under, and to both sides of, an elevated section of the M5 motorway
near the motorway's junction 2, to join the BCN Old Main Line at Oldbury Junction, also under the M5.
Beyond Titford Pool was a continuation, abandoned in 1954, as the Portway Branch, which served coal
mines in the Titford Valley. Also from Titford Pool was the Causeway Green Branch; opened in 1858 and abandoned, in parts, in 1954 and September 1960.
491 foot Smethwick Summit Level of his Birmingham Canal (later called the Old Main Line). This feeder was not made navigable until 1837, with the addition of six locks, nicknamed The Crow, which were adjacent to chemical works owned by Jim Crow. These locks, as is usual on the BCN, have single lower gates to reduce leakage. The Titford Locks (also known as Oldbury Locks) became derelict and were restored in 1973-4.
ing stage of beer-making
).
At the top lock stands the grade II listed Titford Engine House; built to pump water back up the six locks from the Wolverhampton Level, but later more often used to supply the feeder. It is now the headquarters of the Birmingham Canal Navigations Society.
Also at the top lock is the junction with the Tat Bank Branch (or Spon Lane Branch), no longer navigable, which was the original feeder to the Smethwick Summit, and is now a feeder (made by Thomas Telford
, 1830) to Edgbaston Reservoir
(Rotton Park Reservoir) which itself feeds the Birmingham and Wolverhampton Levels of the BCN. It was later made navigable for a part of its length to the Stourbridge Railway at Rood End and the British Industrial Plastics chemical factory was built upon it. It is now impassable and without towpath access.
Titford Pool, Tat Bank Branch and the top pound of the Titford Canal are the highest point of the BCN. They are accessible from Engine Street. The Inland Waterways Association
National Festival was held at Titford in 1978 and 1982.
Birmingham Canal Navigations
Birmingham Canal Navigations is a network of navigable canals connecting Birmingham, Wolverhampton, and the eastern part of the Black Country...
(BCN) in Oldbury
Oldbury, West Midlands
Oldbury is a town in the West Midlands in England. It is a part of the Black Country and the administrative centre of the borough of Sandwell.-Local government:...
, West Midlands
West Midlands (county)
The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2009 estimated population of 2,638,700. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The...
, 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...
.
Authorised under the Birmingham Canal Act 1768 which created the original Birmingham Canal, it was constructed in 1836-7 and opened on 4 November 1837. It now runs from Titford Pool, a reservoir made in 1773-4 which now lies under, and to both sides of, an elevated section of the M5 motorway
M5 motorway
The M5 is a motorway in England. It runs from a junction with the M6 at West Bromwich near Birmingham to Exeter in Devon. Heading south-west, the M5 runs east of West Bromwich and west of Birmingham through Sandwell Valley...
near the motorway's junction 2, to join the BCN Old Main Line at Oldbury Junction, also under the M5.
Beyond Titford Pool was a continuation, abandoned in 1954, as the Portway Branch, which served coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
mines in the Titford Valley. Also from Titford Pool was the Causeway Green Branch; opened in 1858 and abandoned, in parts, in 1954 and September 1960.
Titford Pool
At a height above sea level of 511 ft Titford Pool was one of the original water sources for the James BrindleyJames 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:...
491 foot Smethwick Summit Level of his Birmingham Canal (later called the Old Main Line). This feeder was not made navigable until 1837, with the addition of six locks, nicknamed The Crow, which were adjacent to chemical works owned by Jim Crow. These locks, as is usual on the BCN, have single lower gates to reduce leakage. The Titford Locks (also known as Oldbury Locks) became derelict and were restored in 1973-4.
The canal
Between Titford Pool and the locks stand two distinctive buildings: Langley Forge and the grade II listed Langley Maltings (previously used for the maltMalt
Malt is germinated cereal grains that have been dried in a process known as "malting". The grains are made to germinate by soaking in water, and are then halted from germinating further by drying with hot air...
ing stage of beer-making
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
).
At the top lock stands the grade II listed Titford Engine House; built to pump water back up the six locks from the Wolverhampton Level, but later more often used to supply the feeder. It is now the headquarters of the Birmingham Canal Navigations Society.
Also at the top lock is the junction with the Tat Bank Branch (or Spon Lane Branch), no longer navigable, which was the original feeder to the Smethwick Summit, and is now a feeder (made by Thomas Telford
Thomas Telford
Thomas Telford FRS, FRSE was a Scottish civil engineer, architect and stonemason, and a noted road, bridge and canal builder.-Early career:...
, 1830) to Edgbaston Reservoir
Edgbaston Reservoir
Edgbaston Reservoir, originally known as Rotton Park Reservoir and referred to in some early maps as Rock Pool Reservoir, is a canal feeder reservoir in the Ladywood district of Birmingham, England...
(Rotton Park Reservoir) which itself feeds the Birmingham and Wolverhampton Levels of the BCN. It was later made navigable for a part of its length to the Stourbridge Railway at Rood End and the British Industrial Plastics chemical factory was built upon it. It is now impassable and without towpath access.
Titford Pool, Tat Bank Branch and the top pound of the Titford Canal are the highest point of the BCN. They are accessible from Engine Street. The Inland Waterways Association
Inland Waterways Association
The Inland Waterways Association was formed in 1946 as a registered charity in the United Kingdom to campaign for the conservation, use, maintenance, restoration and sensitive development of British Canals and river navigations....
National Festival was held at Titford in 1978 and 1982.
Features
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...