1.
Bridgwater and Taunton Canal
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The Bridgwater and Taunton Canal is a canal in the south-west of England between Bridgwater and Taunton, opened in 1827 and linking the River Tone to the River Parrett. There were a number of schemes to link the Bristol Channel to the English Channel by waterway in the 18th. These schemes followed the route eventually taken by the Bridgwater and Taunton Canal. The canal originally terminated at a basin at Huntworth, to the east of Bridgwater, financially this was a disaster, as the extension was funded by a mortgage, and the arrival of the railways soon afterwards started the demise of the canal. The canal was rescued from bankruptcy by the Bristol and Exeter Railway in 1866, despite commercial traffic ceasing in 1907, the infrastructure was maintained in good order, and the canal was used for the transport of potable water from 1962. Bridgwater Docks have been restored as a marina, but there is no connection to the River Parrett. Prior to the building of the canal, navigation between the towns of Bridgwater and Taunton was possible by using the River Parrett and the River Tone, the initial work was completed by 1717, although further improvements including more locks continued to be made until the early 19th century. James Brindley was the first to survey a route, which would have run from the Bristol Channel to Exeter, in 1769, Robert Whitworth looked at a shorter route from Bridgwater Bay to Seaton, following the River Parrett and the River Axe. He was asked to reassess the route in the 1790s, William Jessop surveyed a route between Taunton and Exeter in 1794, while another group proposed a canal linking Bristol, Nailsea, Bridgwater and Taunton, which was surveyed by William White. Only the first was authorised, but the economic downturn caused by the Napoleonic Wars meant that construction did not begin immediately. The company had powers to raise £420,000 in shares and an additional £150,000 if required, but economic concerns meant that the project did not start immediately. Powers for the Bristol to Bridgwater section lapsed in 1815, but work commenced in 1822. A further Act, of 17 June 1824, authorised the revised route, the predicted costs for the construction of the shorter canal were £34,145, as opposed to £429,990 for the longer scheme. Three further schemes were proposed before the idea of a Channel-to-Channel link was abandoned, James Green proposed a tub-boat canal in 1822, capable of handling 5-long-ton boats, which would have used inclines instead of locks, and would have cost £120,000.75 million. This was authorised in 1825, but no action occurred. Construction of the began in 1822, with James Hollinsworth as the engineer. The Bristol and Taunton scheme had incorporated a high-level crossing of the River Parrett, but the canal would now join the Parrett at Huntworth. This change of route resulted in the Reverend Robert Gray obtaining an injunction, by this time, the estimated cost had risen to £60,000
2.
Beam (nautical)
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The beam of a ship is its width at the widest point as measured at the ships nominal waterline. The beam is a bearing projected at right-angles from the fore and aft line, Beam may also be used to define the maximum width of a ships hull, or maximum width plus superstructure overhangs. Typical length-to-beam ratios for small sailboats are from 2,1 to 5,1, large ships have widely varying beam ratios, some as large as 20,1. Rowing shells designed for racing may have length to beam ratios as high as 30,1. The beam of many vessels can be calculated using the following formula. Some examples, For a standard 27 ft yacht, the root of 27 is 3,3 squared is 9 plus 1 =10. The beam of many 27 ft monohulls is 10 ft, for a Volvo Open 70 yacht,70.5 to the power of 2/3 =17 plus 1 =18. The beam is often around 18 ft, for a 741 ft long ship, the cube root is 9, and 9 squared is 81, plus 1. The beam will usually be around 82 ft, e. g. Seawaymax, as catamarans have more than one hull, there is a different beam calculation for this kind of vessel. BOC stands for Beam On Centerline and this term in typically used in conjunction with LOA. The ratio of LOA/BOC is used to estimate the stability of multihull vessels, the lower the ratio the greater the boats stability. The BOC for vessels is measured as follows, For a catamaran, carlin – similar to a beam, except running in a fore and aft direction. Keever, John M. American Merchant Seamans Manual, turpin, Edward A. McEwen, William A
3.
John Gilbert (agent)
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John Gilbert was land agent and engineer to the third Duke of Bridgewater and is credited with the idea that led to the building of the Bridgewater Canal. John Gilbert was born in Staffordshire, when he was aged 12–13 he was apprenticed to Matthew Boulton, a manufacturer of small metal objects and the father of Matthew Boulton, the engineer. When Gilbert was aged 19 his father died and he left his apprenticeship to superintend the family lime works, johns brother, Thomas, was working as agent to Lord Gower, brother-in-law of the Duke of Bridgewater. Thomas invited John to inspect the Dukes coal mines at Worsley, around 1758 John was appointed as the Dukes agent and moved to live in Worsley. Here he started on the levelling and surveying work necessary for this project, later James Brindley was appointed as engineer to the canal and the Duke, Gilbert and Brindley worked on the plans for the canal and supervised its building from Worsley Old Hall. For the Duke, Gilbert also ran the farm and set up a lead pencil factory at Worsley using plumbago from the Dukes mines in Keswick. When lime was found on the Dukes estate, Gilberts previous experience helped to develop lime burning as a source of revenue. As separate undertakings, Gilbert worked on the drainage of Martin Mere, in the 1770s Gilbert worked as agent for the Duke of Devonshire working on a project to build an underground canal for his Ecton Hill mines. This canal now leads to Speedwell Cavern, in the 1780s Gilbert developed the first deep salt mine at Marston Mine near the Lion Salt Works in Cheshire. At the time of his work was proceeding to his design of an inclined plane within the Worsley mining system
4.
James Brindley
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James Brindley was an English engineer. He was born in Tunstead, Derbyshire, and lived much of his life in Leek, Staffordshire, at age 17, encouraged by his mother, he was apprenticed to a millwright in Sutton, Macclesfield and soon showed exceptional skill and ability. Having completed his apprenticeship he set up business for himself as a wheelwright in Leek, in 1750 he expanded his business by renting a millwrights shop in Burslem from the Wedgwoods who became his lifelong friends. He soon established a reputation for ingenuity and skill at repairing many different kinds of machinery, in 1752 he designed and built an engine for draining a coal mine, the Wet Earth Colliery at Clifton in Lancashire. Three years later he built a machine for a mill at Congleton. Brindleys reputation brought him to the attention of the 3rd Duke of Bridgewater who was looking for a way to improve the transport of coal from The Dukes coal mines at Worsley to Manchester, in 1759 The Duke commissioned the construction of a canal to do just that. The resulting Bridgewater Canal, opened in 1761, is regarded as the first British canal of the modern era. Brindley was engaged, at the insistence of Gilbert, to assist with problems such as the Barton Aqueduct. This most impressive feature of the canal carried the canal at an elevation of 12 metres over the River Irwell at Barton, Brindleys technique minimised the amount of earth moving by developing the principle of contouring. He preferred to use a route that avoided embankments. Though this recognised the primitive methods of earth-moving available at the time, but his greatest contribution was the technique of puddling clay to produce a watertight clay-based material, and its use in lining canals. Puddle clay was used extensively in UK canal construction in the period starting shortly after his death, starting about 1840 puddle clay was used more widely as the water-retaining element within earthfill dams, particularly in the Pennines. Brindleys reputation soon spread and he was commissioned to construct more canals. He extended the Bridgewater to Runcorn, connecting it to his major work. Brindley believed it would be possible to use canals to link the four rivers of England. In 1762 he set out for Chester and Shropshire survey or a raconitering according to his diary and he had with him a sketch map of the continuation of the Dee southwards past Whitchurch. The first sod was cut by Josiah Wedgwood in 1766 and Brindley carried it away in a barrow, there was mounting ridicule about his scheme and in the event, although the canal opened from Shardlow to near Stafford in 1770, it took eleven years to drive the tunnel. The Trent and Mersey Canal was the first part of this network
5.
Worsley
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Worsley is a town in the metropolitan borough of the City of Salford, in Greater Manchester, England. The population of the town at the 2011 census was 10,035 and it lies along the course of Worsley Brook,5.75 miles west of Manchester. The M60 motorway bisects the area, historically part of Lancashire, Worsley has provided evidence of Roman and Anglo-Saxon activity, including two Roman roads. Later expansion came after the First and Second World Wars, when large estates were built in the region. Today, Worsley is under consideration to be made a World Heritage Site, including Worsley Delph, a significant part of the towns historic centre is now a conservation area. Worsley is first mentioned in a Pipe roll of 1195–96 as Werkesleia, there are many variations on the name, Werkesleia,1195, Wyrkedele,1212, Whurkedeleye, c. 1220, Worketley,1254, Worcotesley, Workedesle,1276, Wrkesley, Wrkedeley, Workedeley,1292, Wyrkeslegh, Workesley,1301, Worsley,1444, the spelling of the name in early documents, suggests a Saxon origin. Ge-Weore, the Old English form of the name, means the place which was cultivated or settled. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle contain no references to Worsley, two Roman roads run through the area. Connecting Mamucium with Coccium, one passes through Worsley near Drywood, the present-day A6 road follows part of the course of another Roman road, which passes through the northern part of the area near Walkden and Little Hulton. In 1947 a hoard of 550 Roman coins was found near a quarry in Boothstown, Worsley later fell under the control of the Anglo-Saxons, who controlled much of the area around Manchester and who also defeated the British at the Battle of Chester in AD615. Edward the Elder rebuilt the fortifications at Manchester, and in AD924 captured all the land between the rivers Mersey and Irwell, making it demesne in the Kingdom of Wessex, during the Middle Ages the area was covered with forests and marshlands. Thinly populated by craftsmen and serfs, Worsley grew as a settlement adjoining an ancient corn mill, marl was commonly used as a fertiliser, and is recorded in use in 1719. Worsley was, originally, the largest manor of the seven ancient manors of the Bridgewater Estates and it was created by William I and held for him by the Barton family in thegnage, and for them by a Norman knight named Elias, who fought in the crusades. On his death in Rhodes, the remained with Elias son. On 23 June 1311 a substantial part of the Manor of Hulton was granted to the Worsleys. The family held both manors until the late 14th century, whereon they passed to the Massey family of Tatton, the Brereton family added the Manor of Bedford to the estate. Richard Brereton later married Dorothy Egerton, and upon his death the estates passed into the Egerton family, in 1617 John Egerton, son of Sir Thomas Egerton, became Earl of Bridgewater
6.
Runcorn
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Runcorn is an industrial town and cargo port in Cheshire, England, located within the Borough of Halton. In 2010, Runcorns population was estimated to be 61,000, the town is on the southern bank of the River Mersey, where the estuary narrows to form the Runcorn Gap. Directly to the north across the River Mersey is the town of Widnes, upstream and 8 miles to the northeast is the town of Warrington, and downstream 16 miles to the west is the city of Liverpool. Runcorn railway station is on a branch of the West Coast Main Line and provides frequent services to the Liverpool Lime Street, Birmingham New Street, and London Euston stations. The A533 road passes through the town from the south, crossing the Runcorn Gap over the Silver Jubilee Bridge, Runcorn was a small, isolated village until the Industrial Revolution. It was a resort in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Towards the end of the 18th century, a port began to develop on the bank of the River Mersey. During the 19th century, industries developed the manufacture of soap and alkali, quarrying, shipbuilding, engineering, in the early 20th century, the prime industries were chemicals and tanning. The original village has grown to include what were outlying villages, the earliest written reference to the town is in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, where it is spelled Rumcofan, literally meaning a wide cove or bay. This word is derived from the Old English words rúm and cofa, other historical spellings of Runcorn include Rumcoven, Ronchestorn, Runckhorne, and Runcorne. Little is known about the history of the settlement but isolated findings of objects from the Stone, Bronze. The earliest recorded event in its history is the building by Ethelfleda of a fortification at Runcorn to protect the frontier of her kingdom of Mercia against the Vikings in 915. The fort was built on Castle Rock overlooking the River Mersey at Runcorn Gap, following the Norman conquest, Runcorn was not mentioned in the 1086 Domesday survey, although surrounding settlements were. William the Conqueror granted the earldom of Chester to Hugh dAvranches who granted the barony of Halton to Nigel and it is likely that Nigel erected a motte and bailey castle on Halton Hill in the 1070s. In 1115, Nigels son, William Fitznigel, founded an Augustinian Priory at Runcorn, in 1134 the priory was moved to Norton, about 3.5 miles away. In 1391 the priory was raised to the status of abbey. During the Civil War Halton Castle was held for the Royalists by John Savage, 2nd Earl Rivers and it fell twice to Parliamentarian Roundheads. The first siege was led by Sir William Brereton in 1643, following this, a Council of War was held in Warrington in 1646 at which it was decided that the castle should be slighted
7.
Manchester
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Manchester is a major city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England, with a population of 514,414 as of 2013. It lies within the United Kingdoms second-most populous urban area, with a population of 2.55 million, Manchester is fringed by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east and an arc of towns with which it forms a continuous conurbation. The local authority is Manchester City Council and it was historically a part of Lancashire, although areas of Cheshire south of the River Mersey were incorporated during the 20th century. Throughout the Middle Ages Manchester remained a township but began to expand at an astonishing rate around the turn of the 19th century. Manchesters unplanned urbanisation was brought on by a boom in textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution, Manchester achieved city status in 1853. The Manchester Ship Canal opened in 1894, creating the Port of Manchester and its fortunes declined after the Second World War, owing to deindustrialisation. The city centre was devastated in a bombing in 1996, but it led to extensive investment, in 2014, the Globalization and World Cities Research Network ranked Manchester as a beta world city, the highest-ranked British city apart from London. Manchester is the third-most visited city in the UK and it is notable for its architecture, culture, musical exports, media links, scientific and engineering output, social impact, sports clubs and transport connections. Manchester Liverpool Road railway station was the worlds first inter-city passenger railway station and in the city scientists first split the atom, the name Manchester originates from the Latin name Mamucium or its variant Mancunium and the citizens are still referred to as Mancunians. These are generally thought to represent a Latinisation of an original Brittonic name, both meanings are preserved in languages derived from Common Brittonic, mam meaning breast in Irish and mother in Welsh. The suffix -chester is a survival of Old English ceaster and their territory extended across the fertile lowland of what is now Salford and Stretford. Central Manchester has been settled since this time. A stabilised fragment of foundations of the version of the Roman fort is visible in Castlefield. After the Roman withdrawal and Saxon conquest, the focus of settlement shifted to the confluence of the Irwell, much of the wider area was laid waste in the subsequent Harrying of the North. Thomas de la Warre, lord of the manor, founded and constructed a church for the parish in 1421. The church is now Manchester Cathedral, the premises of the college house Chethams School of Music. The library, which opened in 1653 and is open to the public today, is the oldest free public reference library in the United Kingdom. Manchester is mentioned as having a market in 1282, around the 14th century, Manchester received an influx of Flemish weavers, sometimes credited as the foundation of the regions textile industry
8.
Rochdale Canal
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The Rochdale Canal is a navigable broad canal in Northern England, between Manchester and Sowerby Bridge, part of the connected system of the canals of Great Britain. Its name refers to the town of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, the Rochdale is a broad canal because its locks are wide enough to allow vessels of 14 feet width. The canal runs for 32 miles across the Pennines from the Bridgewater Canal at Castlefield Basin in Manchester to join the Calder, as built, the canal had 92 locks. Whilst the traditional lock numbering has been retained on all restored locks, and on the relocated locks, locks 3 and 4 have been replaced with a single deep lock, Tuel Lane Lock, which is numbered 3/4. Brindley proposed a similar to the one built, and another more expensive route via Bury. Rennie at the time had no experience of building canals, the promoters, unsure as to whether to build a wide or a narrow canal, postponed the decision until an Act of Parliament had been obtained. The first attempt to obtain an act was made in 1792, in September 1792, William Crosley and John Longbotham surveyed the area in an attempt to find locations for reservoirs which would not affect water supplies to the mills. A second bill was presented to Parliament, for a canal which would have a 3, again the bill was defeated, this time by one vote. The promoters, in an attempt to understand the mill owners position, Jessop gave evidence to the Parliamentary committee, and on 4 April 1794 an act was obtained which created the Rochdale Canal Company and authorised construction. Rennies estimated cost in the bill was £291,000. The estimate was for a canal, whereas the act authorised a broad canal. The summit tunnel was abandoned in favour of 14 additional locks saving £20,000, Jessop proposed constructing each lock with a drop of 10 feet, resulting in efficient use of water and the need to manufacture only one size of lock gate. The canal opened in stages as sections were completed, with the Rochdale Branch the first in 1798, the bottom nine locks opened in 1800 and boats using the Ashton Canal could reach Manchester. Officially, the canal opened in 1804, but construction continued for three more years. A1. 5-mile branch from Heywood to Castleton opened in 1834, as a result of having no summit tunnel, there were more locks, and the summit pound was very short, at just 0.8 miles. To the north and east,36 locks descended to Sowerby Bridge, while to the south and west, the summit pound is 600 feet above sea level, and is one of the highest summit pounds in Britain. Blackstone Edge Reservoir, covering 50 acres and Chelburn Reservoir, covering 16 acres, were the first two built to supply the water for all these locks. They were completed in 1798, and Hollingworth Lake, covering 130 acres, was finished in 1800 and it was lower than the summit pound, and so a steam pumping engine was installed to raise the water into a 4-mile feeder, which connected to the summit
9.
Trent and Mersey Canal
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The Trent and Mersey Canal is a 93. 5-mile long canal in the East Midlands, West Midlands, and north-west of England. It is a canal for the vast majority of its length. The narrow locks and bridges are big enough for a single narrowboat 7 ft wide ×72 ft long, while the locks can accommodate boats 14 ft wide. As its name implies, the Trent and Mersey canal was built to link the River Trent at Derwent Mouth to the River Mersey, the second connection is made via the Bridgewater Canal, which it joins at Preston Brook in Cheshire. Note that although mileposts measure the distance to Preston Brook and Shardlow, the plan of a canal connection from the Mersey to the Trent came from canal engineer James Brindley. It was authorised by an Act of Parliament in 1766 and the first sod was cut by Josiah Wedgwood in July that year at Middleport, in 1777, the canal was completed, including more than 70 locks and five tunnels, with the company headquarters in Stone. The first known idea to build a canal between the River Mersey and the River Trent was put forward in 1755, though no action was taken at that time. In 1760, Lord Gower, a businessman and brother-in-law of the Duke of Bridgewater, drew up a plan for the Trent. If his plan had gone ahead, this would have been the first modern canal constructed in England. James Brindley, the engineer behind many of the canals in England, did his first canal work on the Trent and Mersey, though his first job in charge of construction was on the Bridgewater Canal. Pots transported by road were liable to be damaged and broken, wedgwood’s plan was not to connect the two rivers by canal, but to connect the potteries to the River Mersey. As a burgeoning industrialist, Wedgwood was a backer of the Trent. There was much debate about possible routes that a canal could take, coal merchants in Liverpool felt threatened about a canal that could bring coal in from Cheshire. The owners of the River Weaver Navigation were also not happy about the proposals, yet another route was published which, much to the shock of Wedgwood, did not at all include the potteries. Wedgwood, intent to have a connection to his potteries, managed to send his proposal to Parliament. John Gilberts plan for the Grand Trunk canal met opposition at the end where, in Burton on Trent. In 1764, Wedgwood managed to convince Gilbert to include the Potteries in his route, in 1766, Gilberts plan was authorised by an Act of Parliament. Later that year, n July 26th a massive celebration was held in the Potteries where Josiah Wedgwood cut the first sod of soil, James Brindley was employed as engineer and work got under way
10.
Leeds and Liverpool Canal
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The Leeds and Liverpool Canal is a canal in Northern England, linking the cities of Leeds and Liverpool. Over a distance of 127 miles, it crosses the Pennines and it has several small branches, and in the early 21st century a new link was constructed into the Liverpool docks system. In the mid-18th century the towns of Yorkshire including Leeds, Wakefield. While the Aire and Calder Navigation improved links to the east for Leeds, Bradford merchants wanted to increase the supply of limestone to make lime for mortar and agriculture using coal from Bradfords collieries and to transport textiles to the Port of Liverpool. On the west coast, traders in the port of Liverpool wanted a cheap supply of coal for their shipping and manufacturing businesses. Inspired by the effectiveness of the wholly artificial navigation, the Bridgewater Canal opened in 1759–60, a canal across the Pennines linking Liverpool and Hull would have obvious trade benefits. A public meeting place at the Sun Inn in Bradford on 2 July 1766 to promote the building of such a canal. John Longbotham was engaged to survey a route, two groups were set up to promote the scheme, one in Liverpool and one in Bradford. A counter-proposal was produced by John Eyes and Richard Melling, improved by P. P, Burdett, which was rejected by the Bradford committee as too expensive, mainly because of the valley crossing at Burnley. In 1768 Brindley gave an estimate of a distance just less than 109 miles built at a cost of £259,777. A commencement ceremony was held at Halsall, north of Liverpool on 5 November 1770, the first section of the canal opened from Bingley to Skipton in 1773. Also completed was the branch to Bradford, on the western side, the section from Liverpool to Newburgh was dug. By the following year the Yorkshire end had been extended to Gargrave, on the western side it reached Wigan by 1781, replacing the earlier and unsatisfactory Douglas Navigation. By now, the funds and further borrowing had all been spent. The war in the American colonies and its made it impossible to continue for more than a decade. By this time planning for the competing Rochdale Canal was under way and it was likely to offer a direct journey to Liverpool via Manchester. The same year John Rennie surveyed a branch of the Rochdale between Todmorden and Burnley, in 1794 an agreement was reached with the Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal company to create a link near Red Moss near Horwich. With this in mind in the year, the route was changed again with a further Act
11.
Manchester Ship Canal
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The Manchester Ship Canal is a 36-mile-long inland waterway in the North West of England linking Manchester to the Irish Sea. Starting at the Mersey Estuary near Liverpool, it follows the original routes of the rivers Mersey. Several sets of locks lift vessels about 60 feet up to Manchester, major landmarks along its route include the Barton Swing Aqueduct, the only swing aqueduct in the world, and Trafford Park, the worlds first planned industrial estate and still the largest in Europe. The rivers Mersey and Irwell were first made navigable in the early 18th century, in addition, Manchesters business community viewed the charges imposed by Liverpools docks and the railway companies as excessive. A ship canal was proposed as a way of giving ocean-going vessels direct access to Manchester. They initiated a campaign to enlist support for the scheme. Faced with stiff opposition from Liverpool, the supporters were unable to gain the necessary Act of Parliament to allow the scheme to go ahead until 1885. Construction began in 1887, it six years and cost £15 million. Although able to accommodate a range of vessels from coastal ships to inter-continental cargo liners, by 2011 traffic had decreased from its peak in 1958 of 18 million long tons of freight each year to about 7 million long tons. The necessary legislation was proposed in 1720, and the Act of Parliament for the navigation passed into law in 1721, construction began in 1724, undertaken by the Mersey & Irwell Navigation Company. The completion in 1776 of the Runcorn extension of the Bridgewater Canal, followed in 1830 by the opening of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, intensified competition for the carriage of goods. In 1844 ownership of the Mersey & Irwell Navigation was transferred to the Bridgewater Trustees and its proponents argued that reduced transport costs would make local industry more competitive, and that the scheme would help create new jobs. The idea was championed by Manchester manufacturer Daniel Adamson, who arranged a meeting at his home, The Towers in Didsbury and he invited the representatives of several Lancashire towns, local businessmen and politicians, and two civil engineers, Hamilton Fulton and Edward Leader Williams. Fultons design was for a canal, with no locks. With the city about 60 feet above sea level, the docks, Williams plan was to dredge a channel between a set of retaining walls, and build a series of locks and sluices to lift incoming vessels up to Manchester. Both engineers were invited to submit their proposals, and Williams plans were selected to form the basis of a bill to be submitted to Parliament later that year. To generate support for the scheme, the provisional committee initiated a campaign led by Joseph Lawrence. His task was to set up committees in every ward in Manchester and throughout Lancashire, to raise subscriptions, the first meeting was held on 4 October in Manchesters Oxford Ward, followed by another on 17 October in the St. James Ward
12.
A580 road
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The A580 is the United Kingdoms first purpose-built intercity highway. The road, which remains a primary A road, was opened by King George V on 18 July 1934. It links Walton in Liverpool to Salford near Manchester, the road is known colloquially as the East Lancs Road or simply the Lancs. The road was built to better access between the Port of Liverpool and the industrial areas of East Lancashire around Manchester. The new high-quality trunk road would supersede the indirect and heavily built-up A57 through Prescot, Warrington, journey times for road haulage would be reduced to under an hour. The first part, which was completed three years, was from Walton, Liverpool to the junction with the A6 at Irlams o th Height in Salford. The 29.5 mi road was constructed in an almost straight alignment with few curves, to be a high-speed trunk route, its 1930s planners designed some parts to be three-roads-in-one. The central section was exclusively for traffic while adjacent side roads - either side of the main carriageway - provided local access. Although the sections within Liverpool were dual carriageway from the beginning, the rest of the road was converted to dual with a central reservation in the 1950s and 1960s. Many of the original 1930s bridges remain, they were built from steel in preparation for any future expansion as they would be easier to replace than ones constructed from moulded concrete, the road remains the UKs largest pre-motorway project. In 2004 the Highways Agency detrunked the road, passing control, with the completion of the first phase, the next stage was to extend the road beyond Salford and into East Lancashire proper. Its failure was due to the roads location. Despite linking North West Englands largest cities, the East Lancs remained isolated from the rest of the UKs national road network, both ends of the highway began in high-density urban areas that were not close to any comparable infrastructure that could assist rapid transit connections. By 1942, proposals were put forward to extend the A580 across the Pennines to Hull on the east coast of Britain, although this plan never came to fruition, its purpose became the foundation for the construction of the M62 motorway in 1960
13.
M60 motorway
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The M60 motorway, Manchester Ring Motorway, or Manchester Outer Ring Road, is an orbital motorway in Greater Manchester, a metropolitan county in North West England. Built over a 40-year period, it passes through all Greater Manchesters metropolitan boroughs except for Wigan, most of the City of Manchester is encompassed within the motorway, except for the southernmost part of the city, which are served by the M56. The M60 is 36.1 miles long and was renamed the M60 in 2000, with parts of the M62 and M66, the road forms part of the unsigned Euroroutes E20 and E22. During 2008, the M60 was proposed as a cordon for congestion charging in Greater Manchester, the M60 is the only true orbital motorway in the United Kingdom, as the M25 motorway in London is not, due to the Dartford Crossing being designated the A282. The M60 was developed by connecting and consolidating the existing sections of the M63, M62. It came into existence as the M60 in 2000, with the completion of the side opening in October. The original plan called for a new motorway, but policy change led to the plan which created the current motorway. As soon as it opened, the motorway got close to its maximum volume on significant sections. As an orbital motorway, it is equivalent to Londons M25 motorway, unlike the M25, the M60 forms a complete loop. In 2004, a section of the northern M60 was the UKs busiest stretch of road, usually, the western side of the M25 motorway holds that distinction, but the M25s figures at the time were lower than normal due to roadworks starting. Access for junctions 6 to 8 is only from the collector/distributor road, some of the junctions were extensively re-modelled. As part of the project, the A6144 motorway, which connected to the M60 at junction 8, was downgraded, the Greater Manchester congestion charge which would have affected drivers only during peak times coming off the M60 towards Manchester was rejected by a referendum on 12 December 2008. Work to upgrade two sections of the M60 to a motorway system had been planned to commence in 2013. This would have included a new lane from junction 12 to 15, both these projects were subsequently cancelled in favour of a new project that includes speed cameras on this section but no additional lane or hard-shoulder running. An environmental assessment was cited as the reason an additional lane will not be provided, consequently, daily congestion on this section is expected to continue indefinitely. A combined approach was initiated in 2014, comprising managed motorway system, the dates given on these Statutory Instruments relate to when the document was published, and not when the road was built. Provided below is an incomplete list of the Statutory Instruments relating to the route of the M60,1708, M66 Motorway and Connecting Roads Scheme 1988 S. I. 1728, M66 Motorway and Connecting Roads Scheme 1988 S. I,363, M66 Motorway A663 Broadway All-Purpose Connecting Road Order 1993 S. I
14.
Worsley Navigable Levels
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The Worsley Navigable Levels are an extensive series of coal mines in Worsley in the City of Salford in Greater Manchester, England. They were worked largely by the use of canals and boats called starvationers. Coal getting is known in the area from as early as 1376 but large-scale development was left until the tenure of Francis Egerton and this sough was sited to provide drainage for as many mine works as possible in order to make its construction economic. The sough was 1,100 yards long with 600 yards underground, water in the coal measures worked above the sough drained into it and deeper coal seams benefited because water needed to be lifted only to the sough not to the surface. This solution to the drainage problem was successful and extensions of 450 yards proceeded to allow other coal seams to be drained. The Dukedom passed to Scroop Egertons fourth son John on Scroops death in 1745 and subsequently, when John died in 1748, to Scroops fifth son Francis, the 3rd Duke of Bridgewater. Francis Egerton gained full control of his estates in 1757 when he was 21, one part of their plan was to dig a canal, the Bridgewater Canal, from Worsley to Salford on the River Irwell. This idea would improve the transport of coal but not the efficiency of mining and they then had the idea of extending the canal at Worsley underground to produce a navigable level within the coal measures for both drainage and coal transport. A consequence of this decision was that the water from the coalmines proved sufficient to keep the canal in water, the Act of Parliament allowing the building of the Bridgewater Canal was passed in 1759. The construction of the canal had already started when James Brindley became involved, Brindley took charge of the canals construction. Several changes were made to the course under Brindleys control. Before and during the construction of the Bridgewater Canal the navigable level was begun, a tunnel 8 feet high was cut northwards into the rock from the canal level at Worsley providing 4 feet of headroom and 4 feet of water. The first workable seam was reached in 1761,770 yards from the tunnels portal, the tunnel was not straight, it changed course in order to avoid trespassing under the land of neighbouring landlords. As new coal seams were intercepted branch levels into the seams were dug, the branch level along the Four Feet seam itself reached a length of 1.75 miles. Mine shafts were sunk and coal mined ahead of the line of the main navigable level. In order to ease the congestion resulting from the number of boats using the level a second entrance tunnel was dug,500 yards long. In 1773 an upper level was created by widening the original drainage sough with a finished length of 1.75 miles. A sloped branch was driven from the level to the surface at a gradient of 1 in 4 to allow boats to be drawn up
15.
M602 motorway
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The M602 motorway is a relatively short motorway, leading traffic into Salford, Greater Manchester, England, towards Manchester and by-passing the suburban town of Eccles. The motorway itself was intended to be a part of a bigger scheme. To be designated M52, the route would link Liverpool and Manchester, however, at the same time, the M62 was being extended north and east of Worsley, around the north of Manchester, and on to Yorkshire, to form part of the Trans-Pennine Motorway route. This would be a version to the original plan of the East Lancashire Road, the A580. It was decided that the Trans-Pennine Motorway be extended to Liverpool too, the M62 was re-coursed to run via the route of the M52 between Worsley and Liverpool. That left a short stump of motorway between the M62 and Salford, which was initially renumbered M64 and then became the M602, the southern end of the M62 between Worsley and Stretford became the M63. Data from driver location signs are used to distance and carriageway identifier information. CBRD Motorway Database – M602 CBRD Videos M602 / A57 Lancashire County Council – Historic Highways – M602 The Motorway Archive – M602 Pathetic Motorways – M602
16.
A57 road
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The A57 is a major road in England. Within Manchester a short stretch becomes the A57 motorway, the 3-mile £4 million Aston relief road in Sheffield opened in mid-1985, with the old route now designated as the B6200. The A57 begins at The Strand near the River Mersey, as part of Water Street, the connecting roads Moorfields and Hatton Garden are also part of the A57, which join the east and west directions. In both directions, Churchill Way crosses the A59 near the entrance of the Queensway Tunnel and it overlaps briefly with the A580 as Islington, separated as two one-way roads, then becomes Prescot Street, passing the Royal Liverpool University Hospital. At the junction with the B5340, it becomes Kensington, meeting the A5089 to the south and B5188 to the north and it crosses a railway at Fairfield passing St Annes Church on the left near the Stanley public house, overlapping with the B5189 Green Lane to the north. It meets the A5047 to the south near a Tesco and the B5189 at Old Swan, at the junction with the A5058 Queens Drive it enters Knotty Ash, becoming East Prescot Road and a trunk road. There is a roundabout and it enters Dovecot before it passes through Huyton and it passes through Prescot as the non-trunk Derby Street then High Street. It meets the A58 again and becomes a road, then meets the B5200 at a roundabout. It crosses the Liverpool to Wigan Line near Scotchbarn Leisure Centre and it meets the B5201 to the north opposite Whiston Hospital. It passes through Rainhill, meeting the B5413 near the railway station and it passes Rainhill High School to the left, then St Bartholomew RC Primary School. At junction 7 of the M62, it meets the A557, the road runs along the road from junction 7 for about 1 mile, then it meets the B5419 at a crossroads, and the A569 to the left at Bold Heath near the Griffin Inn. At Lingley Green it enters as Liverpool Road, passing the Trigger Pond pub on the left and it crosses the Liverpool to Manchester Line. At Great Sankey, it becomes a dual-carriageway and meets the A562 at a roundabout, the original route through Warrington town centre included the narrow Sankey Street, which required special narrow buses to be operated. The road now bypasses Warrington town centre via a new elevated road, Midland Way, the road loses its trunk road status and becomes School Brow. Warrington Parish Church, St Elphin, is to the right, the road becomes Manchester Road, and meets the A50 at crossroads. It passes through Bruche, home of a police training centre. At Paddington, the road becomes dual-carriageway as New Manchester Road, in Woolston, it becomes Manchester Road. It passes a 40 mph speed camera near Woolston Leisure Centre, at junction 21 of the M6, it becomes a trunk road and meets the B5210 Woolston Grange Avenue at a roundabout, then passes the Mascrat Manor at another roundabout
17.
Barton Swing Aqueduct
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The Barton Swing Aqueduct is a moveable navigable aqueduct in Barton upon Irwell, Greater Manchester, England. It carries the Bridgewater Canal across the Manchester Ship Canal, the swinging action allows large vessels using the ship canal to pass underneath and smaller narrowboats to cross over the top. The aqueduct, the first and only swing aqueduct in the world, is a Grade II* listed building, designed by Sir Edward Leader Williams and built by Andrew Handyside and Company of Derby, the swing bridge opened in 1894 and remains in regular use. The Barton Swing Aqueduct is a replacement for the earlier Barton Aqueduct. An alternative scheme involving the use of a double lock flight was rejected, the new aqueduct was designed by Sir Edward Leader Williams, engineer to the Manchester Ship Canal Company, and was built by Andrew Handyside and Company of Derby. The first barge crossed the new aqueduct on 21 August 1893, Williams was also involved with the Anderton Boat Lift, another moving canal structure in the region. Construction work began in 1890, with the demolition of a Roman Catholic school on the bank of the ship canal. The scale of the operation meant that the course of the River Irwell had to be diverted around the site. The aqueduct is a form of swing bridge, when closed, it allows canal traffic to pass along the Bridgewater Canal. When large vessels need to pass along the canal underneath. Gates at each end of the trough retain around 800 tonnes of water, the aqueduct originally had a suspended towpath along its length, about 9 feet above the water level of the Bridgewater Canal, which has now been removed. The structure is adjacent to, and upstream of, the Barton Road Swing Bridge, both bridges are operated from a brick control tower on an island in the centre of the ship canal. When in the position, the aqueduct and road bridge line up along the length of the island. To avoid the risk of collision, the aqueduct is opened half an hour traffic on the Manchester Ship Canal is scheduled to pass. The turning mechanism built into the island consists of a 27-foot race plate embedded in granite blocks. Sixty-four tapered cast iron rollers sat on top of the race plate, on top of that an upper race plate supports the aqueduct and its circular gear rack, which was powered by a hydraulic engine manufactured by Sir W. G. Armstrong Mitchell of Newcastle. To reduce the pressure on the mechanism, a hydraulic press was installed in the pivot. When water was admitted to the press it took up to half the weight, the weight of the structure meant that the design was pushing the limits of the possible
18.
Thirlmere Aqueduct
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The Thirlmere Aqueduct is a 95. 9-mile-long pioneering section of water supply system built by the Manchester Corporation Water Works between 1890 and 1925. Often incorrectly thought of as one of the longest tunnels in the world, the aqueduct was built to carry approximately 55,000,000 imperial gallons per day of water from Thirlmere Reservoir to Manchester. The construction of the reservoir and aqueduct was authorised by the Manchester Waterworks Act of Parliament, the first phase was completed in 1897 and, for the pipeline sections, subsequent phases were completed in 1925. The first water to arrive in Manchester from the Lake District was marked with a ceremony on 13 October 1894. His first recommendation was to source water from Ullswater, but it was decided to seek powers to acquire Thirlmere. In the face of opposition the project received Royal Assent in 1879. Under this act Manchester was granted priority of right to 25 imperial gallons per person per day, a pumping station was built at Heaton Park Reservoir in 1954–1955 incorporating a large relief by Mitzi Cunliffe signed and dated 1955. The building materials and the reliefs are all symbolic of the achievement in bringing water from the Lake District to Manchester, the building was given grade II listing in 1988. This tunnelled section under Dunmail Raise was dug by two teams mining towards each other, the two tunnel sections joined within 20 cm of centre. Manchester Corporation has acquired the area of 10,800 acres. The aqueduct is 95.9 miles long from Thirlmere reservoir to Heaton Park Reservoir 53°32′32″N 2°15′41″W, Prestwich. Its most common form of construction is cut-and-cover, which consists of a of D section concrete covered channel, approximately 7.1 feet wide, there are 37 miles of cut and cover, made up of concrete horseshoe-shaped sections 12 inches thick. Typically, the conduit has 3 feet of cover and traverses the contours of hillsides and it is the longest gravity-fed aqueduct in the country, with no pumps along its route. The water flows at a speed of 4 miles per hour, the level of the aqueduct drops by approximately 20 inches per mile of its length. Sections of the route of the aqueduct have over time been modified for the construction of modern motorways, during the construction of the M6 and M61 connection a short section was diverted. A short section of the aqueduct near Worsley, Greater Manchester, was also re-routed in the late 1960s during the construction of the M62/M63/M602 motorway interchange. Salford council website showing listed status and an image North West Public health Observatory, Crytosporidium in the North West water supply Mansergh, the Thirlmere water scheme of the Manchester Corporation, with a few remarks on the Longdendale Works, and water-supply generally. London, Spon,1879 - popularising lecture, with copious plans & elevations, including map showing aqueduct route
19.
Manchester Metrolink
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Metrolink is a tram/light rail system in Greater Manchester, England. The system is owned by Transport for Greater Manchester and operated and maintained under contract by RATP Group, in 2015–16,34.3 million passenger journeys were made on the system. The network consists of seven lines which radiate from Manchester city centre to termini at Altrincham, Ashton-under-Lyne, Bury, East Didsbury, Eccles, Manchester Airport, Metrolink has 93 stops along 57 miles of standard-gauge track making it the largest light rail system in the United Kingdom. It consists of a mixture of track shared with other traffic, reserved track sections, segregated from other traffic. It is operated by a fleet of Bombardier Flexity Swift M5000s, a light rail system for Greater Manchester emerged from the failure of the 1970s Picc-Vic tunnel scheme to obtain central government funding. A light-rail scheme was proposed in 1982 as the least expensive rail-based transport solution for Manchester city centre, construction work on the Trafford Park Line extension from Pomona to the Trafford Centre commenced in early 2017 with an estimated operational date of 2020/21. Furthermore, TfGM have endorsed more speculative expansion proposals for new lines to Stockport, a loop around Wythenshawe, Manchesters first tram age began in 1877 with the first horse-drawn trams of Manchester Suburban Tramways Company. Electric traction was introduced in 1901, and the municipal Manchester Corporation Tramways expanded across the city, by 1930, Manchesters tram network had grown to 163 miles route miles, making it the third largest tram system in the United Kingdom. After World War II, electric trolleybuses and motor buses began to be favoured by local authorities as a cheaper transport alternative, trolleybuses were withdrawn from service in 1966. The central commercial district had no links, and over the years. In the 1960s, transport design studies were undertaken to address the problems of increasing traffic congestion, a number of urban public transport schemes were evaluated for Manchester, including several types of monorail systems and metro-style systems. While the monorail schemes were all abandoned, a scheme to create a tunnel link gained momentum. SELNEC Passenger Transport Executive — the body formed in 1969 to improve public transport for Manchester and this was a proposal to link Piccadilly and Victoria stations via a tunnel under the city centre and enable train services to run across the Manchester conurbation. Inter-station links were provided by the Centreline shuttle bus service for many years, Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive, the successor to SELNEC, continued to examine possible rail link solutions. A Rail Study Group, composed of officials from British Rail, GMC, to promote the scheme, GMPTE held a public proof of concept demonstration in March 1987 using a Docklands Light Railway P86 train on a freight-only line adjacent to Debdale Park. The Project Light Rail proposals were presented to the UK Government for taxpayer funding, following route revisions in 1984 and 1987, additional taxpayer funding came from the European Regional Development Fund and bank lending. Parliamentary authority to proceed with Phase 1 construction was obtained with two Acts of Parliament – the Greater Manchester Act 1988 and Greater Manchester Act 1988. Tracks were laid down along a 1. 9-mile route from Victoria station, via Market Street to the G-Mex and this route is now known as the First City Crossing, and it was built with network expansion in mind
20.
Hulme Locks Branch Canal
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The Hulme Locks Branch Canal is a canal in the city of Manchester. It is 200m in length and was built to provide a waterway between the Mersey and Irwell Navigation and the Bridgewater Canal. The canal opened in 1838 and was superseded in 1995 by a new lock at Pomona Dock 3, as both of its locks remain closed, the canal is now overgrown. This was costly and time-consuming, as well as adding to traffic congestion on the streets of Manchester, in 1799 the nearby Manchester Bolton & Bury Canal company proposed to connect their canal to the Rochdale canal with an aqueduct across the M&IN. Due mainly to objections from the M&IN, who would have suffered a loss of trade. In 1805, John Nightingale was asked by the Mersey and Irwell Navigation Company to estimate the cost of a link between Manchester and Salford. Nothing would happen until 1836, when John Gilbert was appointed as engineer, the Bridgewater Canal Company sensing potential loss of trade cut the short Hulme Locks Branch Canal connecting their canal to the River Irwell. The following year the M&IN completed the Manchester and Salford Junction Canal and this provided an alternative route from the Rochdale Canal to the River Irwell, and cargoes from either direction could navigate onto the Irwell using the junction canal or Hulme Locks. The canals were constructed just as railways were becoming popular, Hulme Locks Branch Canal was used until 1995, when a new lock was provided at Pomona Docks, and this branch canal is now overgrown
21.
Castlefield
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Castlefield is an inner city conservation area of Manchester in North West England. The conservation area which bears its name is bounded by the River Irwell, Quay Street, Deansgate and it was the site of the Roman era fort of Mamucium or Mancunium which gave its name to Manchester. It was the terminus of the Bridgewater Canal, the worlds first industrial canal built in 1764, the worlds first passenger railway terminated here in 1830, at Liverpool Road railway station and the first railway warehouse opened here in 1831. The Rochdale Canal met the Bridgewater Canal at Castlefield in 1805 and in the 1830s they were linked with the Mersey and it has a tram station, Deansgate-Castlefield tram stop providing frequent Manchester Metrolink services to Eccles, Bury, Altrincham, Manchester Piccadilly, East Didsbury and Rochdale. Castlefield was designated as an area in 1980 and the United Kingdoms first designated Urban Heritage Park in 1982. The name Castlefield refers to the position below the former Roman fort. It is a version of the earlier name Castle-in-the-field. Another name for the area was Campfield, which derived from the same source and it is preserved in the name of St Matthews Church, Campfield, and Campfield Market. Port in Old English could refer to a harbour or a market so the names could be old, a Roman fort, Mamucium or Mancunium was established in what is now Castlefield around AD79 near a crossing place on the River Medlock. The fort was sited on a bluff near the confluence of the River Medlock. It was erected as a series of fortifications established by Gnaeus Julius Agricola during his campaign against the Brigantes who were the Celtic tribe in control of most of northern England and it guarded a central stage of the Roman road, between Deva Victrix and Eboracum. Another road branched off to the north to Bremetennacum, the neighbouring forts were Castleshaw and Northwich. Built first from turf and timber, the fort was demolished around 140, when it was rebuilt around 160, it was again of turf and timber construction. Around the year 200, the fort underwent another rebuild enhancing its defences by replacing the gatehouse in stone, the fort would have been garrisoned by an infantry cohort of around 500 auxiliary troops. Evidence of both pagan and Christian worship has been discovered, two altars have been found and there may be a temple of Mithras at the site. A word square was discovered in the 1970s that may be one of the earliest examples of Christianity in Britain, a civilian settlement grew in association with the fort, made up of traders and the soldiers families. An area which has a concentration of furnaces and industrial activity has been described as an industrial estate, the civilian settlement was probably abandoned by the mid-3rd century, although a small garrison may have remained at Mamucium into the late 3rd and early 4th centuries. A reconstructed part of the stands on the site and is open to the public
22.
A56 road
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The A56 is a road in England which extends between the city of Chester in Cheshire and the village of Broughton in North Yorkshire. The road includes a section of trunk road between the end of the M66 motorway near Ramsbottom and the M65 motorway west of Burnley. The road begins as Frodsham Street in the centre of Chester at its junction with Foregate Street A51, just outside the city, the A56 crosses Junction 12 of the M53 motorway, continuing in a north easterly direction. The road passes through the towns and villages of Mickle Trafford, Helsby, the road crosses the M6 motorway halfway between Junctions 20 and 21, before passing south of Lymm on its way to its junction with the A556 road at Bowdon. At Bowdon the A56 turns sharply northwards, passing Altrincham and Sale, the A56 continues north-eastwards into inner city Manchester, taking on the additional name of Deansgate, one of Manchesters main shopping streets. At the end of Deansgate, the A56 takes on the name of Victoria Street as it passes Manchester Victoria railway station, heading due north the road passes Whitefield and cuts through Bury before crossing the M66 motorway at Junction 1. The road follows the M66 up to its terminus at the unsigned Junction 1a near Edenfield, merging with the end of the motorway, the road becomes a trunk road and takes on the designation A56 to signify it as the preferred route for traffic leaving the M66. Again heading roughly due northwards the A56 passes Haslingden and Accrington before joining the M65 motorway at Junction 8, slightly to the west of Burnley. After joining the M65, the A56 disappears from the maps, taking an easterly direction, the A56 goes through Colne before turning sharply to the north. Prior to the construction of the M65, M66 and connecting roads, the route then passed through the centre of Burnley and on to Nelson, this section is now marked as an extension of the A682. M56 motorway Chester to Manchester Line Road to Nowhere, A56
23.
River Mersey
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The River Mersey /ˈmɜːrzi/ is a river in the north west of England. Its name is derived from the Anglo-Saxon language and translates as boundary river, the river may have been the border between the ancient kingdoms of Mercia and Northumbria and for centuries it formed part of the boundary between the historic counties of Lancashire and Cheshire. The start of the Mersey is at the confluence of the River Tame and it flows westwards through the suburban areas of south Manchester, then into the Manchester Ship Canal at Irlam, becoming a part of the canal and maintaining the canals water levels. After 4 miles the river exits the canal flowing towards Warrington where the river widens before it then narrows as it passes between the towns of Runcorn and Widnes. From Runcorn the river widens into an estuary, which is 3 miles wide at its widest point near Ellesmere Port. The course of the then heads north as the estuary narrows between Liverpool and Birkenhead on the Wirral Peninsula to the west and empties into Liverpool Bay. In total the river flows 70.33 miles, a railway tunnel between Birkenhead and Liverpool as part of the Mersey Railway opened in 1886. Two road tunnels pass under the estuary from Liverpool, the Queensway Tunnel opened in 1934 connecting the city to Birkenhead, the Silver Jubilee Bridge completed in 1961, crosses between Runcorn and Widnes, adjacent to the Runcorn Railway Bridge which opened in 1868. Water quality in the Mersey was severely affected by industrialisation, and in 1985, in 2009 it was announced that the river is cleaner than at any time since the industrial revolution and is now considered one of the cleanest in the UK. The Mersey Valley Countryside Warden Service manages local nature reserves such as Chorlton Ees, the river gave its name to Merseybeat, developed by bands from Liverpool, notably the Beatles. In 1965 it was the subject of the hit single Ferry Cross the Mersey by Gerry. Its name is derived from the Anglo-Saxon mǣres, of a boundary and ēa, the Mersey was possibly the border river between Mercia and Northumbria. Its Welsh name is Afon Merswy, and it has given the alternative etymology of Celtic môr-afon meaning sea river. The Mersey is formed from three tributaries, the River Etherow, the River Goyt and the River Tame, the modern accepted start of the Mersey is at the confluence of the Tame and Goyt, in central Stockport, Greater Manchester. The 1784 John Stockdale map shows the River Mersey extending to Mottram, in the west of Stockport it flows at the base of a cliff below the road called Brinksway before reaching flat country. The old course of the Mersey has been obliterated by the canal past Hollins Green to Rixton although the old river bed can be seen outside Irlam, the river is tidal from Howley Weir in Warrington, although high spring tides often top the weir. Before construction of the canal, work to improve navigation included Woolston New Cut, bypassing a meander, and Howley Lock for craft to avoid the weir. The island formed between the weir and the lock is known locally as Monkey Island, west of Warrington the river widens, and then narrows as it passes through the Runcorn Gap between the towns of Runcorn and Widnes, in Halton
24.
River Bollin
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The River Bollin is a major tributary of the River Mersey in the north-west of England. It rises in Macclesfield Forest at the end of the Peak District. The stream then descends the 10 miles through Macclesfield and Wilmslow where it has a confluence with the River Dean, for the following 10 miles it defines the southwestern portion of the border between Greater Manchester and Cheshire before merging with the River Mersey north of Lymm. It flows through the Styal country park and was used in the cotton factory there, Quarry Bank Mill. Near to the Quarry Bank Mill site there is a natural weir, the Bollin is culverted underneath the southern runway of Manchester Airport. The town of Macclesfield used to all its waste and sewage into the Bollin. The profusion of human sewage in the Bollin was still common in 1850
25.
M6 motorway
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Here, just short of the Scottish border it becomes the A74 which continues to Glasgow as the M74. It is also part of the east−west route between the Midlands and the east-coast ports, the section from the M1 to the M6 Toll split near Birmingham forms part of the unsigned E-road E24 and the section from the M6 Toll and the M42 forms part of E05. The motorway has major junctions with the M56 and M62 at Warrington, giving access to Chester, Manchester, the M6 then heads north past Wigan, Preston and Lancaster. The first section of the motorway and the first motorway in the country was the Preston By-pass and it was built by Tarmac Construction and opened by the Prime Minister Harold Macmillan on 5 December 1958. In January 1959 the Preston by-pass was closed because of rapid surface deterioration over a stretch of 100 yards due to water freezing, motorists were diverted to the old road while the UK road research laboratory at Harmondsworth pondered the importance of surface water drainage. Later, other sections of the motorway were constructed, and finally it was all linked together, the second phase of construction was completed in 1960, forming the Lancaster by-pass. Some 100 miles south, the Stafford by-pass was completed in 1962, by 1965, the remaining sections of motorway Stafford–Preston and Preston–Lancaster had been completed. 1968 saw the completion of the Walsall to Stafford link as well as the Penrith by-pass some 150 miles north in Cumberland, in 1970, the Lancaster–Penrith link was completed, along with a short section of motorway by-passing the south of Walsall. The most northerly section of the motorway opened in 1970. Junction 6 in Birmingham is widely known as Spaghetti Junction because of its complexity, on the elevated ground between Shap and Tebay, the north- and south-bound carriages split apart. At this point a road runs between the two carriageways without a link to the motorway. The section of the M6 that runs over Shap Fell in Cumbria is 1,050 ft above sea level, the northbound entry slip road at Lancaster was unusually short, presenting problems for traffic joining the motorway. The M6 crosses the River Lune at this point and unless the bridge had been made wider and this junction was upgraded from an earlier emergency-vehicles-only access point, which explains the substandard design. The route was intended to replace the old A6, which it does along the northern section starting with the Preston Bypass. However, a closer approximation to the overall actual route of the M6 is provided by following the A45, A34, A50, A49. South of Preston, the A6 route is instead supplemented by the M61 as far as Manchester, south of Manchester, there is no true motorway replacement for the old road. Across the Pennines, the old road remains the main local through-route, in July 1972 the UK Minister for Transport Industries announced that 86 miles of UK motorway particularly prone to fog would benefit from lighting in a project which should be completed by 1973. Sections to be illuminated included the M6 between junctions 10 and 11, and between junctions 20 and 27, the road opened on 5 December 2008, the 50th anniversary of the M6 Preston By-pass
26.
A50 road
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The A50 is a major trunk road in England between Warrington and Leicester, historically it was also a major route from London to Leicester. The current A50 runs south-east from Warrington via Junction 20 of the M6, Knutsford, Holmes Chapel, Kidsgrove and Stoke on Trent to Junction 24 of the M1 near Kegworth, via Derbys southern bypass. From there it is concurrent with the M1 until Junction 22, the section from junctions 24a and 24 of the M1 is the former A6, and has not been widened. It has only three lanes westbound from junction 24a, the Stoke and Derby section was originally intended to be part of an M64 motorway. In November 2013 it was reported that funding would be being made available for improvements to the section around Uttoxeter, a few days earlier the MP was lobbying for the improvements, stating that improvements were needed to the traffic islands for safety reasons and to improve traffic flow. There are plans for 700 new houses to the west of Uttoxeter and to the south of the A50. Prior to the opening of the M1, the A50 route was one of two routes from London to the North West via Leicester, until it was replaced by what has become the A6 during the 19th century. A third route between London and Leicester was via the A5 to Old Stratford, A508 to Market Harborough and that route and the A50 route both passed through Northampton which was a significant calling point on many coaching routes until the arrival of the railway. Until the M1 opened, the A50 used to terminate at Hockliffe in Bedfordshire at a junction with the A5, when the M1 motorway opened alongside the old route south of Northampton it was down-classified as, B526 between Northampton and the Newport Pagnell bypass. A509 between the Newport Pagnell bypass and Junction 14 of the M1, a5130 between Junction 14 and Woburn A4012 between Woburn and Hockcliffe. From that point until the 1990s the southern point of the A50 was at a junction with the A508 in Kingsthorpe, Northampton. In the 1990s, with the opening of the A14 and to traffic from using the road between Leicester and Northampton, the old route was re-designated as A5199 between Leicester and Northampton. At the same time the A50 became the A511 north of Leicester, part of the route mirrored the plans for the original M64 motorway, with three lanes in some sections - notably between Kegworth and the A6 near Derby. The new A50 route was opened in stages between 1984 and 1999, with using various temporary designations,1984, 9-mile £16m Blythe Bridge - Uttoxeter section from the north-west),1992, £2. 6m Etwall bypass, opened as the A516. 1995, 6-mile £30. 4m Hatton, Hilton and Foston bypass,1997, 3-mile £52m section 1 of the Blythe Bridge to Queensway. 1997, the £109. 5m 14. 9-mile Derby Southern Bypass, opened by Helene Hayman, Baroness Hayman,1997, the 1-mile £21m section 2 of the Blythe Bridge to Queensway 1998, 5-mile £20. 6m Doveridge Bypass as the A564. 1999, the delayed A50/M1 junction 24a improvements, on completion, the Southern Derby Bypass was re-designated as the A50, being maintained privately by Connect A50 Ltd. Much of this new section of road is made of concrete, media related to A50 road at Wikimedia Commons SABRE website
27.
A49 road
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The A49 is an A road in western England, which traverses the Welsh Marches region. The stretch between Ross-on-Wye and the A5 at Shrewsbury is a road, maintained by the national Highways England. From the A6 at Bamber Bridge, south of Preston, the road parallel to the M6 motorway. Through Ashton in Makerfield and Newton-le-Willows, reaching Warrington via Winwick, from junction 9 of the M62, there is a dual-carriageway through Warrington, as far as Loushers Lane. During this section, it passes under the Liverpool to Manchester Line railway, then has the Cockhedge Green roundabout with the A57 and passes to the east and it passes over a roundabout with the A5061 situated on the River Mersey, then goes past Priestley College. It passes over the Manchester Ship Canal, Cheshire Ring Canal Walk, at Pewterspear there is the Owens Corner roundabout. The road has crossroads with the B5356 at Stretton and meets the A559 at junction 10 of the M56, the road enters Cheshire West And Chester. There is crossroads with the A533 and the crosses the Cheshire Ring Canal Walk. The three-mile £6m Weaverham Diversion opened in September 1992, the old route is now the B5144, passing near Weaverham High School. The road passes over the West Coast Main Line railway after the Weaverham Roundabout, the section from Weaverham to Cuddington is a new much-straightened section. In Cuddington it crosses the Mid-Cheshire Line near Cuddington railway station, there is the Oakmere Crossroads with the A556 south of Cuddington, before the road crosses the Whitegate Way. It then crosses the A54 near Abbots Moss Hall, and the passes through Cotebrook. The two-mile £3. 8m Tarporley Bypass opened in September 1986, Tarporley Community High School is near here. The road leaves the A51 to the west at Four Lane Ends near the Red Fox, the road travels over the Shropshire Union Canal and under the Welsh Marches Line railway south of Tiverton. It crosses over the River Gowy north of Bunbury next to the Beeston Castle, the road briefly overlaps the A534 Wrexham Road from the junction at Ridley and crosses over the River Weaver. At Cholmondeley there is Cholmondeley Castle, at the crossroads of Bickerton Road and Wrenbury Road, there is the Cholmondeley Arms. Moving from the parishes of Cholmondeley to Bickley east of Moss Wood, it moves back into Cheshire West. It crosses the Shropshire Union Canal again at Tushingham cum Grindley, the road enters into Shropshire and is crossed by the South Cheshire Way near Hinton
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Walton Hall, Cheshire
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This page describes the Walton Hall in Cheshire, UK. For other Walton Halls see Walton Hall Walton Hall is a house in Walton, Warrington, Cheshire. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building, the hall and its surrounding garden and grounds are owned and administered by Warrington Borough Council. The house was built in 1836–38 for Sir Gilbert Greenall, 1st Baronet, the local authority website states it was designed by the Lancaster architect Edmund Sharpe. However this is not confirmed by any authoritative source, when Sir Gilbert died in 1894, the house was inherited by his son, Gilbert Greenall, 1st Baron Daresbury, who lived there until his death in 1938. In 1869–70 the house was extended and offices were added by the Lancaster architects Paley, the extension included a new wing with a tower, containing a billiards room and rooms for guests, and a new entrance on the east front. The house and grounds were purchased by Warrington Corporation in 1941, the gardens were opened to the public in 1945. Most of Paley and Austins extension was demolished in about 1990, the house is built in brown brick with stone dressings and slate roofs. The east front has 2½ storeys and two bays with bay windows, two crow-stepped gables and three pinnacled octagonal buttresses. The entrance front has a projecting porch, the clock tower to the west has four stages, the top stage containing the clock, and surmounted by a lead-roofed cupola and large weather vane. The south face has a mullioned and transomed window and three crow-stepped gables, the retaining wall, balustrades and steps between the lawns east of the hall are listed at Grade II. Also listed at Grade II are the former lodge to the hall, the gardens and grounds are open to the public. Close to the hall are formal gardens, and in the grounds are facilities for pitch and putt, crazy golf, and bowls, a group known as the Friends of Walton Estate assist in the care and management of the estate. Each year the Warrington Disability Partnership organise a Disability Awareness Day in the grounds, inside the hall, function rooms are available for hire, and there is a concert room. The Friends of Walton Hall Music Society organises a series of music concerts in the concert room. The hall is available for weddings. The property was used for the shots in the filming of the BBC drama series Our Zoo. Listed buildings in Walton, Cheshire List of non-ecclesiastical works by Paley and Austin Walton Hall and Gardens, Warrington Borough Council
29.
M56 motorway
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The M56 motorway, also known as the North Cheshire motorway, is in Cheshire and Greater Manchester, England. It runs from junction 4 of the M60 to Dunkirk, Cheshire and is 33.3 miles in length and it is often busy with long-distance commuter traffic towards North Wales. It serves commuters heading to Manchester particularly those from the wider Cheshire area, the road forms part of the unsigned Euroroute E22. Although the main line of the motorway starts as a continuation of the A5103 Princess Parkway, after passing through junctions 1 and 2, the spur joins the main line at junction 3, increasing from two lanes to four to accommodate Manchester Airport traffic. The road then heads south to the west of Wythenshawe and Manchester Airport until it reaches junction 6 and it runs to the south of Hale, reducing to three lanes. It passes junctions 7 and 8 which are part of the same complex, junction 8 was planned to be used by the proposed A556). The current proposals are to upgrade the A556 to a dual carriageway, traffic for the southbound M6 leaves here and this junction can suffer from congestion. The motorway then enters a rural setting between Broomedge and High Legh. After meeting the M6 motorway it passes south of Appleton Thorn, after reaching junction 11, it runs through the outskirts of Runcorn and Frodsham. Between junctions 12 and 14, and the missing junction 13, it parallel to the River Mersey. After meeting the M53 motorway, the road returns to two lanes, it proceeds between Chester to the south and Ellesmere Port to its termination at Dunkirk, Cheshire where it becomes the A494. Traffic for North Wales can take either the M53 or A494 to reach the A55, Motorway Services on the M56 are Chester and Lymm The first proposal for a road along this route was agreed in 1958 and it entered the Trunk Road Programme for 1967/1968. Construction began in 1968 and the motorway opened in stages between 1971 and 1981, Junctions 1 to 3 opened in 1975, Junctions 3 to 7 opened in 1972. Junctions 7 to 9 opened in 1974, Junctions 9 to 11 opened in 1975. Junctions 11 to 14 opened in 1971, Junctions 14 to 16 opened in 1981. Proposals existed for an extension into North Wales across the proposed Dee Barrage, until 2008 the M56 terminated at a roundabout at the west end. Work started in 2006 to grade-separate this junction to allow free-flowing traffic to North Wales, the project was completed in 2008. Data from driver location signs are used to provide distance information, in October and November 2010, the bridge was demolished and replaced
30.
Leigh, Greater Manchester
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Leigh is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, Greater Manchester, England,7.7 miles southeast of Wigan and 9.5 miles west of Manchester city centre. Leigh is situated on low-lying land to the north west of Chat Moss, historically a part of Lancashire, Leigh was originally the centre of a large ecclesiastical parish covering six vills or townships. The town became an district in 1894 when part of Atherton was added. In 1899 Leigh became a municipal borough, the first town hall was built in King Street and replaced by the present building in 1907. Originally an agricultural area noted for farming, domestic spinning and weaving led to a considerable silk and, in the 20th century. Leigh also exploited the coal measures particularly after the town was connected to the canals. Leigh had an important engineering base, Leighs present-day economy is based largely on the retail sector. Leigh is derived from the Old English leah which meant a place at the wood or woodland clearing, other recorded spellings include Leech,1264, Leeche,1268, Leghthe,1305, Leght,1417, Lech,1451, Legh, 16th century. As its name denotes it was a district rich in meadow and pasture land, and the produce of its dairies, Westleigh, the west clearing, was Westeley in 1237, Westlegh in 1238 and Westlay in Legh in 1292. The ford of Beda, probably through the Pennington Brook gave its name to Bedford which was recorded as Beneford from 1200–21, the earliest signs of human activity in Leigh are evidenced by a Neolithic stone axe found in Pennington and a bronze spearhead from south of Gas Street. A single Roman coin was found at Butts in Bedford, after the Roman departure from Britain, and into the history of Anglo-Saxon England, nothing was written about Leigh. In the 12th century the ancient parish of Leigh was made up of six townships, including Pennington, Bedford, Westleigh, Atherton, Astley, weekly markets were held by the parish church and a cattle fair held twice-yearly. Bedford manor was mentioned in documents in 1202 when it was held by Sir Henry de Kighley whose family held it until the 16th century, the Shuttleworths, landowners from the 14th century, were another prominent Bedford family. Richard Shuttleworth married a daughter of the Urmstons from Westleigh and brought part of the Westleigh inheritance to Bedford. Another prominent Bedford family, the Sales of Hope Carr Hall, had a deal of influence in Bedford for over 400 years. The family were recusants and secretly kept the old faith when Roman Catholicism was subject to civil or criminal penalties, Hope Carr Hall was moated as was nearby Brick House. The manor house of Westleigh was at Higher Hall and existed in Richard Is time. In 1292 Sigreda, the heiress of the manor, married Richard de Urmston, and it was later abandoned because of mining subsidence and Westleigh Old Hall became the manor by repute
31.
North West England
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North West England, one of nine official regions of England, consists of the five counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of 7,052,000 in 2011 and it is the third most populated region in the United Kingdom after the South East and Greater London. North West England is bounded to the east by the Peak District, the region extends from the Scottish Borders in the north to the West Midlands region in the south. To its southwest is North Wales, amongst the better known of the North Wests physiographical features are the Lake District and the Cheshire Plain. The highest point in North West England is Scafell Pike, Cumbria, Windermere is the largest natural lake in England. Broad Crag Tarn on Broad Crag is Englands highest lake, wast Water is Englands deepest lake, being 74m deep. A mix of rural and urban landscape, two large conurbations, centred on Liverpool and Manchester, occupy much of the south of the region. The north of the region, comprising Cumbria and northern Lancashire, is rural, as is the far south which encompasses parts of the Cheshire Plain. The region includes parts of three National parks and three areas of Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, source, Office for National Statistics Mid Year Population Estimates North West Englands population accounts for just over 13% of Englands overall population. 37. 86% of the North Wests population resides in Greater Manchester,21. 39% in Lancashire,20. 30% in Merseyside,14. 76% in Cheshire and 7. 41% live in the largest county by area, Cumbria. According to 2009 Office for National Statistics estimates,91. 6% of people in the region describe themselves as White,88. 4% White British,1. 0% White Irish and 2. 2% White Other. The Mixed Race population makes up 1. 3% of the regions population, there are 323,800 South Asians, making up 4. 7% of the population, and 1. 1% Black Britons. 0. 6% of the population are Chinese and 0. 5% of people belong to ethnic group. North West England is a diverse region, with Manchester. 19. 4% of Blackburn with Darwens population are Muslim, the third highest among all local authorities in the United Kingdom, Areas such as Moss Side in Greater Manchester are home to a 30%+ Black British population. In contrast, the town of St. Helens in Merseyside, one in five of the population in the North West is Catholic, a result of large-scale Irish emigration in the nineteenth century as well as the high number of English recusants in Lancashire. For top-tier authorities, Manchester has the highest teenage pregnancy rate in the region, for council districts, Burnley has the highest rate, closely followed by Hyndburn, both in Lancashire. For top-tier authorities, Cheshire has the lowest teenage pregnancy rate, for council districts, Eden has the lowest rate closely followed by South Lakeland, both in Cumbria
32.
Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater
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Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater, known as Lord Francis Egerton until 1748, was a British nobleman from the Egerton family. He was the youngest son of the 1st Duke and he did not marry, and the dukedom expired with him, although the earldom was inherited by a cousin, Lieutenant-General John Egerton. A pioneer of naval construction, he is famed as the father of British inland navigation, who commissioned the Bridgewater Canal—often said to be the first true canal in Britain, and the modern world. The canal was built for him by James Brindley to service his coal mines at Worsley, scroop Egerton, 1st Duke of Bridgewater, the son of the 2nd Earl of Bridgewater was created a duke in 1720. Lord Francis Egerton succeeded to the dukedom at the age of twelve on the death of his brother, as a child he was sickly and of such unpromising intellectual capacity that at one time the idea of cutting the entail was seriously entertained. Thereupon the Duke broke up his London establishment, and retired to his estate at Worsley where he devoted himself to the making of canals, the construction of Bridgewaters canal, with its aqueduct across the River Irwell, was carried out by James Brindley, the celebrated engineer. The completion of his first canal led the duke to undertake an ambitious work. In 1762 he obtained parliamentary powers to provide a waterway between Liverpool and Manchester by means of a canal. The difficulties encountered in its execution were still more formidable than those of the Worsley canal, but the genius of Brindley, his engineer, proved superior to all obstacles although at one period the dukes financial resources were almost exhausted, the work was carried to a triumphant conclusion. Both canals were completed by the time Bridgewater was thirty-six years of age, during the latter years of his life he derived a princely income from the success of his enterprise. Although a supporter of Pitts administration, he took no prominent part in politics, the duke accumulated great wealth through his canal and coal interests. His annual income was said to have exceeded £80,000, the family owned other estates, Belton House, a small Sussex estate and the Old House and,6,000 acres at Ashridge. On leaving his Brackley and Worsley estates, the duke had an income in taxes and duties of £75,000. With his fortune he built a magnificent Georgian mansion, Bridgwater House and it was later renamed Stafford House, and later still Lancaster House. With the Bridgewater fortune exceeding £2,000,000, the duke and he began to pull the old buildings down, but he died before his plans could be completed, leaving his heir with nothing but rubble. He was the member of the syndicate which purchased and partly resold the famous Orleans Collection. He acquired an art collection valued at £150,000 and it was composed of several old master paintings including Diana and Actaeon and Diana and Callisto. It was inherited by his heir, 1st Duke of Sutherland, most of his purchases are still held by the Egerton family
33.
Canal
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Canals and navigations are human-made channels for water conveyance, or to service water transport vehicles. In the vernacular, both are referred to as canals, and in most cases, the works will have a series of dams. These areas are referred to as water levels, often just called levels. In contrast, a canal cuts across a drainage divide atop a ridge, many canals have been built at elevations towering over valleys and others water ways crossing far below. Cities need a lot of water and many canals with sources of water at a higher level can deliver water to a destination where there is a lack of water. The Roman Empires Aqueducts were such water supply canals, a navigation is a series of channels that run roughly parallel to the valley and stream bed of an unimproved river. A navigation always shares the drainage basin of the river, a vessel uses the calm parts of the river itself as well as improvements, traversing the same changes in height. A true canal is a channel that cuts across a drainage divide, most commercially important canals of the first half of the 19th century were a little of each, using rivers in long stretches, and divide crossing canals in others. This is true for many canals still in use, there are two broad types of canal, Waterways, canals and navigations used for carrying vessels transporting goods and people. These can be subdivided into two kinds, Those connecting existing lakes, rivers, other canals or seas and oceans and those connected in a city network, such as the Canal Grande and others of Venice Italy, the gracht of Amsterdam, and the waterways of Bangkok. Aqueducts, water canals that are used for the conveyance and delivery of potable water for human consumption, municipal uses, hydro power canals. Historically canals were of importance to commerce and the development, growth. In 1855 the Lehigh Canal carried over 1.2 million tons of burning anthracite coal, by the 1930s the company which built. By the early 1880s, canals which had little ability to compete with rail transport, were off the map. In the next couple of decades, coal was diminished as the heating fuel of choice by oil. Later, after World War I when motor-trucks came into their own, Canals are built in one of three ways, or a combination of the three, depending on available water and available path, Human made streams A canal can be created where no stream presently exists. Either the body of the canal is dug or the sides of the canal are created by making dykes or levees by piling dirt, stone, the water for the canal must be provided from an external source, like streams or reservoirs. Where the new waterway must change elevation engineering works like locks, lifts or elevators are constructed to raise, examples include canals that connect valleys over a higher body of land, like Canal du Midi, Canal de Briare and the Panama Canal
34.
Silver Jubilee Bridge
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The Silver Jubilee Bridge or Runcorn Bridge crosses the River Mersey and the Manchester Ship Canal at Runcorn Gap between Runcorn and Widnes in Halton, England. It is an arch bridge with a main arch span of 361 yards. It was opened in 1961 as a replacement for the Widnes-Runcorn Transporter Bridge, in 1975–77 it was widened, after which it was given its official name in honour of the Queens Silver Jubilee. It carries the A533 road and a cantilevered footway, the bridge is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building. Until 1868, when Runcorn Railway Bridge was opened, the means of crossing the Mersey at or near Runcorn Gap were by fording or by ferry. Before that the lowest crossing of the river had been the road bridge at Warrington, the first bridge to carry vehicular traffic across Runcorn Gap was the Widnes-Runcorn Transporter Bridge which opened in 1905. This was an inefficient means of transport and it had become inadequate for the amount of traffic using it before the outbreak of the Second World War, in 1946 the Ministry of Transport agreed that the transporter bridge should be replaced when sufficient funds were available. Mott, Hay and Anderson were appointed as consultant engineers, the new bridge had to allow the passage of shipping along the Manchester Ship Canal. Many ideas were considered, including a new bridge or a swing bridge. These were considered to be impractical and it was decided that the best solution was a bridge upstream from the railway bridge. This would allow the least obstruction to shipping and would also be at the narrowest crossing point, the first plan for a high-level bridge was a truss bridge with three or five spans, giving an 8 yards dual carriageway with a cycle track and footpaths. This was abandoned because it was too expensive, and because one of the piers would be too close to the wall of the ship canal. The next idea was for a bridge with a span of 343 yards between the main towers with an 8 yards single carriageway and a 2-yard footpath. However aerodynamic tests on models of the bridge showed that, while the bridge itself would be stable, the finally accepted design was for a steel through arch bridge with a 10-yard single carriageway. The design of the bridge is similar to that of Sydney Harbour Bridge and this design feature was necessary to avoid the problem of oscillation due to the railway bridge. The main span measures 361 yards and each side span is 83 yards, construction began on 25 April 1956. The contractors for the first phase of work, Leonard Fairclough of Adlington, cleared the ground, building of the bridge itself began in March 1958 and the side spans were completed by November 1959. The main arch was built by cantilevering steelwork from the side spans until it met in the middle in November 1960, the carriageway was suspended from the arch by 48 lock-coil wire ropes
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Navigable aqueduct
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Navigable aqueducts are bridge structures that carry navigable waterway canals over other rivers, valleys, railways or roads. They are primarily distinguished by their size, carrying a larger cross-section of water than most water-supply aqueducts, the 662-metre long steel Briare aqueduct carrying the Canal latéral à la Loire over the River Loire was built in 1896. It was ranked as the longest navigable aqueduct in the world for more than a century, early aqueducts such as the three on the Canal du Midi had stone or brick arches, the longest span being 18.3 metres on the Cesse Aqueduct, built in 1690. But, the weight of the construction to support the trough with the clay or other lining to make it waterproof made these structures clumsy, in 1796 the first large cast iron aqueduct was built by Thomas Telford at Longdon-on-Tern on the Shrewsbury Canal. It has a length of 57 metres across three intermediate piers. Within ten years Telford had completed the far more ambitious Pontcysyllte Aqueduct in Wales on the Llangollen Canal over the River Dee valley, with a total length 307 metres. Other cast-iron aqueducts followed, such as the single-span Stanley Ferry Aqueduct on the Calder and Hebble Navigation in 1839, Pontcysyllte Aqueduct carries the Llangollen Canal over the River Dee valley in north Wales, it was designed by Thomas Telford and opened in 1805. The same canal, which includes a section, crosses a second valley on the Chirk Aqueduct. This navigable canal also supplies water to the borough of Crewe. The Avon is the second-longest aqueduct in the United Kingdom, the Agen aqueduct in France is 539 metres long and carries the canal de Garonne across the Garonne River. The Briare aqueduct near Châtillon-sur-Loire, France, carries the Canal latéral à la Loire in a channel over the Loire River. At 662 metres, it was the longest canal aqueduct in the world for a century, in recent years the building of the Lichfield Canal Aqueduct ran into construction difficulties. The UK parliament passed legislation preventing a road being built in the path of a canal being renovated without providing a tunnel or aqueduct for canal traffic to pass, barton Swing Aqueduct is a swing bridge that carries the Bridgewater Canal across the lower Manchester Ship Canal. A234 ft section of the aqueduct rotates through 90 degrees to allow vessels to pass along the Ship Canal, an aqueduct near Roelofarendsveen, Netherlands carries the Ringvaart canal over the A4 highway and the HSL-Zuid, which are situated on land below the level of the canal. Gouwe aqueduct, near Gouda in the Netherlands, carries the Gouwe river over the A12 highway, the Krabbersgat naviduct, Houtribdijk near Enkhuizen, The Netherlands, is the only aqueduct in the world that also operates as a lock. The Magdeburg Water Bridge in Germany connects the important Mittellandkanal over the river Elbe to the Elbe-Havel canal, nearly 1 km long, it is the longest navigable aqueduct in the world. Aqueduct Canal List of canal aqueducts in Great Britain Viaduct
36.
River Irwell
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The River Irwell is a 39-mile long river which flows through the Irwell Valley in North West England. Its source is at Irwell Springs on Deerplay Moor, approximately 1.5 miles north of Bacup and it forms the boundary between Manchester and Salford and empties into the River Mersey near Irlam. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the Irwells lower reaches were a route that became part of the Mersey. In the 19th century, the rivers downstream of Manchester was permanently altered by the construction of the Manchester Ship Canal which opened in 1896. The canal turned Manchester and Salford into an inland seaport. Further changes were made in the 20th and 21st centuries to prevent flooding in Manchester and Salford, such as the Anaconda Cut in 1970, the Irwell is used for recreational activities, such as pleasure cruising, rowing, racing and fishing. From its source to the confluence with the River Mersey the Irwell is about 39 miles long, rising on the moors above Cliviger, it flows south through Bacup, Rawtenstall, Ramsbottom and Bury before merging with the River Roch near Radcliffe. Turning west, it joins the River Croal near Farnworth before turning southeast through Kearsley, Clifton and it then meanders around Lower Kersal and Lower Broughton. It bisects Salford and Manchester, joining the rivers Irk and Medlock and its course ends just east of Irlam, where it empties into the Mersey. Until the early 19th century the Irwell was well stocked with fish and other wildlife, with living near Manchester Cathedral using its water for drinking. Problems with water quality in some of the former Manchester Docks basins became apparent with the redevelopment of Salford Quays, years of runoff from sewers and roads had accumulated in the slow running waters of this area and decomposition of organic matter was causing oxygen depletion. In 2001, an air injection system was introduced. Spawning and growth rates of species such as roach and perch have also increased. Two Sites of Special Scientific Interest are located close to the banks of the Irwell, nob End is also designated as a Local Nature Reserve. The second site is Ashclough, which is a site of geological interest and these two SSSIs are among the 21 found in Greater Manchester. In Salford the river flows through Clifton Country Park and Kersal Dale Country Park, herons, cormorants, mute swans, kingfishers and many species of geese and ducks are regularly sighted on the river. The Manchester Ship Canal near Salford Quays is one of the top ten sites in Britain for diving ducks, the Irwell is all that remains of the shallow seas that covered most of south-east Lancashire in the Late Carboniferous period, when deposits of mud and sand were laid down. Ashclough is a site of importance for interpreting the coal measure palaeogeography of Great Britain
37.
Liverpool and Manchester Railway
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The Liverpool and Manchester Railway was a railway opened on 15 September 1830 between the Lancashire towns of Liverpool and Manchester in the United Kingdom. Jervis of the Delaware and Hudson Railway some years later wrote, as opening the epoch of railways which has revolutionised the social and commercial intercourse of the civilized world. Trains were hauled by steam locomotives between the two towns, though private wagons and carriages were allowed. Cable haulage of trains was down the steeply-graded 1. 26-mile Wapping Tunnel to Liverpool Docks from Edge Hill junction. The railway was built to provide faster transport of raw materials, finished goods. The Liverpool and Manchester Railway was the first public transport system on land which did not use animal traction power. Up to then, the rail systems for public use had been, Horse-drawn plateways, such as the Lake Lock Railroad, Surrey Iron Railway. Railways that used a mix of steam and horse-drawn traffic, such as the Stockton and Darlington Railway, or a mix of cable and horse haulage, often described as the Grand British Experimental Railway the success or failure of which would decide plans for all future railways. The L&MR was intended to achieve cheap transport of raw materials, finished goods, huge tonnages of textile raw material were imported through Liverpool and carried to the textile mills near the Pennines where water and then steam power enabled the production of the finished cloth. There was support for the railway from the towns at either end, the original promoters are usually acknowledged to be Joseph Sandars, a rich Liverpool corn merchant, and John Kennedy, then owner of the largest spinning mill in Manchester. They were influenced to do this by William James, now something of a forgotten figure, James was a land surveyor who had made a fortune in property speculation. He advocated a national network of railways, based upon what he had seen of the development of colliery lines, the Liverpool and Manchester Railway Company was founded on 24 May 1823. It was established by Henry Booth, who became its secretary and treasurer, along with merchants from Liverpool. Charles Lawrence was the Chairman, Lister Ellis, Robert Gladstone, John Moss, a bill presented in 1825 to Parliament was rejected, but it passed in May the following year. In Liverpool 172 people took 1,979 shares, in London 96 took 844, the Marquess of Stafford had 1,000, giving 308 shareholders with 4,233 shares. The initial survey for the line was carried out by William James and, Robert Stephenson departed for South America and William James became bankrupt. Consequently, in 1824 George Stephenson was appointed engineer in their place, by this time, he was taking on too much. As Robert was absent, George left checking the survey to subordinates, upon presentation to Parliament in 1825 it was shown to be inaccurate
38.
Macclesfield Canal
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The Macclesfield Canal is a canal in east Cheshire, England, one of the six that make up the Cheshire Ring. The canal runs 26 miles from Marple Junction at Marple, where it joins the Upper Peak Forest Canal,16 miles, southwards, the canal was initially proposed at a public meeting held on 22 September 1824 at the Macclesfield Arms in Macclesfield. Unlike earlier canals, the spectre of the arrival of the railways was already in sight, by the time the canal gained its Act of Parliament in 1826, the estimated cost of building the canal was put at £295,000. The authorised share capital was £300,000, and the company had powers to borrow a further £100,000, construction of the canal began at Bollington on 4 December 1826, with the ceremonial cutting of the first sod, and progressed steadily. By the autumn of 1829, when engineer Thomas Telford inspected the works, the canal was a success, and in its first full year of operation the income was over £6,000. By 1838, the company was looking to expansion, and sought to build a branch from Buglawton to Biddulph. In the same year, the joined forces with the Trent. As with so many UK canals, the arrival of the led to the decline of the canal. By 1845, the spectre of railway competition was looming large, the company, seeing that engaging in head to head competition with the railways, was doomed to failure, opened negotiations with the North Staffordshire Railway in October 1845. The proposals from that company were rejected by the shareholders, by June 1846, however, the company had negotiated an alternative arrangement with the Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne and Manchester Railway. Under the terms of agreement, the railway company took out a perpetual lease of the canal at an annual rate of £2 10s per share. On 29 February 1912, the canal burst its banks at Kerridge, finally, in 1922, under grouping, the canal passed into the ownership of the London and North Eastern Railway. After World War II, in common with other canals. The canal is home to Britains oldest canal cruising club, the North Cheshire Cruising Club and it was formally founded in 1943 although it has pre-war origins. The cruising club played an important role in preventing the canal from closing, the Hall Green Branch, whilst originally built by the Trent & Mersey Canal Company, is often considered as part of the Macclesfield Canal in modern maps and guidebooks. Hall Green Stop Lock survives, with its rise and fall of about a foot, this was to prevent the Trent & Mersey losing water to the Macclesfield in the event of a breach in the latter. There was also a Stop Lock at Marple, although both canals were built to the level, and the lock was provided only for cases where water shortages might have resulted in a temporary difference. The lock has long been de-gated, having become unnecessary once the Macclesfield, the site of the lock remains as a narrows just in front of the junction bridge, as seen in the accompanying picture, overhung by a loading canopy
39.
Cheshire Ring
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Because it takes boats approximately one week to complete the circuit, it is suited to narrowboat holidays that start at and return to the same location. The route has 92 locks and is 97 miles long and it passes through contrasting landscapes between Manchester city centre and rural Cheshire with views of the Peak District and the Cheshire Plain. There was a risk that the canals would be abandoned, and infilled, perseverance by the IWA and the Peak Forest Canal Society paid off, and on 1 April 1974, following restoration, the ring was re-opened to navigation. The Rochdale Canal was not nationalised in 1947, and remained in the ownership of the Rochdale Canal Company, both the Rochdale Canal and Bridgewater Canal escaped nationalisation as a result of being owned subsidiaries of the Manchester Ship Canal company. Since 1977, a marathon-style 96-mile race has been organized called the Cheshire Ring Race, traversing five canals, it starts and finishes at Higher Poynton on the Macclesfield Canal. Participation is open to individual paddlers, crew boats and relay teams, the race is held under the aegis of Macclesfield And District Canoe Club
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Steam engine
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A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. Steam engines are combustion engines, where the working fluid is separate from the combustion products. Non-combustion heat sources such as power, nuclear power or geothermal energy may be used. The ideal thermodynamic cycle used to analyze this process is called the Rankine cycle, in the cycle, water is heated and transforms into steam within a boiler operating at a high pressure. When expanded through pistons or turbines, mechanical work is done, the reduced-pressure steam is then exhausted to the atmosphere, or condensed and pumped back into the boiler. Specialized devices such as hammers and steam pile drivers are dependent on the steam pressure supplied from a separate boiler. The use of boiling water to mechanical motion goes back over 2000 years. The Spanish inventor Jerónimo de Ayanz y Beaumont obtained the first patent for an engine in 1606. In 1698 Thomas Savery patented a steam pump that used steam in direct contact with the water being pumped, Saverys steam pump used condensing steam to create a vacuum and draw water into a chamber, and then applied pressurized steam to further pump the water. Thomas Newcomens atmospheric engine was the first commercial steam engine using a piston. In 1781 James Watt patented an engine that produced continuous rotary motion. Watts ten-horsepower engines enabled a range of manufacturing machinery to be powered. The engines could be sited anywhere that water and coal or wood fuel could be obtained, by 1883, engines that could provide 10,000 hp had become feasible. The stationary steam engine was a key component of the Industrial Revolution, the aeolipile described by Hero of Alexandria in the 1st century AD is considered to be the first recorded steam engine. Torque was produced by steam jets exiting the turbine, in the Spanish Empire, the great inventor Jerónimo de Ayanz y Beaumont obtained a patent for the first steam engine in history in 1603. Thomas Savery, in 1698, patented the first practical, atmospheric pressure and it had no piston or moving parts, only taps. It was an engine, a kind of thermic syphon, in which steam was admitted to an empty container. The vacuum thus created was used to water from the sump at the bottom of the mine
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Industrial Revolution
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The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in the period from about 1760 to sometime between 1820 and 1840. The Industrial Revolution began in Great Britain and most of the important technological innovations were British, aided by these legal and cultural foundations, an entrepreneurial spirit and consumer revolution drove industrialisation in Britain, which would be emulated in countries around the world. A change in marrying patterns to getting married later made able to accumulate more human capital during their youth. The Industrial Revolution marks a turning point in history, almost every aspect of daily life was influenced in some way. In particular, average income and population began to exhibit unprecedented sustained growth, mechanised textile production spread from Great Britain to continental Europe in the early 19th century, with important centres of textiles, iron and coal emerging in Belgium, and later in France. Since then industrialisation has spread throughout much of the world, the precise start and end of the Industrial Revolution is still debated among historians, as is the pace of economic and social changes. Economic historians are in agreement that the onset of the Industrial Revolution is the most important event in the history of humanity since the domestication of animals and plants. The term Industrial Revolution applied to change was becoming more common by the late 1830s. Friedrich Engels in The Condition of the Working Class in England in 1844 spoke of an industrial revolution, however, although Engels wrote in the 1840s, his book was not translated into English until the late 1800s, and his expression did not enter everyday language until then. Credit for popularising the term may be given to Arnold Toynbee, some historians, such as John Clapham and Nicholas Crafts, have argued that the economic and social changes occurred gradually and the term revolution is a misnomer. This is still a subject of debate among some historians, the commencement of the Industrial Revolution is closely linked to a small number of innovations, beginning in the second half of the 18th century. By the 1830s the following gains had been made in important technologies, Textiles – mechanised cotton spinning powered by steam or water greatly increased the output of a worker, the power loom increased the output of a worker by a factor of over 40. The cotton gin increased productivity of removing seed from cotton by a factor of 50, large gains in productivity also occurred in spinning and weaving of wool and linen, but they were not as great as in cotton. Steam power – the efficiency of steam engines increased so that they used between one-fifth and one-tenth as much fuel, the adaptation of stationary steam engines to rotary motion made them suitable for industrial uses. The high pressure engine had a power to weight ratio. Steam power underwent an expansion after 1800. Iron making – the substitution of coke for charcoal greatly lowered the fuel cost for pig iron, using coke also allowed larger blast furnaces, resulting in economies of scale. The cast iron blowing cylinder was first used in 1760 and it was later improved by making it double acting, which allowed higher furnace temperatures
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Mersey and Irwell Navigation
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Eight locks were constructed between 1724 and 1734, and the rivers were improved by the construction of new cuts several times subsequently. The idea that the Rivers Mersey and Irwell should be made navigable from the Mersey Estuary in the west to Manchester in the east was first proposed in 1660, in 1720 the necessary bills were tabled. The Act of Parliament for the navigation was received in 1721, the construction work was undertaken by the Mersey & Irwell Navigation Company. Work began in 1724, and by 1734 boats of moderate size could make the journey from quays in Water Street, Manchester, 53°28′46″N 2°15′23″W to the Irish Sea. Eight weirs were constructed along the length of the route, and some cuts were made around shallower parts of the river, with locks. Some difficult turns along the river were also removed, the navigation was modified and improved on a number of occasions. A canal section known as the Runcorn and Latchford Canal was added in 1804, in 1740 the company built quays and warehouses along Water Street in Manchester. In 1779 a group of businessmen from Manchester and Liverpool purchased the navigation, a difficult section below Howley lock was cut out by the building of the Runcorn to Latchford Canal, and at Runcorn a basin was built for boats to wait for the tide. An aqueduct was built from Woolston Cut, to replace water lost from the locks that were used to raise boats into the new canal section, in 1846 ownership was transferred to the Canal Company. The company in charge of the navigation was known by several names and these include The Old Navigation, Old Quay Company, and Old Quay Canal. In 1872, the navigation was sold to the newly formed Bridgewater Navigation Company for £1,112,000, in 1882 it was described as being hopelessly choked with silt and filth, and was open to 50-ton boats for only 47 out of 311 working days. Economic conditions deteriorated during the mid-1870s, in what has called the Long Depression. A ship canal was proposed as a way to reverse Manchesters economic decline by giving the city access to the sea for its imports and exports of manufactured goods. The construction of the Manchester Ship Canal obliterated large parts of the earlier navigation, the Woolston New Cut, excavated in 1821, is still visible although completely dry. Woolston Old Cut, built in 1755, still exists although the lock is gone, there were originally eight locks along the navigation. Each lock chamber was 13 feet wide by 65 feet long, throstles Nest Lock was the highest on the navigation. It was followed by Mode Wheel lock, Lock 3 was at Barton-upon-Irwell, next to James Brindleys original Barton Aqueduct. The remains of the lock island appear to be situated in the location as the island presently used for the swing aqueduct
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Packhorse
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A packhorse or pack horse refers to a horse, mule, donkey, or pony used to carry goods on its back, usually in sidebags or panniers. Typically packhorses are used to cross terrain, where the absence of roads prevents the use of wheeled vehicles. Use of packhorses dates from the period to the present day. Packhorses have been used since the earliest period of domestication of the horse and they were invaluable throughout antiquity, through the Middle Ages, and into modern times where roads are nonexistent or poorly maintained. Packhorses were heavily used to transport goods and minerals in England from medieval times until the construction of the first turnpike roads, many routes crossed the Pennines between Lancashire and Yorkshire, enabling salt, limestone, coal, fleeces and cloth to be transported. Some had self-describing names, such as Limersgate and the Long Causeway, others were named after landmarks, such as the Reddyshore Scoutgate, the medieval paths were marked by wayside crosses along their routes. Mount Cross, above the hamlet of Shore in the Cliviger Gorge, as the Vikings moved eastwards from the Irish Sea in about 950 AD, it is likely that the pack horse routes were established from that time. Most packhorses were Galloways, small, stocky horses named after the Scottish district where they were first bred and those employed in the lime-carriage trade were known as limegals. Each pony could carry about 240 pounds in weight, spread between two panniers, typically a train of ponies would number between 12 and 20, but sometimes up to 40. They averaged about 25 miles a day, the trains leader commonly wore a bell to warn of its approach, since contemporary accounts emphasised the risk packhorse trains presented to others. They were particularly useful as roads were muddy and often impassable by wagon or cart, as the need for cross-Pennine transportation increased, the main routes were improved, often by laying stone setts parallel to the horse track, at a distance of a cartwheel. They remained difficult in poor weather, the Reddyshore Scoutgate was notoriously difficult, in the 18th century, canals started to be built in England and, following the Turnpike Act 1773, metalled roads. They made the ancient packhorse routes obsolete, the Packhorse is a common public house name throughout England. During the 19th century, horses that transported officers baggage during military campaigns were referred to as bathorses from the French bat, the packhorse, mule or donkey was a critical tool in the development of the Americas. In colonial America, Spanish, French, Dutch and English traders made use of horses to carry goods to remote Native Americans. Even a small stream would have steep banks in normal terrains, mules rode the roller-coaster precursor on the down trip to the docks, stables and paddocks below. The same company, as did its many competitors made use of sure footed pack mules and donkeys in coal mines. These were often managed by mule boys, a pay-grade up, packhorses were used by Native American people when traveling from place to place, and were also used by traders to carry goods to both Indian and White settlements
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Geology
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Geology is an earth science concerned with the solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Geology can also refer generally to the study of the features of any terrestrial planet. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth by providing the evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life. Geology also plays a role in engineering and is a major academic discipline. The majority of data comes from research on solid Earth materials. These typically fall into one of two categories, rock and unconsolidated material, the majority of research in geology is associated with the study of rock, as rock provides the primary record of the majority of the geologic history of the Earth. There are three types of rock, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic. The rock cycle is an important concept in geology which illustrates the relationships between three types of rock, and magma. When a rock crystallizes from melt, it is an igneous rock, the sedimentary rock can then be subsequently turned into a metamorphic rock due to heat and pressure and is then weathered, eroded, deposited, and lithified, ultimately becoming a sedimentary rock. Sedimentary rock may also be re-eroded and redeposited, and metamorphic rock may also undergo additional metamorphism, all three types of rocks may be re-melted, when this happens, a new magma is formed, from which an igneous rock may once again crystallize. Geologists also study unlithified material which typically comes from more recent deposits and these materials are superficial deposits which lie above the bedrock. Because of this, the study of material is often known as Quaternary geology. This includes the study of sediment and soils, including studies in geomorphology, sedimentology and this theory is supported by several types of observations, including seafloor spreading, and the global distribution of mountain terrain and seismicity. This coupling between rigid plates moving on the surface of the Earth and the mantle is called plate tectonics. The development of plate tectonics provided a basis for many observations of the solid Earth. Long linear regions of geologic features could be explained as plate boundaries, mid-ocean ridges, high regions on the seafloor where hydrothermal vents and volcanoes exist, were explained as divergent boundaries, where two plates move apart. Arcs of volcanoes and earthquakes were explained as convergent boundaries, where one plate subducts under another, transform boundaries, such as the San Andreas Fault system, resulted in widespread powerful earthquakes. Plate tectonics also provided a mechanism for Alfred Wegeners theory of continental drift and they also provided a driving force for crustal deformation, and a new setting for the observations of structural geology
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