Duke's Cut
Duke's Cut | |
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Location | Wolvercote |
Country | United Kingdom |
Coordinates | 51°47′29″N 1°17′48″W / 51.79136°N 1.29675°W |
Specifications | |
Length | 0.25 miles (0.40 km) |
Minimum boat draft | 4 feet 11 inches (1.50 m)[1] |
Locks | 1 |
Status | Open |
Navigation authority | Canal and River Trust |
History | |
Original owner | Duke of Marlborough |
Date completed | 1789 |
Geography | |
Direction | WSW |
Start point | Wolvercote Junction, Oxford Canal[2] |
End point | Duke's Cut Junction, Wolvercote Mill Stream[2] |
Beginning coordinates | 51°47′33″N 1°17′37″W / 51.7924°N 1.2937°W |
Ending coordinates | 51°47′27″N 1°17′57″W / 51.7908°N 1.2991°W |
Branch of | Oxford Canal |
Connects to | Oxford Canal, Wolvercote Mill Stream |
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Duke's Cut is a short waterway in Oxfordshire, England, which connects the Oxford Canal with the River Thames via the Wolvercote Mill Stream. It is named after George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough, across whose land the waterway was cut. It is seen as a branch of the Oxford Canal.[2]
History
The Cut was constructed at the request of the
The cut opened in 1789; the exact date is unknown but an advertisement carried in William Jackson's Oxford Journal—published by the tenant of Wolvercote Mill
Adjacent to the cut is Duke's Lake, a reservoir also used for carp, roach, tench, and bream angling.[4]
Today, the cut is the preferred boating route from the Oxford Canal to the Thames;[5] the alternative route is at Oxford via and Isis Lock and the Sheepwash Channel. Until 1937, the latter was the only route between King's Lock and the lower Thames without having to navigate the flash lock at Medley Weir near Godstow Lock.[6]
Description
In 1802,
At the junction with the mill stream, fed from the Thames, was a single gate of 12 feet 6 inches (3.81 m). Mylne stated that this floodgate was of poor seal and water easily flowed into the canal at times the river was of a higher level.[1]
In 1933, the
At Duke's Cut Junction, a three-way Inland Waterways Association fingerpost sign provides navigational guidance, and shows that the Wolvercote Mill Stream below the junction was only for access to the mill.[12]
References
- ^ ISBN 0-7153-7238-6.
- ^ a b c "Waterway Gazetteer for Oxford Canal (Duke's Cut)". canalplan.org.uk. CanalPlanAC. Retrieved 10 January 2020.
- ^ ISBN 0-7153-7238-6.
- ^ Whyte, Abigail (19 June 2015). "Angling on the cut". Waterfront. Canal and River Trust. Retrieved 10 January 2020.
- ^ a b Zucchelli, Anna. "DESIGN, ACCESS AND HERITAGE STATEMENT OXFORD CANAL – WOLVERCOTE DUKE'S CUT LOCK (LOCK 44A)". Canal and River Trust. Retrieved 9 January 2020.[dead link]
- ^ Eade, John. "GODSTOW LOCK - (WHERE THAMES SMOOTH WATERS GLIDE)". thames.me.uk. Retrieved 10 January 2020.
- ^ ISBN 978-3-95427-214-3.
- ^ Historic England. "OXFORD CANAL DUKE'S CUT LOCK (1370051)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
- ISBN 0-7153-7238-6.
- ^ "OS 25 inch Scotland, 1892-1949 England and Wales, 1841-1952". maps.nls.uk. National Library of Scotland. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
- ^ Historic England. "OXFORD CANAL TOWPATH BRIDGE AT DUKE'S CUT LOCK (1286500)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
- ^ Eade, John. "OXFORD CANAL - (WHERE THAMES SMOOTH WATERS GLIDE)". thames.me.uk. Retrieved 10 January 2020.