Rushall Junction
Rushall Junction | |
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Specifications | |
Status | Open |
Navigation authority | Canal & River Trust |
History | |
Date completed | 1847 |
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Rushall Junction (or Newton Junction) (grid reference SP030947) is the southern limit of the Rushall Canal where it meets the Tame Valley Canal in the West Midlands, England. It opened in 1847, when the Rushall Canal was built to create connections between the Birmingham Canal Navigations system and the Wyrley and Essington Canal, following the amalgamation of the two companies in 1840.
History
The Tame Valley Canal was built as part of a solution to the problem of congestion at Farmers Bridge Locks, where the
Following the amalgamation of the Wyrley and Essington Canal and the Birmingham Canal Navigations in 1840, a number of links between the two systems were constructed. A flight of locks at Walsall joined the Walsall Canal to Birchills Junction, and once the Tame Valley Canal was open, work started on the Rushall Canal, to connect it to the southern end of the Daw End Branch of the Wyrley and Essington at Longwood Junction. It was opened in 1847,[3] and included nine locks, a flight of seven near the middle with two more just before the end-on junction at Longwood, which raised the level of the canal by 65 feet (20 m).[4]
Location
From the junction, the Tame Valley Canal heads westwards, running alongside the M6 motorway for about 0.5 miles (0.80 km), before the two diverge, and the canal crosses the M5 motorway western slip road and a railway line on aqueducts. It is level for 3.5 miles (5.6 km) to its junction with the Walsall Canal at Tame Valley Junction. In the other direction, the canal heads to the south east, passing under a towpath bridge and the eastern sliproads of the M5 motorway. It reaches the top lock of the 13-lock Perry Barr flight, which drops the level of the canal by 106 feet (32 m) after 2.2 miles (3.5 km). The Tame Valley Canal has towpaths on both banks for most of its length.[5][6]
The Rushall Canal heads northwards, under a towpath bridge, and almost immediately under the M6 motorway. The towpath is on the western bank, and the canal is level for 0.9 miles (1.4 km) to the bottom of the Rushall locks.
See also
Bibliography
- Cumberlidge, Jane (2009). Inland Waterways of Great Britain (8th Ed.). Imray Laurie Norie and Wilson. ISBN 978-1-84623-010-3.
- Hadfield, Charles (1970). The Canals of the East Midlands. David and Charles. ISBN 0-7153-4871-X.
- ISBN 978-0-00-721110-4.
- ISBN 0-00-713666-8.
- Pearson, Michael (1989). Canal Companion - Birmingham Canal Navigations. J. M. Pearson & Associates. ISBN 0-907864-49-X.
- Shill, Ray (2002). The Birmingham Canal Navigations. Tempus Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7524-2767-6.
References
- ^ Hadfield 1970, pp. 176–178
- ^ Nicholson 2003, pp. 36–37
- ^ Shill 2002, p. 21
- ^ Nicholson 2006, pp. 49, 51, 56
- ^ a b Nicholson 2006, pp. 56–57
- ^ Cumberlidge 2009, pp. 76–79
- ^ Cumberlidge 2009, p. 80
- ^ Historic England. "Hill Farm Bridge (1077126)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 28 January 2012.
- ^ Historic England. "Brickfields Bridge (1077092)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 28 January 2012.