Worsley Navigable Levels
53°30′2.2″N 2°22′52.2″W / 53.500611°N 2.381167°W
The Worsley Navigable Levels are an extensive series of
. They were worked largely by the use of underground canals (the navigable levels) and boats called starvationers.In the beginning
Coal extraction was known in the area from as early as 1376 but large-scale development was left until the tenure of Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater.[1]
The first drainage sough was cut into the Earl of Bridgewater's estates in Worsley on the Manchester Coalfield in 1729 under the auspices of John Massey, the mines agent of Scroop Egerton, the 4th Earl and 1st Duke of Bridgewater. 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 (1,000 m) long with 600 yards (550 m) 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 water drainage problem was successful and extensions of 450 yards (410 m) proceeded to allow other coal seams to be drained.[1]
The new Duke
The Dukedom passed to Scroop Egerton's fourth son
The
In 1773 an upper navigable level was created by widening the original drainage sough with a finished length of 1.75 miles (2.8 km) and draining into the main navigable level. A sloped branch was driven from the upper level to the surface at a gradient of 1 in 4 to allow boats to be drawn up and lowered down. This incline was later continued downwards to the main level. Further navigable levels were dug below the main level to serve deeper seams; these were 57 yards (52 m) and 83 yards (76 m) deeper.[1]
The Underground Incline
Bibliography
In 1812 the Duke of Bridgewater's heir,
See also
- Canals of Great Britain
- History of the British canal system
- List of canal tunnels in Great Britain
- Tub boat
References
Further reading
- Aldred, John (2004) [1807]. Worsley in 1807 From the Sketches of John Claude Nattes. Salford City Council Heritage Service. ISBN 0-901952-97-4.
- Atkinson, Glen (1998). The Canal Duke's Collieries (Second ed.). Neil Richardson. ISBN 1-85216-120-5.
- City of Salford (1999). Journeys on the Underground Canal 1765–1998. City of Salford, Education & Leisure Directorate.
- Egerton, Francis (1812) [1812]. Description du Plan Incliné Souterrain. Bureau des Annales des Arts et Manufactures.
- Egerton, Francis (1802) [1802]. "The Reportory of Arts and Manufactures Volume 16" (First Series ed.): 153 to 164.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - Malet, Hugh (1990). Coal, Cotton and Canals (Third ed.). Neil Richardson. ISBN 0-907511-08-2.
- Mullineux, Frank (2007) [1961]. The Duke of Bridgewater's Underground Canal at Worsley (Reprint ed.). Transactions of the Lancashire and Cheshire Antiquarian Society.
- Uhlemann, Hans-Joachim (2002). Canal lifts and inclines of the world (English Translation ed.). Internat. ISBN 0-9543181-1-0.
External links
- Dave Lane. "Duke of Bridgewater's Underground Canal at Worsley".
- Duke of Bridgewater Archive from the University of Salford site
- Tony Smith. "Mining and the Bridgewater Canal". Archived from the original on 4 September 2011.
- "Worsley Delph and Underground Canals".
- "Transformation of Worsley's Orange Canal" (PDF).
- Egerton, Francis Henry (1812). Description du Plan Incliné Souterrain.
- Diagram of the inclined plane connecting the navigable levels
- Neil Morris (March 2016). "Boats Gate - The Walkden Adit".