Huddersfield Canal Society News

New Chairman Appointed

2012-01-25T05:59:00.000-08:00

Society Chairman Neville Kenyon has stepped down from office after 10 years in post. His position has been filled by Alan Stopher, former Project Director of the Huddersfield Canal Company which oversaw the final projects in completing the restoration of the Narrow to through navigation and its re-opening in May 2001. You can read Alan's inaugural report published in Pennine Link under Chairman's Report - Winter 2011.

200th Birthday Celebration - A Success!

2011-09-21T01:38:00.000-07:00

Well, we thought our Festival Event and the Theatre production was a great success; the sun shone as well and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves! Pity about the mud, but it wouldn't be a Festival without some!

More importantly, what did you think? Click below to post your comment now!

The Society gratefully acknowledges funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund which enabled the commissioning of the Oldham Theatre Workshop's production premiered at the event. There was no doubt the theatre performances made a major contribution to the Festival's success and clearly were enjoyed by everyone.

Oldham Theatre Workshop players perform at Diggle tunnel portal.

Oldham Theatre Workshop players perform alongside the boats.

Some of the boats on the summit pound for the festival weekend.

Obituary - John McLoughlin

2011-06-28T04:20:00.000-07:00

Steve Whitby, past MD of HCS Restoration Ltd, writes:

John McLoughlin, 79, died on 23rd April 2011 after a long illness. Having kept in touch with John and his wife Pauline, every year at Christmas, I know that he enjoyed spending time during his retirement with his family and expressed extreme pride in their achievements. He was also a keen supporter of Manchester United and got involved with local amateur league football. He also never failed to tell me how much he loved his time working on the canals.
Following over 30 years experience of tool-making and precision engineering, John started work on the local waterways in 1983, working for the Community Task Force on the Ashton Canal.
In 1984 he was employed as a Supervisor, on a 12 month contract, with the Tameside Canals Development Association, chaired by Frank Ruffley. He had the unique qualification of being our only employee that had any firsthand knowledge of Canals or Government Employment Schemes. Within a few weeks of the project starting, we needed to appoint a replacement right-hand man for me. At the interview, John produced a large file with his diaries and all the paperwork associated with supervising a dozen participants for a full year. He could trace every bag of cement used and each pair of gloves issued! David Sumner and I were suitably impressed and John was appointed Senior Supervisor. The scheme proved popular and grew to 170 full & part-time participants and the association evolved into Tameside Canals Limited and eventually H.C.S. (Restoration) Ltd. John interviewed and appointed over 2500 participants over the years. He was a manager with a no-nonsense approach, but he was always fair and held the respect of all who worked with him. He had a ‘glass half full’ approach to life and liked to work with a smile. The change in emphasis from job-creation to training required that all the staff undertake appropriate training courses. John successfully completed both the NEBSS Certificate and Diploma in Supervisory Management.
It is fair to say that we got very good at ‘scheming’ and our 12 month contracts lasted over 15 years. When John reached his 65th Birthday he was worried that he may be forced to retire, but we were also getting quite good at canal restoration by then and had our eyes on a few more years work with the help of Derelict Land Grants and Lottery cash.
The Canal Society’s achievements and success during the ‘Employment Scheme era’ was founded on the ability of all the team to adapt and exploit every opportunity and consistently deliver good work. We needed a good team and every team manager needs a good right hand man – loyal, hard-working, conscientious, trustworthy and honest. I think I got the best.
Stephen J. Whitby

Results of 2010 Photo Competition

2010-12-27T06:51:00.000-08:00

The results of the 2010 Photographic Competition have now been announced. Below is one of the winning images:

The full results and the winning images can be viewed on this page.

Treasure Hunt 2010

2010-06-07T15:19:00.000-07:00

The Society's Treasure Hunt took place on Sunday 13th June 2010 in and around the Canal at Stalybridge.

11 teams took part and the winners, Mr & Mrs Bradbury, were awarded Life Membership of the Canal Society.

Thank you to all those who took part.

2011, the Bicentenary Year ... instead of a Treasure Hunt, a Bicentenary themed Quiz Night is organised for the 6th October at the Freemason's Hall, Uppermill, starting at 7.00pm.

For further details please contact Claire or Bob on 01457 871800.

Bi-Centenary Plaque

2010-06-04T02:03:00.000-07:00

To mark this year's bicentenary of the Huddersfield Narrow Canal, the society comissioned a limited number of commemorative brass plaques to be cast.

The plaques are now available and cost £10 each with FREE postage and packing. Buy NOW via our online shop or send a cheque (payable to the society) including your delivery address to:

Bicentenary Plaque

Transhipment Warehouse

Wool Road, Dobcross

Oldham. OL3 5QR

Family Fun Day 2010

2010-03-14T15:22:00.000-07:00

The Society's Family Fun Day took place on Sunday 4th April 2010 at Brownhill Countryside Centre.

Click here for more information about the Fun Day.

Geoff Brown 1929 - 2009

2010-03-13T15:29:00.000-08:00

Long-time canal supporter and knowledeable expert Geoff Brown has died.

Click here to read tribute.

Co-founder John Maynard dies

2010-01-08T15:26:00.000-08:00

Members will be saddened to hear of the death, on 1st January, of John Maynard, the Society's first Chairman and co-instigator of the Society itself in April 1974.

John was one of four people who instigated the inaugural meeting that formed the Huddersfield Canal Society.

His funeral will take place on Thursday 14th January, 2.00pm, at Huddersfield Crematorium.

Canal Accounts for 1847

2009-09-07T15:31:00.000-07:00

By Trevor Ellis

While visiting a recent postcard fair, I was offered a copy of the Balance Sheet of Income and Expenditure for the Huddersfield and Manchester Railway and Canal Company to 31st December 1847. These accounts were for a half year and were to be submitted to a meeting held at Huddersfield Station on 25th February 1848.

In order to try to relate these to the happenings on the canal, I first checked Hadfield's "Canals of the British Isles", from where it appears that the accounts are only three years after the H.M.R.C. Company was formed. He also says that the whole undertaking was vested in the London & North Western Railway in 1847, suggesting they may even be the final separate accounts. However, there are a number of discrepancies between the accounts and Hadfield, which led to me checking Stanley Chadwick's "All Stations to Manchester", though the same numerical discrepancies appear there. From that account it is also not entirely clear when the L.& N.W.R. took over full management - possibly not until the line was completed from descriptions of a Directors' celebration of the opening of the whole line on 13th July 1849.

There is no single valuation for the Narrow Canal in the accounts, though there is a figure for Sir John Ramsden's Canal. The Narrow was paid for by an exchange of shares as part of the amalgamation, while the Broad Canal was purchased separately from the Trustees of Sir John Ramsden. Thus the accounts show "5551 (5552 in Hadfield/Chadwick) shares at £30 per share given to canal proprietors in commutation", totalling £166,530 (around £12,989,340 today, based on an internet site which quotes £100 in 1847 as being equivalent to £7,800 at current prices) plus "Money payment to proprietors of 620 canal shares (687 in Hadfield/Chadwick), at a rate of £25 per share" totalling £15,200 (equivalent around £1,185,600), which would value the Narrow at £181,730 (around £14,174,940 today) (£183,730 according to Hadfield).

The accounts show the amount paid for Sir John Ramsden's Canal in the period covered by the accounts as being £45,912 1s 9d (around £3,581,156). Hadfield quotes a price of £46,560 and suggests it was bought in 1845, whereas according to Chadwick, the transaction was to take place a year after the Huddersfield and Manchester Railway and Canal Act of 21st July 1845 - the accounts suggest that payment may have been later still and there is some mention that the authorised capital of the Company had to be increased, which may have caused delay. It is possible that some of the discrepancies in the shares may be due to the total liability appearing in the minutes, while the accounts show actual payments made for shares, though this still would not explain the Broad Canal discrepancy, on what was a straight cash purchase.

The railway side of the business at this time is noticeably smaller than the canal - income from "Coaching" £2,478 17s 6½d (approx. £193,362), "Parcels and Mails" £141 9s 6½d (approx. £11,037), "Merchandise" £117 11s 10d (£9,173). Total income was £2,757 12s 1d. (equivalent to £215,093). The reason for this is that the railway had only recently opened from Huddersfield to Cooper Bridge on 2nd August 1847 and it would be nearly two years before the line to Manchester opened. According to Chadwick, quoting from the minutes of the meeting in the February, 121,801 passengers had been carried since the opening.

The Narrow Canal account shows "Dues" as £3,015 13s 7¼d out of a total income figure of £4,218 16s 4¼d (equivalent to £329,066). The Broad Canal had income of £1,345 6s 3d (£104,933). Among the items of expenditure for the two canals are those shown below.

It is interesting to note that the Tunnel accounted for around a quarter of the repair costs on the Narrow. The higher cost of "sludging" on the Broad is presumably down to the fact that it receives its water from the river. The figures for lock-keepers on the Broad suggest that as many as four may have been employed, given a wage of around 13s or 14s per week paid on a comparable canal at that period and that these accounts only cover six months. (Two lock cottages are known, though that at Lock 1 is double.) The figure of £531 7s 7d for the Narrow would give a figure of around 30, which seems high, but that would give two people to every 5 locks or so, comparable to the Broad.

Both canals show a profit at this stage and clearly the railway had not made any significant impact on their freight traffic by replacing them as carriers, with most of its business being in the "coaching" trade. Work in Standedge Tunnel must have had some effect on the through traffic on the Narrow Canal but it is difficult to tell how much from Chadwick's account. He does mention that, in the Summer of 1846, work was mainly on the shafts and approach cuttings, but from the fact that the railway tunnel was to be completed by January 1849, there must have been some effect in this period from the 40 boats mentioned as being engaged in moving spoil out of the tunnel. However, the lack of any alternative would certainly not have given the Company the luxury of closing the canal tunnel as happened with the building of the final tunnel in the 1890s.

New Leaflets for Society

2009-05-31T09:16:00.000-07:00

A new leaflet has been produced by the Huddersfield Canal Society, promoting the canal.

The leaflet opens out to an A3 double-sided map showing the main features of the canal along with interesting and useful information.

Special thanks to Roger Platt and his colleagues at Tameside who have worked with the Society to finalise the design and print of this new leaflet which will be distributed to tourism outlets throughout the north of England.

Anyone who would like a supply of leaflets should contact the Society (contact information on Home Page).

Forty Years at Standedge!

2008-09-23T08:25:00.000-07:00

On 23 September, Mr Fred Carter celebrated 40 years working with BW on the Huddersfield Narrow Canal.

Huddersfield Canal Society presented Fred with a handwritten citation along with honorary life membership of the Society to mark his 40th Anniversary of working on the Huddersfield Narrow. It was presented to him by Ronnie Rose, a long standing member of the Society who has come to know Fred very well over the years.

Fred, a former textile worker and keen motorcyclist found his mode of transport ideally suited him for a job at BW. 40 years ago they were looking for someone to keep an eye on the Canal and the company 'car' happened to be a motorcycle! After several years on the Canal, Fred moved on to monitoring the Standedge reservoirs.

Fred is now often found steering the passenger boat or acting as Tunnel guide. His genial manner combines with his extensive knowledge off the tunnel to guarantee an interesting journey!

Recently, Fred played part in the trials at Standedge Tunnel that have been carried out to test whether boats can pass through the Tunnel under their own power. He has made over a thousand passages through the tunnel and knows every bit of it. "I'm used to the dark, they won't let me drive boats in the daylight now!" he laughed.

The photo shows the citation that was presented to Fred Carter by the Huddersfield Canal Society.

[Martin Clark]

Scales Tipped Again at Mossley Docks

2008-06-21T08:33:00.000-07:00

Following my story about the massive bream caught near Waggon Road bridge 91, known by some as Mossley Docks, I witnessed the landing of another, rather large, such fish on Sunday 25th May. John Gibson, who lives in Mossley, was casting his line just in front of our temporary mooring outside our workshop and managed to hook the aquatic creature he is shown holding.

He asked me if I would take a photograph on his mobile telephone of him holding the bream and since John had helped me with a little job earlier in the day, it was a fitting thank you to oblige. No keep net being available, it was released back into the canal immediately after.

The weight of the bream was estimated at 2 - 3 lb., and it bears out the reputation of this section of our canal as being a favourite spot for large fish.

John's dad, Stephen, likes to fish for pike near here and the two other pictures are of pike caught within feet of where our boat is now, one from the towpath and one from the offside bank. Fearsome predators by all accounts, I am told they even take ducklings given the chance.

John says he fishes at this spot most weekends, alternating with the Diggle area, although I have no feedback of the success at that venue.

[Alwyn Ogborn]

Canal's Cilly Season

2008-06-11T08:40:00.000-07:00

Lock gates maintain a water-tight seal by fitting very closely to the shaped stone work along their hinge line or 'heel' and their bottom edges against wooden blocks bolted to the lock structure forming a 'cill'.

The position of the cill is often marked in paint to warn boaters to keep clear when descending a chamber; avoiding the risk of the stern being caught on the cill.

Recently, at the tailgate of Lock 13W, the bolts securing one of the cill timbers came loose and as the lock filled, pressure of water under gate forced the cill block up and washed it several metres downstream.

The first photo shows the position of the missing wooden block from the lower cill.

The block was retrieved and can be seen propped against the stop planks which form a temporary dam, allowing the chamber to be drained and repairs to take place.

At Lock 17W, the top gate seal is made by thin piece of wood fixed to larger wooden block.

Recently, a boat left the lock while the pound above was low and with limited freeboard, accidentally caught the cill, breaking the thinner piece of wood (see photo, right), thus compromising the seal.

Consequently the lock chamber would not empty easily (with water gushing under the gate) and more seriously, a boat on its descent would be in danger of being swamped.

A similar problem happened with the upper cill of Lock 20E near Slaithwaite, also in June. All of these problems led to stoppages until the repairs were carried out by British Waterways staff.

[Martin Clark]

"CBW" Stones - A Theory

2007-12-22T08:49:00.000-08:00

This is an attempt to explain the "CBW" stones by linking together some pieces of circumstantial evidence and a bit of history.

I was intrigued having read the article in Pennine Link, and having a copy of the Act, I decided to look at the reference of 11th. May 1837 to stones being set up.

This proved to be a red herring as the Act clearly refers to the setting-up of milestones and this would appear to be one of a number of cases of the Canal Company, in its early days, neglecting to carry out its obligations, presumably to save money.

What caught my attention was a couple of sections in the Act giving the Company toll-free access to the warehouses on Sir John Ramsden's navigation and even the right to maintain that section of canal should he fail to do so.

Perhaps this might go some way towards explaining why the (now disappeared) stones on the Broad Canal existed. Then it occurred to me that, with those at Lock 1E, the stones seemed to define the limits of the warehouse area - the missing one I recall near the old coal hoppers was at the side of a gate.

Thinking about the other stones, it would appear that most of them bear a relationship to former wharf or warehouse sites and this might go some way to explain why they seem to be in groups with long stretches of the Canal having none at all:-
CBW stone near Lock 1e

The next one west from Aspley is just below the old Lock 3E, where there was formerly a large Canal Company warehouse. Any "pair" to it will have disappeared under Sellers.

The two at Milnsbridge are either side of the old wharf area and the Factory Lane access. We need to be careful about the one at Lock 9E as it is in a wall that was rebuilt by one of the Community Programme schemes, as witness the pvc drains in it. This probably explains the stone's position at the bottom of the wall - being "a nice big bit", they probably used it as a foundation! However, I doubt that it has moved far along the canal as they tended to use as much material from the site as possible.

Those near Lock 15W may well be an old wharf site, adjacent to the main road between Mossley and Greenfield, though again the central one of these can't be guaranteed as it is located in a later, brick, wall.

Alwyn Ogborn's yard is part of the old "Mossley Docks" area. Sadly there is not a lot of original walling still standing around here, so this could be the only stone surviving at this site.

Grove Road is a known wharf and the stone clearly marks the eastern end of the wharf - again any "pair" to this stone will have vanished when the canal around Lock 8W was infilled or when BW rebuilt the old coal yard as their depot.

If my theory is correct, it is possible to speculate on where there may have been others. Ignoring probable private or minor wharves; Slaithwaite (again probably lost when the canal was infilled), Marsden (probably either side of Warehouse Hill, given what we now know about the history of Tunnel End warehouse?), Woolroad (one near the old drydock below Lock 25W and another disappeared in the former infilled section?), at least one more at Mossley, and a couple around Lock 1W and the former warehouse there would be my suggestions.

This "wharf" theory does require a few stones to have disappeared, but nothing like the number that would be implied by them being boundary posts, and it is possible to explain why several of them might have gone.

So what were they for? One of the more colourful bits of local history concerns the "Slawit Moonrakers", who were supposed to have used their moonraking to cover up the recovery of smuggled goods from the canal. This supposedly happened soon after the opening of the Canal, 1802 being the only suggested date I have found.

If this kind of thing was as regular as suggested by John Sugden in his "Slaithwaite Notes", then the Company would have needed to limit where such cargo could lawfully be unloaded - could the "CW" be "Company Wharf" or even "Customs Wharf"?

I prefer this to the "Canal Wall" theory, which always seemed to be an exercise in stating the obvious - surely they would have used "HC", "HCCo" or something similar? If the Company later gained "Bonded Warehouse" status for some of its wharves, could this explain the added "B"?.

[Trevor Ellis]

Standedge Tunnel transit

2007-12-21T08:56:00.000-08:00

Keith Noble writes about possible solutions to the problems of Standedge Tunnel.

Thorough and regular readers of Pennine Link will have noted that the Society has been campaigning for a relaxation in the regime in force for boats requiring passage through Standedge Tunnel.

The artificial constraints put on traversing the Narrow Canal, limit the number of boats using it both directly and indirectly. If too few boats are seen using the canal, restoration will be perceived to have failed. If so that would be bitterly disappointing to those who strove for a quarter of a century to bring the canal back to life. It would also be to the detriment of future restorations if the Narrow were to be cited as an adverse precedent.

Quite apart from the embuggerance of arranging a passage through Standedge, this year, BW, reacting to Government imposed budget cuts, have limited passages to two days a week. No more that four boats at a time have been allowed in each direction. That means a maximum of 16 boats passing over the summit each week. Previously eight boats at a time have been taken through but it is assumed that this year's reduction arose because the batteries in the tugs were proving unreliable. New batteries have now been installed so hopefully more boats will be accommodated in 2008 even if the established regime persists.

Even before the budget cuts your Council was concerned about the applied constraints and the announcement of cuts presented an opportunity to put a paper to BW suggesting a relaxation of the present regime for managing the use of the tunnel. The paper is summarized as follows:-

The present method of operation consumes excessive manpower and cash. This diverts BW's already scarce resources away from maintenance of the canal. The restricted times of opening and of passage through the flights either side of the tunnel are highly inconvenient to boat users. This, added to the reputation of the Narrow as a difficult canal to navigate, acts as a powerful deterrent to boaters. This is against the interests of BW, who need more traffic to justify the expense of maintaining the canal.

This paper suggests that the present operating method is based on an over-cautious safety case.

Other ways of operating the tunnel are recommended for further study :-
1. Allow boats to pass through the tunnel under their own power.
2. As 1. but with forced ventilation.
3. As 1. but with gas detection and gas masks for use in emergencies.
4. Allow boaters to take their own boats through the tunnel but powered by small electric tugs.

Improvements to the water supply without unduly limiting boat movements should be considered :-
1. Allow boats to use of Diggle and Marsden flights more frequently than at present. This might necessitate addressing lock leakage.
2. Back pump to summit pound from Lock 33E.
3. Tap into available unused water supply at Lock 24W and back pump to summit pound.

In all cases, it is recommended that emergency communications equipment be provided.

Last April, BW called a meeting of representatives from a number of organisations, the canal society, IWA, boat clubs, hire businesses and individuals to discuss operation of the tunnel and HCS' paper was tabled at the meeting. BW agreed to review the whole method of operating. This would entail carrying out atmospheric tests on the restored tunnel. Tests had been carried out in the early 1990s when the tunnel was partly blocked by roof falls.

A study then concluded that there would be ventilation problems but no new tests had been undertaken to verify the position since the tunnel was restored.

In October BW took the representatives through the tunnel and there are now grounds for optimism that the whole operation will be improved. Consultants have undertaken new atmospheric tests with a diesel powered boat. The initial results are very encouraging but further tests will have to be undertaken using boats with older engines, taking more than one through at a time and in varying wind conditions.

No immediate changes are expected for 2008, but in the longer term, watch this space!

Greenfield Marina

2007-12-01T08:50:00.000-08:00

Here is the latest photo of progress on the construction of Frenches Marina at Greenfield.

Click on the photo to see a larger version. (Use the back button to return here.)

Developing Sellers Engineering site

2007-11-21T09:09:00.000-08:00

Society President, David Sumner considers the significance of developing the Sellers Engineers site in Huddersfield and Paul Barber, Managing Director of the developer Strategic Sites, explains how his company's latest project could have a major impact on the Huddersfield Narrow Canal.

I first met Paul when he was with English Partnerships (EP) then Yorkshire Forward. Together with EP Northwest, they kick-started our restoration with derelict land grant monies. This regional aid followed the job creation programmes and preceded the millennium grants and the associated Regional Support, which culminated in the reopening in 2001

We were disappointed when the Huddersfield Town Centre scheme "buried" the canal, unlike that at Stalybridge, and we always hoped that one day a redevelopment opportunity would open up the canal again. It is particularly appropriate that a canal enthusiast should help regenerate Huddersfield and one in the private sector.

I travel the Transpennine rail route to Leeds regularly. Incidentally, Stalybridge to Huddersfield is timed at around 20 minutes compared with my trip by boat with Derek Cochrane and Stewart Sim in 2002 in 36 hours. I have noted more extensive residential redevelopment alongside the canal in Mossley. I wonder how much added value has gone into the canal corridor since 2001? Does HM Treasury look at the financial benefits through direct investment and the economic multiplier when it considers funding to British Waterways?

If we want to see further investment in new canal schemes (and even the maintenance of existing canals) I urge all members to lobby MPs and take the opportunity of reminding everyone of the benefits of our system of inland waterways.

Paul writes:
"Canal restoration seems to be a recurring theme in my life. During the 1980's I was Treasurer of the Barnsley Canal Group until my day job took me away from Yorkshire for a few years. In 1994, I returned to the county as Regional Director of English Partnerships in Yorkshire and in that role I approved the necessary matching investment to help re-open the Huddersfield Narrow Canal.

I now run a private sector property development company and fate has resulted in me returning to the Huddersfield Narrow Canal.

Strategic Sites has been appointed as lead developer of the Sellers Engineers site on Chapel Hill, Huddersfield. As readers will be aware, whilst the canal passes through this site it does so in a rather unattractive concrete tunnel. This is due to the need for Sellers to run their business at ground floor level which would be impossible if the canal was in open water.

A deal has now been agreed for Sellers to move off the site and into new factory premises elsewhere in the town. As part of plans to redevelop the site, Strategic Sites is working with Kirklees Council and British Waterways to remove the lid from the concrete tunnel and raise the water level so that the canal will again be open for all to see. As well as being open to boaters, the site will also be re-opened to walkers, avoiding the current detour via Manchester Road.

The whole Sellers site, and an adjoining area of land owned by the Council, will be redeveloped as homes, offices, cafes and teaching facilities. Work on the Waterfront Quarter project is due to start next year and completed by 2011. Discussions will shortly take place with British Waterways about exactly how and when the lid on the canal will be removed and the water level increased.

Further details will be provided as soon as decisions are reached on the detailed programme."

(Plan and Artist's Impressions courtesy of Strategic Sites)