Registered Charity No. 702429

LICHFIELD CANAL - An Overview

The Lichfield Canal covers a distance of just over 7 miles from Ogley Junction on the Birmingham Canal Navigations (BCN) to Huddlesford Junction on the Coventry Canal. Built between 1794 and 1797 as the Ogley Locks Section of the Wyrley and Essington Canal, the right to navigation was extinguished by Act of Parliament in 1954 and much of the canal was subsequently infilled.

For more history of the Wyrley & Essington Canal Click here

The restoration route is mostly original, but contains four diversions in order to avoid developments since abandonment.

We reproduce here the overall project plan of the Lichfield Canal, based on a series of articles published in the Trust's magazine "Cut Both Ways" between Summer 1998 and Autumn 2000 by John Horton, with thanks to Jan Horton, Stephen Pitt, Phil Sharpe and Bob Williams for up-dating and revisions.

Part 1. THE SITES

Click on the pink boxes on the map to see photos of those sites

Fosseway Lane In order to start restoration one needs basic requirements such as labour and materials, achievable with volunteers and donations/grants. However, more fundamental are possession of the site and planning permission. Thus it was, starting with nothing in 1990, that the Trust were grateful when Lichfield District Council agreed to allow us to begin work on the only site available at that time. It is about half a mile long and situated almost exactly half way from Ogley to Huddlesford at Fosseway Lane. About one third of it had been filled in, including Lock 18, and the remainder drained dry and growing scrub. We have cut down the scrub, excavated the lock chamber and repaired it, including the weir and by-wash, and thanks to the presence of a land drain it now contains some water. Financial assistance from Lichfield District Council Heritage Fund and the Lichfield Conduit Lands Trust has assisted the work and the provision of a stile and picnic table for recreational use. We have also started to re-establish the towpath along part of the bottom length as a footpath. Further work here, other than maintenance, was delayed for some years pending settlement of a legal issue, which has now been resolved. Meanwhile, restoration work has continued elsewhere.

Lock 18, excavated and repaired (Photo by Bob Williams)

Darnford Lane
Our second site was at Darnford Lane and actually comprises two sites joined together. The further part is some 250 yards of original canal which had been partly levelled and led to the partly demolished Lock 29. This was purchased in 1995 by Lichfield District Council, financed by a Derelict Land Grant and licensed to the Trust. The nearer part is about 400 yards long and purchased by the Trust in 1994, financed by a loan from The Inland Waterways Association (IWA).

The Trust engaged contractors to excavate a new channel along "our" part, joining into the original line with a new winding hole below Lock 29. The new channel is at the lower level necessary to pass under Darnford Lane without the original humpback bridge.

In 1996, aided by finance from the Manifold Trust and labour from Waterway Recovery Group (WRG), a new concrete inverted siphon culvert was installed to take the Darnford Brook under the canal. Sections of the old cast iron culvert (which was fully silted up) were removed and donated to the Waterways Museum at Gloucester. Vehicle access is now available beyond the brook, which has allowed us to erect a lift bridge. The purpose of the lift bridge is to transfer the towpath over to the Lichfield side avoiding the abandoned lock and new "nature reserve" where deciduous trees have been planted. Over 250 metres of sponsored piling have now been installed at this site and a 50 metre trial section has been lined with bentonite matting and re-watered (see Part 8). Land on both sides of the canal has now been made into golf courses, so we are very fortunate to have gained possession of this strip when we did.

Darnford Lane 1999; piling being installed by WRG		Darnford Lane 2001; a trial section in water, lift bridge in background
(Photos by Jan Horton)

Tamworth Road
Our third work site lies midway between the other two sites and consists of two lock sites and sections of canal adjacent to the Tamworth Road. This land is owned by the Lichfield City Council and has the Darwin Walk on part of it.

However, with the co-operation of The Darwin Walk Trust and the Lichfield District Council which is the planning authority, the Lichfield City Council has licensed the Trust to excavate and refurbish these locks. Locks 25 and 26 which had been half demolished have both now been largely rebuilt, apart from removal of the land drain, a considerable achievement by our volunteers. Financial assistance has come from IWA, Lichfield Conduit Lands Trust, Lichfield City Council, and commercial sponsors. The site is very much in the public eye and a notice board has been installed there, which is regularly updated. On completion of Lock 25, a ceremony was held when the Burgomaster of Limburg (Lichfield's twin town in Germany) assisted by the Mayor of Lichfield and the Chairman of Lichfield District Council named it "Millennium Lock". In 2001 a Local Heritage Initiative grant enabled us to rebuild a 50 metre section of the towpath wall above Lock 25.

Photo by Bob Williams		Photo by Jan Horton
Rebuilding, surfacing and landscaping the towpath at Tamworth Road has been funded by a Local Heritage Initiative Grant awarded by the Countryside Agency.

Subsequently the Council granted a 50-year lease on their land from the A38 to Cricket Lane. Financial assistance has come from IWA, Lichfield Conduit Lands Trust, Lichfield City Council, and commercial sponsors. The site is very much in the public eye and a notice board has been installed there, which is regularly updated.

Waterway Recovery Group working at Tamworth Road February 2007 (Photo by Bob Williams)

Looking to the future: Artistic impression of completed Tamworth Road (Bob Williams)

The future of Lock 24, which was excavated for exploration, has been considered. Having assessed its condition and taken measurements, it was decided to fill it in and carry out low level landscaping. A set of old lock gates donated by British Waterways has been installed for the time being. This has improved the appearance of the area and ensured a good through route for walkers. The infill will also conserve the brickwork and limit the need for maintenance work. In due time the future of Lock 24 will be determined when there is a clearer idea on how the canal will achieve a crossing of Cricket Lane.

For more photos of Tamworth Road sites Click here

Other relevant sites include Ogley Junction where there is a canal basin between the junction and Lock 1. The Huddlesford Arm, which is owned by British Waterways and leased to the Lichfield Cruising Club, runs from Huddlesford Junction to Cappers Lane and is fully navigable.

Whilst we would like to complete restoration of one section, the acquisition of further sites, as and when opportunities arise, is also a high priority at this stage. Whilst meanwhile continuing to beaver away as and when volunteers and resources permit, we are particularly grateful to Waterway Recovery Group and our own volunteers for all their effort and the progress which has been made.

Part 2. THE TRACK

The Wyrley and Essington Canal is described in "Inland Navigation - or Select Plans of the several Navigable Canals throughout Britain, accompanied by abstracts of the different Acts of Parliament relating to them" by John Cary, published in November 1795. This tells that the canal was twenty-eight feet wide at top water and sixteen feet at the bottom and four and a half feet deep - the sloping sides being intended to prevent erosion. The Act of Parliament of 1794 permitted the Canal Company to buy land up to twenty-six yards wide on which to construct the canal, allowing for towpaths, embankments, sides of cuttings etc.

The purpose of its construction was of course the carriage of goods from wharf to wharf without mooring between, so whilst the wharves would have been of brick construction there seems little evidence that the general run of the canal was originally edged on either the offside or the towpath side. Certainly much of the brickwork recently uncovered around the wing walls of locks incorporated iron rubbing strakes and is readily identifiable with the refurbishment which took place in the 1840 period after amalgamation of the W & E with the BCN and in the style of the newer Rushall Canal.

It is not surprising therefore that when we excavated the pound below Lock 29 at Darnford we found no sign of brickwork even on the towpath side. At Fosseway there are the remains of a continuous wall on the towpath side from Lock 18 to Lock 19. It is built of bricks which are more red than orange and which we would guess to be more likely 1840's than 1797.

Be that as it may, the towpath width seems to have been about 10 feet, generally bordered by a hawthorn hedge although when in a cutting or on an embankment the hedge would have followed the boundary of the land.

Modern boaters like the facility to moor anywhere along the cut so at Darnford we have decided to pile the whole of the length on the towpath side and to leave the offside as a slope right up to the bank. The new lining will be a Bentonite Clay membrane protected by sand and a dry mix filled webbing matrix on the sloping side. The piling joints were sealed with a Butyl membrane bedded in clay. The new towpath is surfaced in stone crushed `20mm to dust` on a geo-textile of 2 metres width with the borders grassed.

Part 3. THE BRIDGES

Watery Lane Bridge
Starting from Huddlesford Junction this is the first bridge, being located halfway along the present arm. It is an original brick structure of traditional design, recently repaired by BW. It carries a field access and a foot path.

(Phil Sharpe)

(Chris Haslewood)

Cappers Bridge
Removed when the canal was abandoned. The Trust commissioned the design and construction of a replacement by Staffordshire County Council, part financed by a European Regional Development Fund grant. Construction took place between October 2005 and March 2006. Modern highway design criteria combined with the fact that the water level is tied to the Coventry Canal and also the slope of the land on the Whittington side meant that extensive re-grading of the road was involved, adding to the cost.

Approved design for Cappers Bridge		Cappers Bridge under construction (Bob Williams)
Cappers Bridge completed (Harry Arnold)		Open to traffic, March 31st 2006 (Phil Sharpe)

Darnford Lift Bridge
Installed by the Trust, this steel lift bridge came originally from the Peak Forest Canal, via the Chesterfield Canal! Its refurbishment and construction of the abutments was largely done by volunteer labour during 1997-1998 with funding from Staffordshire Environment Fund.

(Chris Haslewood)

(Bobbie Battisson)

Darnford Lane Bridge
Originally a humpback structure now demolished. Our new lower level channel excavation is designed to suit a replacement bridge with a flat deck.

A38 and A51 Tamworth Road Bridges
Two new culverts will be required to take the canal and towpath under these roads. The civil engineering firm Trafalgar House produced a range of options for these which are required because both roads have been built since the canal was abandoned. These schemes were included within our cost/benefits study in 1993 when the combined cost was estimated at £1.4m and would constitute one of the most expensive construction sites on the canal.

Freeford Farm Bridge
The foundations of this accommodation bridge, long since demolished were uncovered when the Trust excavated the tail of Lock 25. It is intended to build a new pedestrian bridge here in connection with the Darwin Walk.

Cricket Lane Bridge
A similar situation to Darnford Lane bridge; it may be necessary to lower the channel and replace Lock 24 on the other side of the road, unless Cricket Lane can in future be closed as a through road with just a pedestrian bridge.

St. Johns Bridge
Rebuilt in the 1930's, this is still in use as a pedestrian underpass beneath London Road.

St.Johns Bridge (Fullwood Productions)

Railway Bridge
A replacement will be required for the existing bridge which is lost within the concrete works. It will have to be thrust-bored under the railway embankment on a new alignment to the south of Shortbutts Lane.

Birmingham Road and Claypit Lane Bridges
Two new bridges will be needed where the diverted canal line is planned to follow to the south of the Lichfield Southern Bypass. Construction of the bypass began in 2006 and the Trust paid £490,000 to Staffordshire County Council for the inclusion of a culvert to take the canal beneath a new roundabout connecting Birmingham Road with the bypass.

Fosseway Lane Bridge
Demolished after abandonment it will need to be rebuilt on a slightly amended road alignment.

Wall Lane Bridge
The canal passed under Wall Lane in a deep cutting, since in-filled. It is not known if the bridge was destroyed or merely in-filled.

Shaws Bridge
An accommodation bridge within the grounds of Pipe Place Farm which has been demolished.

A461 Pipehill Bridge
Undistinguished from above, this early Victorian structure comprises two arches and a flat deck span taking both the canal and the railway under the road. Viewed from below it is a most impressive feature and in good condition.

Pipe Hill Bridge, April 2003. Photo by Phil Sharpe

Three more views of Pipe Hill Bridge (Fullwood Productions)

Coppice Lane Bridge
Demolished after abandonment. It will now need to be replaced.

A461 Muckley Corner Bridge
A twin of St. Johns bridge except the channel on either side has been in-filled. Objections by the Trust to proposals to in-fill underneath the bridge have been upheld.

Muckley Corner Bridge (Fullwood Productions)

A5 Watling Street Bridge
This was lost when the road was re-constructed as a dual carriageway. Discussions with the Department of Transport in 1993 suggested that if construction were to take place after the BNRR (M6 Toll) was in operation, then the consequent reduction in A5 traffic would allow the culvert to be put in by the "cut and cover" method which would be much cheaper than "thrust boring".

A461 Boat Bridge
Also lost when the road was reconstructed, however this road has been reconstructed once again to allow the M6 Toll to cross under it in Crane Brook Valley just to the south. It was hoped that this would present an opportunity for a new culvert to be installed during the road alterations. Regrettably, it has not been possible to raise the money in time. Road works are now completed and the canal crossing will need to be constructed at some time in the future.

The Lichfield Canal Aqueduct
This is a new structure replacing the embankment where the new M6 Toll motorway crosses the canal line. The design was accepted but whereas the Public Inquiry Inspector recommended that the road promoters should pay for the whole cost for this replacement structure, the Secretary of State ruled that they would pay for only the foundations. Funding for the super-structure had to be raised by the Trust. Thanks to a most generous grant of £250,000 from The Manifold Trust and many donations to the David Suchet Appeal the required sum of £450,000.00 was raised in time and the Highways Agency issued a Variation Order instructing Midland Expressway Limited to build supporting columns and abutments. The pre-fabricated steel trough made by Rowecord Engineering Ltd of South Wales was craned into position on 16th August 2003. The new motorway opened to traffic in December 2003

For more about the aqueduct Click here

Ogley Junction Footbridge
An existing cast iron bridge by Horseley Ironworks.

Ogley Junction with 1829 Horseley iron bridge,
(David Williams)

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