Rochdale Canal

legend Link to Calder & Hebble Locks 1-2 Sowerby Bridge Tuel Lane Tunnel Lock 3-4 Tuel Lane Tower Hill Nr Mount Street Hollins Mill Lane Rossgrove Lane Tenterfields Victoria Terrace Luddenden Foot Station Road Rockcliffe West Lock 5 Brearley Lower Lock 6 Brearley Upper Brearley Lane Moderna Way A646 Midgley Road Westfield Terrace Lock7 Broadbottom A646 Lock 8 Mayroyd Mill Station Road, Hebden Bridge Lock 9 Hebden Aquaduct Hebble End Lock 10 Lock 11 Stubbing Brink Caldervale Line Lock 12 Pennine way Lock 13 Burnt Acres Lane Stoodley Glen Lock 14 Stoodley Lane Shaw Wood Road Lock 15 Lock 16 Haugh Road Woodhouse Road Lock 17 Key Syke Lane Stack Hills Road Lock 18 A6033 Todmorden Lock 19 Dobroyd Road Lock 20 Lock 21 Caldervale Line Lock 22 Lock 23 A681 Bacup Road Lock 24 Caldervale Line A6033 Lock 25 Lock 26 Alma Road Lock 27 Hollins Road Saint Peter's Gate Locks 28-30 Lock 31 Deanroyd Road Lock 32 Bottomley Road Lock 33 Locks 34-35 Lock 36 Lock 37 Chelburn Locks 38-40 Timbercliffe Locks 41-44 Sladen Lock 45 Lightowlers Lane Locks 46-47 A58 Halifax Road Ealees Road Lock 48 B6275 Heald Lane Brown Lodge Smithy Bridge Road Little Clegg Road Clegg Hall Road Belfield Mill Lane Belfield Lane A640 Milnrow Road Oldham Loop Burnside Road A664 Kingsway Moss Bridge Road Rochdale Wharf Lock 49 Calverdale Railway Line Bedford Street Mills arm Lock 50 Durham Street A671 Rochdale Branch Junction Milkstone Road Dicken Green Lane Sandbrook Park A664 Edinburgh Way Gorrels Way Heywood Wharf Bow Street Green Lane Lock 51 Canal Street A664 Castleton Hope Street Lock 52 Calverdale Railway Line Montrose Street Old (blocked) route M62 Heywood Branch Junction New Lock 53 Earl Street Old (blocked) route Lock 54 Lock 55 A664 Slattocks Locks 56-58 Whitegates Road Calverdale Railway Line Locks 59-60 Boarshaw Lane Scowcroft Lock 61 Calverdale Railway Line Chadderton Fold Coney Green Lock 62 Walk Mill Lock 63 Irk Aqueduct A669 Mills Hill Bridge Laurel Avenue Green Hill Kay Lane Lock 64 Drummer Hill Branch Grimshaw Lane Lift Bridge The Causeway A671 M60 and Semple Way A6104 Hollinwood Avenue Parkfield Road North Oldham Loop railway Lock 65 George Street A62 Oldham Road Sisson St/Failsworth new Bridge Ashton Road West Lock 66 Ridgefield Street Lock 67 Poplar Street Lock 68 Dob Brook Close Footbridge Droylsden Road Old Church Street Mitchell Street Footbridge Newton Heath Locks 70-73 10 Acres Lane Locks 74-75 Grimshaw Lane Lock 76 Huddersfield Line Railway Anthony Lock 77 Hulme Hall Lane A6010 Lock 78 Varley Street Locks 79-81 Whalley Street Butler Street Rodney Street Footbridge Redhill Bridge Lock 82 A665 Great Ancoats Street Nr Tariff Street Brownsfield Lock 83 Tariff Street Brewer Street Footbridge Junction with Ashton Canal Dale Street Lock 84 Dale Street Piccadilly Lock 85 Aytoun Street Manchester Metrolink Minshull Street Chorlton Street Lock 86 Chorlton Street Sackville Street Nr Canal Street Lock 87 Princess Street Lock 88 Oxford Street Junction with M&Sj canal Tib Lock 89 Albion Street Albion Mills Lock 90 Tunnel Lock 91 A56 Deansgate Link to Bridgewater Arm Liverpool-Manchester railway Castlefield Duke's Lock 92 Castle Street Link to Bridgewater Canal

The Rochdale Canal is a navigable "broad" canal in the North of England, part of the connected system of the Canals of Great Britain. The Calder and Hebble Navigation is a Broad (ie with 14-foot wide locks and bridgeholes inland Waterway in West Yorkshire, England, which has remained Tuel Lane Lock is a Canal Lock, situated on the Rochdale Canal in Sowerby Bridge. Luddendenfoot Railway Station served the village of Luddendenfoot in West Yorkshire, until closure in 1962 List of A roads beginning with 6 in Great Britain starting east of the A6 and A7 roads and west of the A1. List of A roads beginning with 6 in Great Britain starting east of the A6 and A7 roads and west of the A1. The A58 is a major Road in northern England that runs between Prescot, Merseyside and Wetherby, West Yorkshire The A640 is a road in England which runs between Rochdale in Greater Manchester and Huddersfield in West Yorkshire. Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England It lies amongst the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers Irk and Medlock List of A roads beginning with 6 in Great Britain starting east of the A6 and A7 roads and west of the A1. The Caldervale Line is a railway route in Northern England between the cities of Leeds and Manchester as well as the seaside resort of Blackpool The A671 is a road in the North West of England, that runs between Oldham, Greater Manchester and Worston, near Clitheroe The Rochdale Branch Canal was a branch of the Rochdale Canal which led close to Rochdale Town Centre List of A roads beginning with 6 in Great Britain starting east of the A6 and A7 roads and west of the A1. The Caldervale Line is a railway route in Northern England between the cities of Leeds and Manchester as well as the seaside resort of Blackpool The M62 motorway is a west&ndasheast trans-Pennine Motorway in northern England, connecting the cities of Liverpool and Hull The Heywood Branch Canal was a branch of the Rochdale Canal from Castleton which led to Heywood. The Caldervale Line is a railway route in Northern England between the cities of Leeds and Manchester as well as the seaside resort of Blackpool The Caldervale Line is a railway route in Northern England between the cities of Leeds and Manchester as well as the seaside resort of Blackpool The M60 motorway is an orbital Motorway circling Greater Manchester, a Metropolitan county in North West England. The Manchester to Rochdale via Oldham line or Oldham Loop Line is a local railway route in Greater Manchester, England used by trains that run from Manchester The Huddersfield Line is the name given to one of the busiest rail services on the West Yorkshire MetroTrain network in northern England. The Ashton Canal is a Canal built in Greater Manchester in Northern England. Manchester Metro redirects here - for the Manchester Metroshuttle free bus routes see Metroshuttle or First Manchester Manchester Metrolink The Manchester and Salford Junction Canal was a Canal in the city of Manchester. Deansgate is a main road (the A56) through the city centre of Manchester, England. There are two Liverpool to Manchester Lines between the cities of Liverpool and Manchester in the north-west of England. The Bridgewater Canal is a Canal in North West England, connecting Runcorn, Manchester, and Leigh. Canals are artificial channels for water There are two types of canals water conveyance canals which are used for the conveyance and delivery of water and Waterways England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland The "Rochdale" in its name refers to the town of Rochdale, Greater Manchester, through which the canal passes. Rochdale is a large Market town in Greater Manchester, England Greater Manchester is a Metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2

The "Rochdale" is a Broad canal because its bridges and locks are wide enough to allow vessels of 14ft width. A lock is a device for raising and lowering boats between stretches of water of different levels on river and canal Waterways. The canal runs for 32 miles (51 kilometres) across the Pennines from the Bridgewater Canal at Castlefield Basin in Manchester to join the Calder and Hebble Navigation at Sowerby Bridge in West Yorkshire. The Pennines are a low-rising Mountain range in Northern England and southern Scotland. The Bridgewater Canal is a Canal in North West England, connecting Runcorn, Manchester, and Leigh. Or see Castlefields. Castlefield is an Inner city area of Manchester, in North West England. The Calder and Hebble Navigation is a Broad (ie with 14-foot wide locks and bridgeholes inland Waterway in West Yorkshire, England, which has remained Sowerby Bridge is a Market town that lies within the Upper Calder Valley in the district of Calderdale in the County of West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a Metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of

As originally built, the canal had 92 locks. Whilst the traditional lock numbering has been retained on all restored locks, and on all the relocated locks, the canal now has only 91 locks. The former locks 3 & 4 have been replaced with a single deep lock (Tuel Lane Lock), which is numbered as 3/4

History

A Lock on the Rochdale Canal with water flowing over the gate due to the lack of a side channel. Tuel Lane Lock is a Canal Lock, situated on the Rochdale Canal in Sowerby Bridge.

The Rochdale Canal was conceived in 1776, when a group of 48 eminent men from Rochdale raised £237 and commissioned James Brindley to conduct a survey of possible routes between Sowerby Bridge and Manchester. James Brindley (1716 &ndash 30 September 1772) was an English Engineer. ^[1] He proposed a route similar to that built, and another more expensive route via Bury. ^[2] Further progress was not made until 1791, when John Rennie was asked to make a new survey in June, and two months later to make surveys for branches to Rochdale, Oldham and to some limeworks near Todmorden. The first attempt to obtain an Act of Parliament was made in 1792, but was opposed by millers, concerned about water supply,^[2] and it was not until 4 April 1794 that an act was obtained which created the Rochdale Canal Company and authorised the construction of the canal. An Act of Parliament is a Law enacted as Primary legislation by a national or sub-national Parliament. ^[3] Further acts of parliament were obtained in 1800, 1804 and 1806, the main purpose of which was to raise additional finance. ^[3]

The canal was opened up in stages, as it was completed, with the Rochdale Branch being the first in 1798, further sections in 1799, and the bottom nine locks opening in 1800, so that boats from the Ashton Canal could reach Manchester. The Ashton Canal is a Canal built in Greater Manchester in Northern England. ^[4] Officially, the canal opened in 1804, but construction work continued for another three years. ^[2] A 1. 5 mile (2. 4km) branch from Heywood to Castleton was opened in 1834. ^[4]

Because of its width, it was more successful than the Huddersfield Narrow Canal and became the main highway of commerce between Lancashire & Yorkshire. The Huddersfield Narrow Canal is an inland Waterway in northern England Cotton, wool, coal, limestone, timber, salt and general merchandise were transported. ^[3] In 1890 the canal company had 2,000 barges and traffic reached 700,000 tons/year, the equivalent of 50 barges a day^[5]. But this traffic soon faced competition from the Manchester and Leeds Railway (1841). The Manchester and Leeds Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom which opened in 1839 connecting Manchester with Leeds via the North By cutting tolls the canal managed to maintain business and for a time remained profitable but by the start of the 20th century it was in trouble. In 1923 the canal's reservoirs were sold to the Oldham and Rochdale Joint Water Board. ^[1] Most of the canal (apart from a short profitable section in Manchester linking the Bridgewater and Ashton Canals) was closed in 1952 when an act of parliament was obtained to ban public navigation^[1] (the last complete journey having taken place in 1937) and by the mid 1960s the remainder was almost unusable. The Ashton Canal is a Canal built in Greater Manchester in Northern England. Construction of the M62 motorway in the late 1960s took no account of the canal, cutting it in two. The M62 motorway is a west&ndasheast trans-Pennine Motorway in northern England, connecting the cities of Liverpool and Hull ^[1]

Restoration

With the growth in leisure boating, a campaign was mounted for its re-opening. The first section to be restored was the nine locks between the junction with the Ashton Canal and the Bridgewater Canal, as a result of the Ashton Canal reopening in 1974. ^[6] The Rochdale Canal Society was formed, and worked hard both to protect the line of the canal and to begin the process of refurbishing it, concentrating on the section from Todmorden to Sowerby Bridge. Nearly 16 miles (25. 7km) was opened in this way, with the section from Todmorden to Hebden Bridge opening in 1983, and the entire eastern section up to the summit opened by 1990. The reopened section was still isolated from the canal network. ^[7]

The next success was a re-fashioned link with the Calder and Hebble Canal (which had never closed) at Sowerby Bridge, which joined the restored section to the national network in 1996, and involves one of the candidates for the deepest lock on the British canal system (Tuel Lane Lock at nearly 20ft). Tuel Lane Lock is a Canal Lock, situated on the Rochdale Canal in Sowerby Bridge. ^[2] In 2000, the canal, which had never been nationalised, passed from the control of the Rochdale Canal Company to the Waterways Trust,^[7] and an £23. 8 million investment package was announced, with funding coming from the Millenium Commission, English Partnerships, and the councils of Oldham and Rochdale. ^[8] As restoration proceeded, boats could travel further and further west, and the restoration of the sections through Failsworth and Ancoats were a significant part of the re-development of the north Manchester districts. Failsworth is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. Ancoats is an Inner city area of Manchester, in North West England. On 1 July 2002, the restored sections joined up with the never-closed section in Manchester, thus re-opening the canal to navigation along its entire length. ^[7]

The castellated railway viaduct and locks just south of Todmorden.

Today

The Rochdale is significant for leisure boating in that it is one of the three canals which cross the Pennines and thus join north-western canals with the waterways of the North East, as well as opening the possibilities of touring various Pennine Rings (the Huddersfield Narrow Canal had reopened the year before, and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal had never closed). A canal ring is the name given to a series of Canals that make a complete loop The Leeds and Liverpool Canal is a Canal in the north of England, linking the cities of Leeds and Liverpool.

A great attraction of the Rochdale Canal for the leisure boater lies in the fact that (unlike the Leeds and Liverpool and the Huddersfield Narrow) it climbs high over the Pennine moors rather than tunnelling through them, and the boater is surrounded by scenery which is correspondingly more spectacular (with the "penalty" of having to work more locks). ^[9]

The Rochdale is at the heart of several important leisure boating routes

• In Manchester, the Rochdale Canal connects the Ashton Canal to the Bridgewater Canal, and is thus a short link in the Cheshire Ring, a one- (or better, two-) week canal ring which has been popular for 30 years. The Ashton Canal is a Canal built in Greater Manchester in Northern England. The Bridgewater Canal is a Canal in North West England, connecting Runcorn, Manchester, and Leigh. The Cheshire Ring is a popular Canal cruising circuit or Canal ring which includes six of the canals in and around Cheshire, England. A canal ring is the name given to a series of Canals that make a complete loop
• The Ashton Canal connects to the western end of the Huddersfield Narrow Canal, making the Rochdale Canal part of the South Pennine Ring. The Huddersfield Narrow Canal is an inland Waterway in northern England The South Pennine Ring is a Canal ring which crosses the Pennines between Manchester and Huddersfield.
• The Bridgewater Canal connects to the western end of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, making the Rochdale Canal part of the North Pennine Ring. The Leeds and Liverpool Canal is a Canal in the north of England, linking the cities of Leeds and Liverpool. The North Pennine Ring is a Canal ring which crosses the Pennines between Manchester and Leeds.
• The Ashton and the Bridgewater connect the Rochdale to all the canals on the west side of England, including the Lancaster Canal, Trent and Mersey Canal and Macclesfield Canal. The Lancaster Canal is a Canal in the north of England, originally planned to run from Westhoughton in Lancashire to Kendal in south The Trent and Mersey Canal is a 935 miles (150 km long Canal in the East Midlands West Midlands and North West of England The Macclesfield Canal is a Canal in east Cheshire, England. Route The canal runs from Marple Junction at Marple

East from Manchester, it crosses the Pennines via the hill towns and villages of Littleborough, Summit, Todmorden, Hebden Bridge, Mytholmroyd, and Luddendenfoot (where Bramwell Brontë was a railway booking clerk). Littleborough is a small town within the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England. Todmorden is a Market town and Civil parish, within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale, in West Yorkshire, England Hebden Bridge is a Market town within the Calderdale borough of West Yorkshire, England, eight miles (13 km west of Halifax and fifteen Mytholmroyd (ˈmaɪðəmrɔɪd is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale, in West Yorkshire, England. Luddendenfoot or Luddenden Foot is a community in Calderdale, West Yorkshire, England. Patrick Branwell Brontë (ˈbrɒntɪ 26 June 1817 &ndash 24 September 1848) was a painter and poet the only son of the Brontë Finally, at Sowerby Bridge, its connection with the Calder and Hebble gives boats access to all the north-eastern waterways including the Aire and Calder Navigation, the Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation, and the rivers Ouse and Trent (and, for boaters who wish to do a "ring", the eastern ends of the Huddersfield Narrow and Leeds/Liverpool canals). The Aire and Calder Navigation is a River and Canal system of the River Aire and the River Calder in the Metropolitan county of The Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation (S&SY is a system of navigable inland waterways ( Canals and canalised rivers in South Yorkshire and Lincolnshire The River Ouse (pronounced "ooze" is a river in North Yorkshire, England. The River Trent is one of the major rivers of England. Its source is in Staffordshire between Biddulph and Biddulph Moor.

The Rochdale has had many problems since reopening (often related to a shortage of water, because the canal's reservoirs had been sold off when the canal closed). In April 2005 the canal bank was breached between lock 60 and lock 63^[10], near the River Irk. Thousands of gallons of water surged down the river towards the nearby town of Middleton, echoing the great Middleton canal tragedy of 1927^[11]. Middleton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England. The canal re-opened in Summer 2006, but had problems throughout the season.

The high frequency of navigation restrictions (and the need to book passage through Tuel Lane lock, and across the summit pound) means that anyone planning to use the canal should consult the British Waterways website. ^[12]

See also

• Canals of Great Britain
• History of the British canal system

External links

• Rochdale Canal
• British Waterways Leisure Site
• News item about Farmer responsible for vandalised sections

References

• Pearson's Canal Companion: Pennine waters ISBN 0-9545383-4-X

Coordinates: 53°42′N 1°55′W / 53.7, -1.917