Pont-canal d'Agen | |
|---|---|
 The Agen Aqueduct | |
| Coordinates | 44°12′28″N00°36′19″E / 44.20778°N 0.60528°E |
| Carries | Canal de Garonne |
| Locale | Agen |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Masonry Arch |
| Total length | 539m |
| Width | 12.48m |
| Height | 10m |
| History | |
| Opened | 1849 |
| Location | |
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The Agen Aqueduct ((in French)Pont-canal d'Agen) is an aqueduct which carries the canal de Garonne across the Garonne. It is located in the Agen commune, in the Aquitaine region of France.
The aqueduct is a dressed stone masonry structure consisting of 23 arches, each of 20m span, which at the time of its completion was the longest navigable aqueduct in France. It has a length of 539 metres, a width of 12.48m and a canal width of 8.82m. [1]
The width of the channel is insufficient to allow boats to pass each other whilst on the aqueduct. Boats must wait for oncoming traffic to clear the aqueduct before crossing. There is a lock and a canal basin downstream, and a canal basin upstream, of the aqueduct.
The aqueduct was built entirely of stone blocks from Quercy, under the direction of the engineer Jean-Baptiste de Baudre. On 25 August 1839 Ferdinand Philippe, Duke of Orléans laid the first stone. [1] In 1841 the building of the Bordeaux to Toulouse railway interrupted work on the canal and the aqueduct was rented to farmers for use as a short cut avoiding the Bridge of Agen. The tolls however, were too high to make this idea work. On 5 May 1846 the work was ordered to resume by a vote in favour of a government act. The aqueduct finally came into service in 1849. [2]
The Garonne is a river of southwest France and northern Spain. It flows from the central Spanish Pyrenees to the Gironde estuary at the French port of Bordeaux – a length of 529 km (329 mi), of which 47 km (29 mi) is in Spain ; the total length extends to 602 km (374 mi) if one includes the Gironde estuary between the river and the sea. Its basin area is 56,000 km2 (22,000 sq mi), which increases to 84,811 km2 (32,746 sq mi) if the Dordogne River, which flows from the east and joins the Garonne at Bec d'Ambès to form the Gironde estuary, is included.
The Canal du Midi is a 240 km (150 mi) long canal in Southern France. Originally named the Canal Royal en Languedoc and renamed by French revolutionaries to Canal du Midi in 1789, the canal is considered one of the greatest construction works of the 17th century.
The Pont du Gard is an ancient Roman aqueduct bridge built in the first century AD to carry water over 50 km (31 mi) to the Roman colony of Nemausus (Nîmes). It crosses the river Gardon near the town of Vers-Pont-du-Gard in southern France. The Pont du Gard is the tallest of all Roman aqueduct bridges, as well as one of the best preserved. It was added to UNESCO's list of World Heritage sites in 1985 because of its exceptional preservation, historical importance, and architectural ingenuity.
The Pontcysyllte Aqueduct is a navigable aqueduct that carries the Llangollen Canal across the River Dee in the Vale of Llangollen in northeast Wales.
The commune of Agen is the prefecture of the Lot-et-Garonne department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. It lies on the river Garonne 135 kilometres southeast of Bordeaux.
The Tarn is a 380.2-kilometre (236.2 mi) long river in the administrative region of Occitania in southern France. It is a right tributary of the Garonne.
Navigable aqueducts are bridge structures that carry navigable waterway canals over other rivers, valleys, railways or roads. They are primarily distinguished by their size, carrying a larger cross-section of water than most water-supply aqueducts. Roman aqueducts were used to transport water and were created in Ancient Rome. The 662-metre (2,172 ft) long steel Briare aqueduct carrying the Canal latéral à la Loire over the River Loire was built in 1896. It was ranked as the longest navigable aqueduct in the world for more than a century, until the Magdeburg Water Bridge in Germany took the title in the early 21st century.
The arrondissement of Agen is an arrondissement of France in the Lot-et-Garonne department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. It has 71 communes. Its population is 120,499 (2016), and its area is 1,013.3 km2 (391.2 sq mi).
The Diocese of Agen is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in France.
Agen La Garenne Airport or Aérodrome d'Agen - La Garenne is an airport located in Le Passage and 3 km southwest of Agen, both communes of the Lot-et-Garonne département in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine région of France.
The Canal de Garonne, formerly known as Canal latéral à la Garonne, is a French canal dating from the mid-19th century that connects Toulouse to Castets-en-Dorthe. The remainder of the route to Bordeaux uses the river Garonne. It is the continuation of the Canal du Midi which connects the Mediterranean with Toulouse.
The Canal de Brienne, also known as Canal de Saint-Pierre, is a French canal connecting the Garonne River with the Canal du Midi and the Canal de Garonne. It has two locks. The lock opening to the Garonne is known as Ecluse Saint-Pierre. The lock nearer to the Canal du Midi usually stands open.
The Briare Aqueduct in central France carries the Canal latéral à la Loire over the river Loire on its journey to the Seine. It replaced a river-level crossing from the canal to meet the Briare Canal that was hazardous in times of flood. Between 1896 and 2003 it was the longest navigable aqueduct in the world, until the opening of the Magdeburg Water Bridge.
Valence d'Agen, is a commune in the Tarn-et-Garonne department in the Occitanie region in southern France.
Le Passage is a commune in the Lot-et-Garonne department in south-western France. It is part of the agglomeration of Agen.
The Orb Aqueduct is a bridge which carries the Canal du Midi over the Orb in the city of Béziers in Languedoc, France. The aqueduct is 28 metres (92 ft) wide, 12 metres (39 ft) tall and at 240 metres (790 ft) is the longest on the Canal du Midi.
The Ponts Jumeaux is the point at which the Canal du Midi joins the Canal de Garonne and the River Garonne, via the Canal de Brienne. It was built in 1774 by Joseph-Marie de Saget, a civil engineer in the province of Languedoc in Toulouse.
Agglomération d'Agen is an agglomeration community, an administrative entity, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine, in southern France. Administrative center: Agen. It was expanded in January 2013 by the mergers of communauté de communes du canton de Laplume-en-Bruilhois, and the commune Pont-du-Casse. It was further expanded in January 2022 by the merger of the community of communes Porte d'Aquitaine en Pays de Serres.
Camille Bonnet was a French rugby union player. He won the 1944–45 French Rugby Union Championship.
Paul Chollet was a French paediatrician and politician of the Union for French Democracy. He served as Mayor of Agen from 1989 to 2001 and was a deputy of the National Assembly from 1986 to 1997.
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