Cassington Canal

Last updated

Cassington Canal
Mouth of the Cassington Canal, River Thames - geograph.org.uk - 531361.jpg
Junction of the Cassington Canal and River Thames
Location Eynsham, Oxfordshire
Coordinates 51°47′02″N1°20′54″W / 51.7839°N 1.3482°W / 51.7839; -1.3482 Coordinates: 51°47′02″N1°20′54″W / 51.7839°N 1.3482°W / 51.7839; -1.3482
Specifications
Length0.75 miles (1.21 km)
Maximum boat length112 ft 0 in (34.14 m)
Maximum boat beam 14 ft 10 in (4.52 m)
Locks1
StatusDerelict [1]
History
Construction began1800 [2] [lower-alpha 1]
Date extended1802
Date closedc. 1870
Geography
Start pointRiver Thames
End pointCassington Wharf

The Cassington Canal (also known as the Cassington Cut [1] or the Evenlode Cut [4] ) was an early 19th-century canal near Eynsham, Oxfordshire. [5] The canal was built by the 4th Duke of Marlborough to provide a link between the River Thames and Cassington Mill; it later provided alternative wharfage to that at Eynsham. The 0.75-mile (1.21 km) canal was in operation for less than 70 years, its use declining with the advent of rail transport.

Contents

The canal's primary use was to connect the Duke's salt works with the network of canals, rivers, and other inland waterways, as well as connecting the Oxford Canal and the Thames and Severn Canal.

History

Built between 1800 and 1802, [2] the canal initially provided an 11-chain (240 yd; 220 m) [6] connection between Cassington Mill and the recently constructed Cassington–Eynsham road. [7] [6] [8] An early mention of the canal was in 1800, where the canal was described as "made by and belonging to" the Duke of Marlborough, and that its purpose was to convey goods between Cassington Mill and a wharf. [7] A wide pool exists on the canal near Cassington Mill; this was possibly a basin which acted as the original terminus. Here, sluices and a weir between the cut and the River Evenlode were built. [5] By 1802, the canal was extended to meet the River Thames. [7] [9] At this time, engineer Robert Mylne conducted a report for the Thames Commissioners, which described the canal's length as approximately 0.75 miles (1.21 km), [lower-alpha 2] and its width as 30 feet (9.1 m). [10] He also documented a lock at the canal's junction with the Thames—possibly a stop lock as the navigations were controlled by different bodies. [9] The lock, which maintained the canal at 4 feet 11 inches (1.50 m) above the Thames (the same height as the mill weir) was 14 feet 10 inches (4.52 m) wide and 112 feet (34 m) long. [10] Beyond the canal's navigational limit at Cassington Wharf, the channel continued as a feeder from the Evenlode. [4]

The Duke of Marlborough was a shareholder in the Oxford Canal and had recently provided access between the lower Oxford Canal and the Thames via the Duke's Cut. As a private canal—both in terms of finance and land ownership—no Act of Parliament was needed to allow its construction. [11] It was built as a broad canal, meaning vessels wider than 7 feet (2.1 m)—the standard maximum beam of a narrowboat—were able to use it. Boats from the north were restricted by the lock sizes on the Oxford Canal, which only catered for narrow boats. [12] The Duke leased the canal to the Oxford Canal Company. [11] A public house, The Barge, was established at the wharf in 1804 [11] by the first wharfinger, Henry Baker. [9] Baker had previously been employed at Enslow on the Oxford Canal, [10] and it is he after whom Baker's Lock (number 40) on the Oxford Canal was named. [13] [6] Baker constructed two lime kilns at the wharf. [9] Although sources suggest that the canal was not complete until 1814, [11] reports exist of through-traffic of coal barges from the wharf to the Thames that were in operation in 1808. [14]

The canal's primary use was to provide a connection between the Duke's estate (including the trade from his salt works) and the network of inland waterways including other canals and rivers. [11] The canal was able to trade with the Warwickshire Coalfield via the Thames and the Oxford Canal, [2] and the Somerset Coalfield via the Thames and thence the Thames and Severn, Wilts and Berks, Kennet and Avon Canal, and Somerset Coal Canals. [9] Fierce competition between the Thames and Severn Canal Company (who had taken over ownership of the cut) and the Oxford Canal Company (who owned the Wharf Stream in Eynsham) meant that barges were not permitted to unload at Eynsham Wharf. [9] The Oxford Canal Company reacted by taking over the lease of the canal in 1834 to quash competition of coal travelling to the area from Somerset. At this time, Cassington Wharf was taking approximately £800 per year (equivalent to £77,457in 2019). [9]

In 1839, Cassington Wharf was considered as a loading point for Taynton stone if it was to be used in the rebuilding of the Houses of Parliament. [15] Charles Barry instead opted for Anston stone, much of which was loaded at Kiveton Park Wharf onto the Chesterfield Canal and taken from there to London via the North Sea. [16]

The Oxford Canal Company did not renew the lease on the canal after 1842, and it was taken over by John Hambridge. [9] In the 1841 census, Hambridge was a 40-year-old coal merchant living at Cassington Wharf. [17] He was still living at the wharf at the time of the following census in 1851. [18]

In 1861, the Oxford, Witney and Fairford Railway opened and the railway crossed the canal by means of a single-span of 32 feet 10 inches (10.01 m). [5] [19] Embankments either side of the canal raised the railbed with a 1 in 100 gradient to allow sufficient clearance below the bridge. [19] The bridge was removed by the 1980s. [19]

Decline

Use of the cut declined in the mid-19th century following the arrival of the Witney railway. [11] The canal was still in occasional use in 1865 but was likely to have gone out of use by 1870. [2] The public house closed in 1872. [11] The 1898 1:2,500 Ordnance Survey map marked the cut as "Old Canal". [5] By 1913, there was no trace of the entrance lock and the cut was described as little more than a brook, [4] and by 1926 the canal was described as "forgotten". [20]

The weirs between the River Evenlode and the canal are now used by the Environment Agency as part of their Cassington Mill gauging station. [21] Part of the canal is now used for angling, and is administered by the Abingdon and Oxford Anglers Alliance. [22]

Notes

  1. ↑ Other sources suggest the canal was cut before the turn of the century [3]
  2. ↑ Mylne referred to the length as approximately "six furlongs" [10]

Related Research Articles

River Avon, Warwickshire River in central England

The River Avon in central England flows generally southwestwards and is a major left-bank tributary of the River Severn, of which it is the easternmost. It is also known as the Warwickshire Avon or Shakespeare's Avon, to distinguish it from several other rivers of the same name in the United Kingdom.

River Avon, Bristol River in the south west of England

The River Avon is an English river in the south west of the country. To distinguish it from a number of other rivers of the same name, this river is often also known as the Bristol Avon. The name 'Avon' is a cognate of the Welsh word afon, meaning 'river'.

Kennet and Avon Canal Canal in southern England

The Kennet and Avon Canal is a waterway in southern England with an overall length of 87 miles (140 km), made up of two lengths of navigable river linked by a canal. The name is used to refer to the entire length of the navigation rather than solely to the central canal section. From Bristol to Bath the waterway follows the natural course of the River Avon before the canal links it to the River Kennet at Newbury, and from there to Reading on the River Thames. In all, the waterway incorporates 105 locks.

Thames and Severn Canal

The Thames and Severn Canal is a canal in Gloucestershire in the south of England, which was completed in 1789. It was conceived as part of a canal route from Bristol to London. At its eastern end, it connects to the River Thames at Inglesham Lock near Lechlade, while at its western end, it connects to the Stroudwater Navigation at Wallbridge near Stroud, and thence to the River Severn. It has one short arm (branch), from Siddington to the town of Cirencester. It includes Sapperton Tunnel, which when built was the longest canal tunnel in Britain, and remains the second-longest complete tunnel. There were always problems with water supply, as no reservoirs were built, while the summit section near the tunnel ran through porous limestone, and there were constant difficulties with leakage. Competition from the railways took much of the canal's traffic by the end of the 19th century, and most of the canal was abandoned in 1927, the remainder in 1941.

Herefordshire and Gloucestershire Canal

The Herefordshire and Gloucestershire Canal is a canal in the west of England, which ran from Hereford to Gloucester, where it linked to the River Severn. It was opened in two phases in 1798 and 1845, and closed in 1881, when the southern section was used for the course of the Ledbury and Gloucester Railway. It is the subject of an active restoration scheme.

Oxford Canal Canal in England

The Oxford Canal is a 78-mile (126 km) narrow canal in central England linking Oxford with Bedworth via Banbury and Rugby. Completed in 1790, it connects to the River Thames at Oxford and is integrated with the Grand Union Canal—combined for 5 miles (8 km) close to the villages of Braunston and Napton-on-the-Hill, a canal which soon after construction superseded much of its traffic.

Lee Navigation Canalised river in Hertfordshire and London, England

The Lee Navigation is a canalised river incorporating the River Lea. It flows from Hertford Castle Weir to the River Thames at Bow Creek; its first lock is Hertford Lock and its last Bow Locks.

Eynsham Village in Oxfordshire, England

Eynsham is an English village and civil parish in Oxfordshire, about 5 miles (8 km) north-west of Oxford and east of Witney. The 2011 Census recorded a parish population of 4,648. It was estimated at 5,077 in 2018.

River Frome, Stroud

The River Frome, once also known as the Stroudwater, is a small river in Gloucestershire, England. It is to be distinguished from another River Frome in Gloucestershire, the Bristol Frome, and the nearby River Frome, Herefordshire. The river is approximately 25 miles (40 km) long.

River Evenlode River in Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire, England

The River Evenlode is a river in England which is a tributary of the Thames in Oxfordshire. It rises near Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire in the Cotswold Hills and flows south-east passing near Stow-on-the-Wold, Charlbury, Bladon, and Cassington, and its valley provides the route of the southern part of the Cotswold Line. The river flows for 45 miles (72 km) from source to the River Thames.

Thames Path National Trail following the River Thames in England

The Thames Path is a National Trail following the River Thames from its source near Kemble in Gloucestershire to the Thames Barrier at Charlton, south east London. It is about 184 miles (296 km) long. A path was first proposed in 1948 but it only opened in 1996.

Boulters Lock Lock and weir on the River Thames, England

Boulter's Lock is a lock and weir on the River Thames in England north-east of Maidenhead town centre, Berkshire. The present 1912-built lock replaces those at this point of the river to the immediate east dating from the late 16th century and that of 1772 built by the Thames Navigation Commission. The lock is on the western side of the north-south flowing reach between the A4094 Maidenhead to Cookham road and Ray Mill Island. The name is variably used for the immediate surrounding area.

Wey and Godalming Navigations

The River Wey Navigation and Godalming Navigation together provide a 20-mile (32 km) continuous navigable route from the River Thames near Weybridge via Guildford to Godalming. Both waterways are in Surrey and are owned by the National Trust. The River Wey Navigation connects to the Basingstoke Canal at West Byfleet, and the Godalming Navigation to the Wey and Arun Canal near Shalford. The Navigations consist of both man-made canal cuts and adapted parts of the River Wey.

Cassington Human settlement in England

Cassington is a village and civil parish in Oxfordshire about 5 miles (8 km) northwest of Oxford. The village lies on gravel strata about 1⁄2 mile (800 m) from the confluence of the River Evenlode with the River Thames. The parish includes the hamlet of Worton northeast of the village and the site of the former hamlet of Somerford to the south. Somerford seems to have been abandoned early in the 14th century. Cassington is formed of two parts, "upper" and "lower", each with its own village green. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 750.

Stroudwater Navigation Canal in England

The Stroudwater Navigation is a canal in Gloucestershire, England which linked Stroud to the River Severn. It was authorised in 1776, although part had already been built, as the proprietors believed that an Act of Parliament obtained in 1730 gave them the necessary powers. Opened in 1779, it was a commercial success, its main cargo being coal. It was 8 miles (13 km) in length and had a rise of 102 ft 5 in (31.22 m) through 12 locks. Following the opening of the Thames and Severn Canal in 1789, it formed part of a through route from Bristol to London, although much of its trade vanished when the Kennet and Avon Canal provided a more direct route in 1810. Despite competition from the railways, the canal continued to pay dividends to shareholders until 1922, and was not finally abandoned until 1954.

Kings Lock lock on the River Thames in Oxfordshire, England

King's Lock is a lock on the River Thames in England. It is in open country to the north of Oxford, Oxfordshire, on the southern bank of the river. The lock was one of the last pound locks built on the Thames, built by the Thames Conservancy in 1928 to replace the former flash lock. It has the smallest fall of any lock on the river, 0.77 m.

River Don Navigation Waterway navigation in South Yorkshire, England

The River Don Navigation was the result of early efforts to make the River Don in South Yorkshire, England, navigable between Fishlake and Sheffield. The Dutch engineer Cornelius Vermuyden had re-routed the mouth of the river in 1626, to improve drainage, and the new works included provision for navigation, but the scheme did not solve the problem of flooding, and the Dutch River was cut in 1635 to link the new channel to Goole. The first Act of Parliament to improve navigation on the river was obtained in 1726, by a group of Cutlers based in Sheffield; the Corporation of Doncaster obtained an Act in the following year for improvements to the lower river. Locks and lock cuts were built, and, by 1751, the river was navigable to Tinsley.

Maidenhead Waterways

The Maidenhead Waterways are a system of canals in Maidenhead, England. Formerly disused, plans to restore and upgrade them were announced in 2011. The works would initially make the waterways navigable by small craft, and over time by larger craft, as limitations to navigation are gradually removed.

Three Mills Lock lock on Prescott Channel

Three Mills Lock, also known as the Prescott Lock is a lock on the Prescott Channel on the River Lea in London. The project was led by British Waterways and the lock officially opened on 5 June 2009.

Dukes Cut

Duke's Cut is a short waterway in Oxfordshire, England, which connects the Oxford Canal with the River Thames via the Wolvercote Mill Stream. It is named after George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough, across whose land the waterway was cut. It is seen as a branch of the Oxford Canal.

References

  1. 1 2 "Waterways A-Z". www.waterways.org.uk. Inland Waterways Association. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Baggs, A P; Blair, W J; Chance, Eleanor; Colvin, Christina; Cooper, Janet; Day, C J; Selwyn, Nesta; Townley, S C (1990). "Cassington: Economic History". A History of the County of Oxford: Volume 12, Wootton Hundred (South) Including Woodstock. London: Victoria County History. pp. 44–48. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  3. ↑ Porteous, John Douglas (1977). Canal ports : the urban achievement of the Canal Age. Academic Press. p.  41. ISBN   9780125619509.
  4. 1 2 3 Thacker, Fred. "Thames Highway, Locks & Weirs, Fred Thacker". thames.me.uk. Where Thames Smooth Waters Glide. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "OS 25 inch". maps.nls.uk. National Library of Scotland. 1898. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  6. 1 2 3 Hadfield, Charles (1966). The Canals of the East Midlands. David and Charles. p. 157.
  7. 1 2 3 Compton, Hugh J (1976). The Oxford Canal. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. p. 60. ISBN   0-7153-7238-6.
  8. ↑ Hatts, Leigh (2016). The Thames Path: National Trail from London to the river's source in Gloucestershire (3 ed.). Cicerone Press. p. 164. ISBN   9781783623204.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Hamilton, Robert (January 1995). "19th Century Trade War". Waterways World. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Compton, Hugh J (1976). The Oxford Canal. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. p. 61. ISBN   0-7153-7238-6.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Wood, Andy (2014). Abandoned & vanished canals of England. Stroud: Amberley. p. 120. ISBN   9781445639277.
  12. ↑ Pratt, Derek (2014). London's waterways : exploring the capital's rivers and canals (First ed.). A&C Black. p. 7. ISBN   9781408170571.
  13. ↑ Compton, Hugh J (1976). The Oxford Canal. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. p. 71. ISBN   0-7153-7238-6.
  14. ↑ Salzman, Louis Francis (1996). The Victoria history of the county of Oxford. Published for University of London, Institute of Historical Research, by Oxford University Press. p. 62. ISBN   9780197227909.
  15. ↑ "Stone for the New Houses of Parliament". The Civil Engineer & Architect's Journal. 2: 374. 1839. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  16. ↑ Richardson, Christine (2007). Yorkshire stone to London : to create the Houses of Parliament. Richlow. p. 16. ISBN   9780955260926.
  17. ↑ "1841 England, Wales & Scotland Census Image". Find My Past. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  18. ↑ "1851 England, Wales & Scotland Census Image". Find My Past. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  19. 1 2 3 Loader, Martin. "The Fairford Branch Line - Cassington". www.fairfordbranch.co.uk. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  20. ↑ Morley, Frank Vigor (1926). River Thames. Methuen & Company. p. 255.
  21. ↑ "39034 - Evenlode at Cassington Mill". National River Flow Archive. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  22. ↑ "Evenlode Triangle". allaboutangling.net. All About Angling. 31 October 2018. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.