Huddersfield Broad Canal
Encyclopedia
The Huddersfield Broad Canal (also called by its original name, the Sir John Ramsden Canal) is a wide-locked navigable canal in Yorkshire
in northern England
.
The waterway is 3¾ miles (6 km) long and has 9 wide locks. It follows the valley of the River Colne
and connects the Calder and Hebble Navigation
at Cooper Bridge junction with the Huddersfield Narrow Canal
at (or near) Aspley Basin in the centre of Huddersfield
.
via the Calder and Hebble Navigation
. It was built by the Ramsden family of Huddersfield, and completed in 1780. The building of the Huddersfield Narrow Canal
gave it a heavily-locked Western connection to wool-weaving towns of the upper Colne valley (Golcar
, Linthwaite
, Slaithwaite
, and Marsden
) and across the Pennines
to Saddleworth
, Stalybridge
and Manchester
via Standedge Tunnel (the longest, deepest and highest on the English Canals). It was never closed, and sections of the canal have been upgraded over a number of years.
Manchester Railway and Canal Company £46,560. This company was incorporated in 1845 and had already absorbed the Huddersfield Narrow Canal
primarily to aid in the construction of a cross-Pennine rail link at Standedge
.
in 2001. This made the Broad Canal part of one of three cross-Pennine through-routes. Mooring points around the Aspley Basin
have fresh water and electric services.
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
in northern England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
The waterway is 3¾ miles (6 km) long and has 9 wide locks. It follows the valley of the River Colne
River Colne, West Yorkshire
The River Colne is a river in West Yorkshire formed by a confluence at the foot of the Pennines close to the village of Marsden.-Course:Numerous brooks formed by rainwater high in the Pennines of West Yorkshire, flow down the hillsides through the small valleys to feed two Yorkshire Water...
and connects the Calder and Hebble Navigation
Calder and Hebble Navigation
The Calder and Hebble Navigation is a Broad inland waterway in West Yorkshire, England, which has remained navigable since it was opened.-History:...
at Cooper Bridge junction with the Huddersfield Narrow Canal
Huddersfield Narrow Canal
The Huddersfield Narrow Canal is an inland waterway in northern England. It runs just under from Lock 1E at the rear of the University of Huddersfield campus, near Aspley Basin at Huddersfield to the junction with the Ashton Canal at Whitelands Basin in Ashton-under-Lyne...
at (or near) Aspley Basin in the centre of Huddersfield
Huddersfield
Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....
.
Construction
The original purpose of the canal was to connect Huddersfield to the other Yorkshire waterways: that is, to the Aire and Calder NavigationAire and Calder Navigation
The Aire and Calder Navigation is a river and canal system of the River Aire and the River Calder in the metropolitan county of West Yorkshire, England. The first improvements to the rivers above Knottingley were completed in 1704 when the Aire was made navigable to Leeds and the Calder to...
via the Calder and Hebble Navigation
Calder and Hebble Navigation
The Calder and Hebble Navigation is a Broad inland waterway in West Yorkshire, England, which has remained navigable since it was opened.-History:...
. It was built by the Ramsden family of Huddersfield, and completed in 1780. The building of the Huddersfield Narrow Canal
Huddersfield Narrow Canal
The Huddersfield Narrow Canal is an inland waterway in northern England. It runs just under from Lock 1E at the rear of the University of Huddersfield campus, near Aspley Basin at Huddersfield to the junction with the Ashton Canal at Whitelands Basin in Ashton-under-Lyne...
gave it a heavily-locked Western connection to wool-weaving towns of the upper Colne valley (Golcar
Golcar
Golcar is a village located on a hillside crest above the Colne Valley in West Yorkshire, England, west of Huddersfield, and just north of the River Colne and the Huddersfield Narrow Canal...
, Linthwaite
Linthwaite
Linthwaite is a village in West Yorkshire, England. It is situated 4 miles west of Huddersfield, on the A62 in the Colne Valley...
, Slaithwaite
Slaithwaite
Slaithwaite is a village within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. It lies in the Colne Valley laying across the River Colne and the Huddersfield Narrow Canal, approximately southwest of Huddersfield. The pronunciation of Slaithwaite varies...
, and Marsden
Marsden, West Yorkshire
Marsden is a large village within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, west of Huddersfield and located at the confluence of the River Colne and the Wessenden Brook...
) and across the Pennines
Pennines
The Pennines are a low-rising mountain range, separating the North West of England from Yorkshire and the North East.Often described as the "backbone of England", they form a more-or-less continuous range stretching from the Peak District in Derbyshire, around the northern and eastern edges of...
to Saddleworth
Saddleworth
Saddleworth is a civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham in Greater Manchester, England. It comprises several villages and hamlets amongst the west side of the Pennine hills: Uppermill, Greenfield, Dobcross, Delph, Diggle and others...
, Stalybridge
Stalybridge
Stalybridge is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside in Greater Manchester, England, with a population of 22,568. Historically a part of Cheshire, it is east of Manchester city centre and northwest of Glossop. With the construction of a cotton mill in 1776, Stalybridge became one of...
and Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
via Standedge Tunnel (the longest, deepest and highest on the English Canals). It was never closed, and sections of the canal have been upgraded over a number of years.
History
The canal passed into railway ownership in 1845 when it was bought by the Huddersfield andManchester Railway and Canal Company £46,560. This company was incorporated in 1845 and had already absorbed the Huddersfield Narrow Canal
Huddersfield Narrow Canal
The Huddersfield Narrow Canal is an inland waterway in northern England. It runs just under from Lock 1E at the rear of the University of Huddersfield campus, near Aspley Basin at Huddersfield to the junction with the Ashton Canal at Whitelands Basin in Ashton-under-Lyne...
primarily to aid in the construction of a cross-Pennine rail link at Standedge
Standedge Tunnels
The Standedge Tunnels are four parallel tunnels that run beneath the Pennines at the traditional Standedge crossing point between Marsden and Diggle, on the edges of the conurbations of West Yorkshire and Greater Manchester respectively, in northern England.There are three railway tunnels and a...
.
Current state
The Broad Canal is used much more since the re-opening of the Huddersfield Narrow CanalHuddersfield Narrow Canal
The Huddersfield Narrow Canal is an inland waterway in northern England. It runs just under from Lock 1E at the rear of the University of Huddersfield campus, near Aspley Basin at Huddersfield to the junction with the Ashton Canal at Whitelands Basin in Ashton-under-Lyne...
in 2001. This made the Broad Canal part of one of three cross-Pennine through-routes. Mooring points around the Aspley Basin
Aspley, Huddersfield
Aspley is an area to the south of Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England. It comprises a mixture of commercial units, a small number of houses and sections of the University of Huddersfield. It is known locally as Aspley Wharfe....
have fresh water and electric services.
Connection with the Huddersfield Narrow Canal
The Huddersfield Broad Canal made its original connection with the Huddersfield Narrow Canal to the west of the A629 Wakefield Road. Following strengthening work to Wakefield Road, which included the construction of a reinforced concrete tunnel under the original bridge, this short section is no longer navigable to vessels wider than 7 feet (2.1 m). Although British Waterways has not officially redesignated it, the Wakefield Road tunnel now effectively forms the end of the Huddersfield Broad Canal.See also
- Canals of the United KingdomCanals of the United KingdomThe canals of the United Kingdom are a major part of the network of inland waterways in the United Kingdom. They have a colourful history, from use for irrigation and transport, through becoming the focus of the Industrial Revolution, to today's role for recreational boating...
- History of the British canal systemHistory of the British canal systemThe British canal system of water transport played a vital role in the United Kingdom's Industrial Revolution at a time when roads were only just emerging from the medieval mud and long trains of pack horses were the only means of "mass" transit by road of raw materials and finished products The...