www.wolverhampton.gov.uk

Wolverhampton locksWalking Trail A walk along

the 21 locks

Wolverhampton

1 21 locks walk

A walk alongthe 21 locks

Wolverhampton

Walking is an excellent form ofgentle exercise. It not onlyimproves your fitness but alsoyour sense of well-being.

By walking this trail you will have:Walked (one way) 1 3/4 miles (2.8km), taken approximately 3,500steps and burnt 175 calories

The Canal & River Trust owns and managesover 2,000 miles of canals and rivers inEngland and Wales. For more informationabout canal based activities visit

www.canalrivertrust.org.uk

or emailenquiries.westmidlands@canalrivertrust.org.uk

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Welcome

The Wolverhampton Locks Trail takes you on awalk, (or a cycle ride or boat trip), along theBirmingham Main Line Canal to highlightfeatures of interest.

The conservation and enhancement of historicbuildings and environments are importantobjectives of the Council and this trail has beenprepared to provide an enjoyable andinformative experience for those with an interestin the heritage of the City.

The Trail should take about one and a half hoursto complete.

Wheelchair users are advised that the ramps atthe sides of the canal locks are extremely steepand difficult to negotiate. Therefore, it issuggested that wheelchair users do not attemptthe whole route. However, access to thetowpath can be achieved at Jones Road wherethere is level ground between locks.

Motor cycle excluder barriers are in place alongthe 21 locks and people in wheelchairs or thosewith buggies may find them difficult tonegotiate. Some of the barriers have wideopening gates incorporating theRADAR lock. These are marked on the trailplan.

Please accompany young children to safeguardagainst them falling into the canal. Canals canbe very isolated places and those of you whomight choose to follow the trail alone shouldconsider your safety at all times. Access pointsare marked on the trail plan.

All of the Locks, the cottages at Broad Streetand the railway viaducts are Listed structuresand are part of the Wolverhampton LocksConservation Area.

The Trail starts at Broad Street Basin which iseasily accessible from the town centre. It endsat Aldersley Junction. You may return toWolverhampton Town Centre using local busservices. Bus routes in the vicinity of the finishare marked on the trail plan; alternatively retracethe route of the trail.

Bus users can contact 0121 200 2700regarding bus services.

Broad Street Basin

Broad Street Basin is now a pleasant, quietoasis, surrounded by the ring road and railway.The landscaped area to your right is on the siteof Hay Basin (originally Albert Basin, it was builtin 1850 and filled in during the 1970s) and wasso called since hay was distributed from here inthe Nineteenth Century.

In 1850, this basin was the scene of a riot asthe Shrewsbury and Birmingham RailwayCompany (S & BR - which later became partof the Great Western Railway Company)attempted to offload its cargo onto boats tocomplete its passage from Shrewsbury toBirmingham. The London and North WesternRailway Company who controlled the railwaysinto Birmingham refused access toS & BR. The Mayor was called out on aSaturday morning to “read the riot act” to theworkforces of the feuding companies.

Broad Street Basin

Some canal bridges, such as that which carriesBroad Street over the canal, are modernstructures. The original 1878 bridge overthe canal was dismantled and rebuilt at theBlack Country Museum, when the ring road wasconstructed.

Walk along the canal towpathstopping in front of the LockCottages

The Top Lock cottages, built in the late 18thcentury, are rare surviving examples of oncetypical canalside architecture. When the canalswere commercially active, these cottages wouldhave been the home of the lock keeper. Tolls(levies by canal companies for the use of theirwaterway) would have been collected here.

On the left is the entrance to the former VictoriaBasin. Note the cast iron BCN boundary post atthe entrance to the top lock. There were oncescores of these marking the extent of theBirmingham Canal Navigations’company land.The initials BCN are also stamped into theconcrete pillars in front of the cottages.

On your right as you look towards Little’s Lanebridge, you will notice a small building, nowoccupied by a local welding company. This is onthe site of the Boat Users’ Mission.Little’s Lane bridge is one of five EighteenthCentury bridges you will see on this trail.

Walk under Little’s Lanebridge and continue to Lock 2

Looking back at the face of the bridge you willnotice the post and rings that were used tohang a gate to prevent walkers accessing thetowpath.

On the left is Carver’s Yard. Until 1972 the sitewas used as a goods yard. The Great WesternRailway Company occupied the site until 1948.Cargoes were transferred to and from boat andrail. The Victoria Basin, adjoining Broad Streetbasin, served this site.

Proceed to Lock 3

Here we have the opportunity to consider a littleof the history of the canal. A canal link fromBirmingham to the Staffordshire andWorcestershire Canal was being considered asearly as 1766. In 1767, James Brindley (born1716, died 1772) was asked to make a survey.An Act of Parliament for the construction of thecanal was passed in 1768, and work began atonce under the guidance of two of Brindley’sassistants, Samuel Simcock and RobertWhitworth. The canal was built initially to allowfor the cheaper transport of coal. The roads atthe time were in “ruinous condition”, whichmade coal transport very expensive.The canal was built as a narrow channel andfollowed a circuitous route around obstructionsto minimise construction costs.

Canals in the future were built as widernavigations following straighter routes, theargument being that increased constructioncosts would be outweighed by quickeroperation in the longer term.

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Top Lock Cottages

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Proceed from Lock 3stopping beneath therail bridge

At this point, you see two wrought iron rollerbars on the bridge abutments. These wouldhave been installed to prevent the ropes,by which horses used to pull canal boats, fromdamaging the brickwork and fraying. Elsewhereon the network, corners were protected byvertical metal rubbing strips. Note also the ironband along the offside under the bridge, toprotect the brick work from damage by boats.

If you look up towards the underside of therailway bridge (carrying the main line toStafford), you will realise that it is builtin what you may consider is rather a strange‘skewed’ manner.

The sharp right hand bend in the canal at thispoint is unusual on the canal network and wasnecessary because the canal had to bediverted when the railway was built.

Some of the commercial narrow boats werevery long. The largest known type of narrowcraft were Wolverhampton’s “‘ampton” orWharf Boats as they were called. These were 87feet long and capable of carrying a 50 toncargo. They were not used on the 21 Locks -since the locks on the BCN network are onaverage only 70 feet long and 6 feet 10 incheswide.

Proceed to Lock 4The names given to the parts of a typical‘Pound’ lock are shown on the diagramincluded above. Twenty of the twenty one locksare the same but Lock 20 is unique havingsingle gates at both ends. Most locks have aweir which would act as an overflowin times of flood. These are known as

“BY-WASH” weirs and you will notice thesealong the flight. A KEY or WINDLASS is neededto operate the lock mechanisms.

Puddled clay was used on the bed of the canalto make it watertight. Canals were built by handby gangs of itinerant workmen known asnavigators or “navvies”.

On your right is the former Springfield Brewery(a Grade II Listed building) built for William Butlerfrom 1873 to take advantage of high qualityspring water found on the site. It ceasedbrewing in 1991.

Between Locks 4 and 5 on the left, werepreviously two (maybe three) basins. The wharfon the site was occupied by the ShropshireUnion Railways and Canal Company for 20years until the early 1870s. Thereafter the sitewas used by an engineering company,G R Smithson Co (1896 - 1985) and now by adairy.

Former Springfield Brewery

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Proceed to Lock 5

This lock illustrates clearly how locks weredesigned to maximise the use of availablespace. You can see the steps which werebuilt to allow boaters to leave their boats,negotiate the lock and re-board. A typical boatcrew might have consisted of three boatmen:one operating the locks, one guiding the horsealong the towpath and the other steering.

The traditional narrow boat with its colourfulpaintwork has become a symbol of thecanal. In the early days of canals, boats wereunpainted and carried all male crews. Whencompetition from railways intensified, families ofboatmen began to live on the canal boatsbringing about individuality by the colourfuldecoration of their boats.

Proceed beneath CannockRoad Bridge towards Lock 6

On your left as you emerge from beneath theCannock Road bridge, is the site of the formerCrown Galvanising Works. In the past, CrownWorks had good canal facilities with wharfsabove and below Lock 6, plus two canal basins,(both now infilled). The entrance to the smaller,narrow basin can be seen on your left. This wasused to transport coal for use in the furnaces.

Proceed towards Lock 7

The entrance to the larger of the two basinswas between Locks 6 and 7 where the canalwidens. The basin provided a physicalboundary between Crown Works and TheCeres Works on the neighbouring site.

Fowlers Park to the right would formerly havebeen a hive of activity where railway tracksconverged. One of the lines wasThe Great Western Railway’s line to Shrewsburyand Birkenhead. The Park attracts manyspecies of birds including, in winter, Gullsand, in spring, Willow Warblers. A Traditional Narrow Boat

The Crown Galvanising Works circa 1870’s

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The grassed areas adjacent to locks are idealfor butterflies in summer. A bench mark iscarved into the lock steps; there are several more down the flight.

Proceed towards Lock 8

Between Lock 7 and 8 is the former CeresWorks site. Ceres Works was a famous manureand acid works. The works suppliedlocal farmers with bone meal, after which BoneMill Lane (the road running parallel to the site)was named.

You will note six definite bricked up loading baysand four more which are disintegrating. Theseused to open onto a secure wharf.

Also, between Locks 7 and 8, note (carefully!)the bricks making up the edge of the canal wall.These UTOPIA bricks were made by theAldridge Brick and Tile Company.

Proceed to Lock 9

As you walk under Jordans Bridge, noteanother cast iron rubbing strip on the bridgearch.

Beside the length of canal including Locks 9and 10 is the Council’s rubbish incinerator. The

site has been owned by the Council since 1872and was initially used for both sewage andrubbish disposal.

To the right in the landscaped area betweenLocks 9 and 10, is a former railway turntable.Access to this site is marked on the trail map.On the raised ground, visible from the turntable,once stood the coal stage serving the GWR’sStafford Road engine shed. Before Lock 10, youmay see the blocked-up entrance to the canalbasin that served the Council’s refuse site.

Proceed towards Lock 10 andFox’s Lane bridge

Fox’s Lane bridge is another good example ofonce typical canal bridge architecture. On yourright, behind the railings, is a pathway that leadsto the former Dunstall Park railway station.Note the bricked up door adjacent to the bridge- probably this would have been a gated entry inthe past allowing control over movementsbetween the towpath and the railway station.

On the opposite side of the canal is a NightClub housed in an old converted warehouse.

Proceed to Lock 11

The two girder bridges in front of you carryseveral railway lines over the canal. The firstbridge carries the now redundant line to theformer Great Western Railway Company’sStafford Road engine shed, coal staging andturntable, and the second carries the old mainline (Wolverhampton-Shrewsbury-Chester-Birkenhead).

Fowlers Park

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Proceed to Lock 12

The imposing Stour Valley viaduct carries themain rail line from Wolverhampton to Staffordand the north. It has twenty two arches.

To the right is part of the former gas workswhich was served by the many rail lines thatcriss-crossed it.

Proceed to Lock 13

On the left is the original site of the gas works.In September 1862, the world record for aballoon ascent without oxygen was set byballoonists taking off from here. The balloon,“The Mammoth”, flying on coal gas, reached37 000 feet - a record that still stands.

At Lock 13, you will notice bricked surfacing,which is typical of an industrial canal, with heavytraffic. The raised brickwork gave better grip tohorses’ hooves.

Proceed towards Lock 14

On the right, you will see the former gas worksbasin recently rediscovered during landreclamation. Boats from Thomas Claytons ofOldbury were reversed down from Lock 9 sothat they would be facing the right way whenthey returned up the locks with cargoes of coalgas tar on their way to the tar works throughoutthe Black Country including one at MonmoreGreen.

Lock 14 has new bottom gates. Look for theweight of the gates clearly etched into one ofthem and also a plaque showing the date whenthe lock gates were made; (in this case, 1993 inBradley).

Proceed to Lock 15,Gorsebrook bridge carryingthe Stafford Road

On your right is the new Science Parkdevelopment built on the site of part of theformer gas works. Unlike so many othermodern developments, the buildings actuallyface the canal rather than turning their backtowards it.

Stour Valley Viaduct

Science Park Development

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Proceed to Lock 16

Before you is the Oxley viaduct carrying theformer GWR Birmingham to Shrewsbury lineover the canal - an impressive structuredemanding specialised engineering.

Proceed to Lock 17

From this point onwards the canal becomesmore rural in character leaving evidence ofindustry behind. In springtime, thehawthorn hedgerows are attractive withbeautiful flowers and distinctive perfume. Thisstretch of canal is particularly attractive as aspring stopover point for the Sedge Warblerwith their chattering song, and to water birds inthe winter.

Note the white stump on the gatepost (thebreast or mitre post). This carries the weightindicator (in kilogrammes) of the lock gates.

Note also ‘BCN’cast onto the paddlemechanism of the top gates. Brickwork justbelow the lock indicates the position of theformer Spring Bridge.

Proceed to Lock 18

The race course on your left was relocated in1879 from the site of West Park because it wasseen by the Victorian establishment as a badinfluence on working classes.

Around the locks, look out for dragonflies in thesummer.

Proceed to Lock 19

Early canal engineers pioneered “cut and fill”engineering techniques and you can see theresult as you pass through the cutting after thislock. Raised embankments were made from the“spoil” from cuttings.

Dunstall Park Bridge probably dates back to theopening of the canal. From here you may catcha glimpse of birds of prey such as Kestrel orSparrowhawk.

Oxley Viaduct

Dunstall Park Bridge

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Proceed to Lock 20

Initially, the flight of locks on the BCN was 20not 21. Lock number 20 was the final lock to beadded. The present Lock 21 was previously avery deep lock which took a long time to fill.Lock 20, which had only a single gate at eachend, was added to alleviate this problem andreduce the total amount of water theflight required. Water supply to the BirminghamCanal has always posed difficulties becausethere is no easily obtainable river supply. Much

of the water hasbeen supplied bydrainingnearby mines,often by pumpingengines.

Ground levelsbetween 20 and21 were loweredand previous landlevels are visible inthe sandstonecutting the canaloccupies.

The close relationship between canals andrailway is clearly illustrated at this point. Metalrailway tracks have been used to reinforce thecanal wall. Note the reed beds below the lock,home to water birds including moorhens andalso migrating birds.

Proceed to Lock 21 andAldersley Junction Bridgewhere the Trail ends

If you stand on the bridge arch, you can see theholes in the stone copings which would have

located the lamp standard lighting upthis junction.

This is a very important junction between theStaffordshire and Worcestershire Canal and TheBirmingham Canal Navigations. In the past, thisjunction would have been busy with canal trafficat all hours of the day. Now known as AldersleyJunction, it was in the past referred to asAutherley No. 1 Junction. The Junctionwas opened in 1772. On your left, as youapproach the junction (over the bridge), is thesite of the former Birmingham Canal Navigationslock keeper’s office. The first lock keeper wasJohn Brown, a carpenter who had worked onthe construction of the canal. Old photographsof the site on the right, suggest a settlement ofsix buildings, stables and a wharf. The familieshere would have been isolated - since there wasprobably no access other than on foot or byboat. It was most likely to have been anovernight stopoff point and a place to resthorses in the adjacent stables. Apart fromfoundations, there is very little trace of this canalhamlet.

Below lock 20

Aldersley Junction Bridge and Lock 21

Aldersley Junction in the pastThis is the

end of the trail

WolverhamptonLook out for kingfishers

during the winter months