Canal Mania facts for kids

Canal Mania was a super exciting time in England and Wales when lots of new canals were built. This happened mostly between the 1790s and early 1810s. It was also a time when many people got really excited about investing their money in these canals, hoping to make a lot of profit.

Why Did Canal Building Become So Popular?

Before the "Canal Mania" period, canals were usually built by rich people or businesses who needed an easier way to move their goods. For example, the Bridgewater Canal was built by the Duke of Bridgewater to transport coal from his mines in Worsley to Manchester.

Building canals was very expensive. However, when the Duke's canal opened, the price of coal in Manchester dropped by half! This showed everyone that canals could be a huge financial success. This success made canals very attractive to people looking to invest their money.

After the American Revolutionary War ended in 1783, people in Britain had more money to spend and invest. Many wanted to put their money into something that would make them even more money. This led to a lot of new and sometimes risky investments, especially in canals.

The Boom in Canal Projects

The number of new canal projects grew incredibly fast. In 1790, only one canal project was officially approved by the government. But by 1793, twenty new canals had been approved!

The amount of money people were allowed to invest also jumped dramatically. In 1790, about £90,000 was approved for canals. By 1793, this amount had soared to over £2.8 million! (To give you an idea, £90,000 in 1790 would be like having over £12 million today, and £2.8 million in 1793 would be like having over £360 million today!)

Some of the canals built during this time did become very successful and made money for their investors. However, not all of them did. Some, like the Herefordshire and Gloucestershire Canal, never paid back any money to the people who invested. Others, such as the Grand Western Canal, were never even finished.