Melton Mowbray Navigation facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Melton Mowbray Navigation
A sluice gate at Asfordby
Specifications
Locks	12
Status	Partial restoration
History
Date of act	1791
Date completed	1797
Date closed	1877
Geography
Start point	Melton Mowbray
End point	Syston
Branch(es)	Oakham Canal
Connects to	Grand Union Canal

The Melton Mowbray Navigation was a special waterway built in Leicestershire, England. It was created by making the River Wreake suitable for boats. This allowed boats to travel from where the River Wreake joins the River Soar near Syston all the way to Melton Mowbray. The navigation officially opened in 1797.

Most of this waterway followed the natural river. However, there were many "lock cuts." These were new channels dug to bypass parts of the river. They also helped make space for the 12 wide locks. Locks are like water elevators that help boats move up or down between different water levels. Many of these locks were placed near mills. This helped keep the water levels steady for the mills to work.

Later, trains became a popular way to move goods. This meant fewer boats used the navigation. Also, the Oakham Canal, which connected to it, closed down. Because of these reasons, the Melton Mowbray Navigation quickly became less used. It finally closed in 1877. About 200 years after it first opened, a group called the Melton & Oakham Waterways Society was formed. Their goal is to bring the navigation back to life so boats can use it again.

Building the Waterway: A Look Back

People first thought about connecting Melton Mowbray to the canal network in 1780. This idea came after other canals, like the Loughborough Navigation, became very successful. The main goal was to make the River Soar navigable up to Leicester. Then, they wanted to make the River Wreake navigable up to Melton.

Early Plans and Challenges

Nothing happened with these first ideas. But in 1785, public meetings were held to discuss the plan again. A skilled engineer named William Jessop surveyed the route in October. People raised about £6,000 to help pay for the project. There were even talks about extending the waterway further. They thought about upgrading the River Eye to reach Oakham and building a new canal to Stamford.

In March 1786, two plans were sent to Parliament. One was for the Soar from Loughborough to Leicester. The second was for the Soar from Loughborough to the Wreake, and then up the Wreake to Melton. The main Soar plan was rejected. The Wreake plan was put on hold.

A single plan combining both ideas was sent in 1789. But it was rejected again. This was because coal mine owners in Leicestershire were against it. They worried it would affect their business.

Getting Approval and Starting Work

The supporters of the canal worked hard to convince those who were against it. They split the plan into two again. Both new plans were sent to Parliament in early 1791. The Leicester Navigation plan faced some opposition but was approved on May 13, 1791. The Melton Mowbray Navigation plan faced no opposition at all. It was approved by its act of Parliament on June 6, 1791.

The new law allowed the owners to raise £25,000 by selling shares. They could raise an extra £5,000 if needed. Many shareholders lived nearby, but some were from further away. Christopher Staveley, who worked with William Jessop, drew up the detailed plans. These plans showed where the locks and new cuts would be built. They also showed where the river would be straightened.

Ten mills were operating along the river at that time. Their locations helped decide where ten of the locks would be placed. The plans first showed locks at the top end of the cuts. But they were moved to the lower end. This was because Jessop's work on the River Thames showed it helped prevent mud banks from forming. Work started soon after the law was passed. Staveley was the engineer. However, there are not many details about the building process. This is because the company's old records have been lost.

Finishing the Navigation

The first part of the canal, from the Soar to Frisby Mill, opened in November 1794. The canal was built during the French Revolutionary Wars. This caused prices to go up, and the project cost more than expected. In March 1795, a special meeting was held to figure out how to get more money. In July, Staveley was replaced by William Green. Green had worked on the Grantham Canal. He said the work and materials used were "very bad." But he finished the job, and the whole navigation was open by 1797.

Another law was passed to fix some money problems. It seems the total cost of the project was about £45,000. The navigation was about 14.75 miles (23.74 km) long. It had twelve wide locks. These locks raised the canal by 71 feet (21.6 m) between the Soar and Melton.

How the Canal Was Used

The canal mainly served a countryside area. So, not a huge amount of goods were moved on it. In 1801, the population of Melton Mowbray was only 1,730 people. The main things carried were coal, barley, oats, wheat, granite, lime, wool, and manure.

Goods and Profits

In 1797, about 16,781 tons of coal were moved. Most of this coal (77 percent) went up the canal. The rest went down. This suggests that some coal was resold in Leicester when prices changed.

When the Oakham Canal opened in 1802, it never made much money. But it did bring more traffic to the Melton Mowbray Navigation. About half of the coal going up the canal continued to Oakham. Farm products came down from Oakham on their way to Leicester.

The main places for loading and unloading goods were at Melton Basin and Rearsby. Between 1839 and 1842, records show nine other wharves (loading areas). But their exact locations are not known for sure. In Melton itself, new wharves were built. These included warehouses, a grain storage building, a coal yard, and malt offices. These were located west of the main basin.

The money paid to the canal owners (called dividends) slowly increased. It reached 7.5 percent in 1809 and 10 percent in 1821. It stayed at 10 percent for the next 20 years. The money earned from tolls (fees for using the canal) was over £4,000 per year in the 1830s. The goods carried on the canal benefited from its connection to the very successful Leicester Navigation at Syston.

Why the Canal Closed Down

The Oakham Canal was never very profitable. It paid dividends of only about 3.8 percent. In the dry summer of 1844, there wasn't enough water. This caused it to close for five months.

The Impact of Railways

When the Midland Railway wanted to build their Syston and Peterborough Railway, the Oakham company made a deal. The railway bought the canal on October 29, 1847. They planned to close it and use part of its path for their railway line.

This had a huge effect on the Melton Mowbray Navigation. The year 1847 was its best year. It carried 68,896 tons of goods. Of this, 39,451 tons continued on to the Oakham Canal. With the Oakham Canal closed, traffic for the next year was less than half. It dropped to 30,879 tons. By 1850, it was only 13,301 tons. The money earned fell even faster. It went from £4,830 in 1847 to just £415 in 1849.

The Canal company tried to sell the waterway. They offered it to the Loughborough Navigation in the 1860s. Then they tried to sell it to the Midland Railway Company. But neither company was interested. The canal struggled on until it finally closed on August 1, 1877.

The law that allowed the canal to be abandoned said its structures had to be put in good order first. Engineer A.W. Dalton oversaw this process. Curved weirs were built where the upper lock gates used to be. Some bridges were made lower, while others were rebuilt. The towpaths, which were rented from landowners, went back to their owners.

Bringing the Canal Back to Life

The idea of restoring the Melton Mowbray Navigation and the Oakham Canal first came up in 1997. This was proposed by the Leicester Branch of the Inland Waterways Association. This led to the creation of the Melton & Oakham Waterways Society.

Restoration Efforts Today

Very few bridges have been made lower. The main one is Lewin Bridge, which carries the Fosse Way at Syston. Most of the lock chambers are still there, but they need repairs.

Volunteers from the Waterway Recovery Group have built a slipway in Melton Mowbray. Some parts of the canal have been dredged (cleaned out). Towpaths have also been repaired. The society has worked with the Sustrans Connect2 project. They replaced the old footbridge at Syston with a new one. This new bridge is tall enough for boats to pass underneath.

Sustrans received £50 million from the People's Lottery Fund in 2008. This money was for 79 projects, and the bridge replacement was one of them. Work on the new bridge began in late 2012. It provides 8 feet (2.4 m) of space underneath for boats. This happened after long talks between the society, Sustrans, Leicestershire County Council, and British Waterways. The bridge was finished in 2013.

The demolished Syston Lock needs to be rebuilt. This will open up the first 1 mile (1.6 km) of the waterway. It would allow boats to reach Lewin Bridge and the Gate Hangs Well public house.

Places of Interest Along the Navigation