Wyrley and Essington Canal facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Wyrley and Essington Canal
Sneyd Wharf on the Wyrley and Essington Canal
Specifications
Maximum boat length	70 ft 0 in (21.34 m)
Maximum boat beam	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)
Locks	0 (originally 39)
Original number of locks	39
Status	Most navigable
Navigation authority	Canal and River Trust
History
Original owner	Birmingham Canal Navigations
Principal engineer	William Pitt
Date of act	1792, 1794
Date completed	1797
Date closed	Sneyd Branch 1900s, parts in 1955
Geography
Start point	Wolverhampton
End point	Huddlesford Junction near Lichfield
Branch(es)	Sneyd, Cannock Extension, Daw End, Chasewater

The Wyrley and Essington Canal, often called "the Curly Wyrley" by local people, is a canal in the English Midlands. When it was first built, it stretched from Wolverhampton all the way to Huddlesford Junction near Lichfield. It also had several smaller waterways called branches. Today, some parts of the canal are no longer used. The main part that boats can still travel on ends at Ogley Junction near Brownhills. In 2008, a section of the canal was named a Local Nature Reserve, which means it's a special place for nature.

Building the Canal: A Big Project

The Wyrley and Essington Canal was built to move coal from mines near Wyrley, Essington, and New Invention. This coal was then taken to towns like Wolverhampton and Walsall. The canal also carried other important materials like limestone.

Getting Started: The First Act

To build the canal, a special law called an Act of Parliament was passed on April 30, 1792. This law allowed the builders to connect the canal from Wyrley Bank to the Birmingham Canal near Wolverhampton. It also allowed them to raise money, up to £45,000, to pay for the construction. William Pitt was chosen as the engineer for the project. In 1794, the Birmingham Canal Company changed its name to the Birmingham Canal Navigations (BCN).

Challenges and Connections

The first part of the canal, from the Birmingham Canal to Sneyd Junction, was flat for about 6.4 kilometres (4 miles). After that, the main line went up through five locks to reach the coal mines at Wyrley Bank. Another four locks led to the Essington colliery. A different branch of the canal also went from Sneyd Junction to Birchills, near Walsall.

There were some disagreements with the Birmingham Canal Company. They had a rule that allowed them to stop boats from moving between the two canals if the water level in the Wyrley and Essington Canal was too low. This caused problems with the connecting lock gates.

Expanding the Canal: More Laws and Branches

Another law was passed on March 28, 1794, to make the Wyrley and Essington Canal even longer. This new law allowed the canal to be extended from Sneyd, past Lichfield, all the way to Huddlesford Junction where it met the Coventry Canal. This extension cost a lot of money, about £115,000.

The 1794 law also approved a branch to the Hay Head Limeworks, which became known as the Daw End branch. This new route to Lichfield was important because it made it quicker to transport coal to the Trent and Mersey Canal. Water supply was very important and carefully managed to protect other canals and local mills.

Finishing the Work: Money Troubles and Solutions

The Lichfield route to Huddlesford Junction opened on May 8, 1797. However, the company building the canal faced money problems because some shareholders didn't pay what they promised. In 1798, they even announced that the Hay Head branch couldn't be finished due to lack of funds.

Despite these issues, they managed to complete most of the work by April 1799. They borrowed more money to finish the Hay Head branch. Water supply was a big challenge, partly because water leaked into nearby mines. A major problem happened in 1799 when the dam of the Sneyd reservoir broke, causing a lot of damage. Things finally got better around 1800 when the large reservoir at Cannock Chase was completed, providing enough water.

How the Canal Was Used

The Wyrley and Essington Canal was built in a rural area, and its full importance became clear later, especially when the Cannock Chase coalfield opened in the late 1800s.

Bringing Benefits to Towns

The canal helped people in Lichfield get cheap coal. There was a regular boat service from Lichfield to Derby and Burton upon Trent. Boats also traveled from Wolverhampton to London, stopping at Lichfield three times a week. The canal helped new coal mines and limestone quarries develop near Bloxwich. An ironworks also grew in Goscote. The brick-making industry at Sneyd used coal from the canal to make bricks for new houses in Walsall. Other local businesses, like those making bits, locks, and tacks, also used the canal.

The Daw End Branch

The Daw End Branch connected Catshill Junction to limestone quarries at Hay Head. It was about 8.7 kilometres (5.4 miles) long and had no locks. It opened in 1800. The limestone from these quarries was known for being very good quality. This branch helped supply ingredients for a type of cement.

Challenges with the Essington Branch

The canal to Essington also had its ups and downs. There was often not enough water for its locks. The owner of most of the coal mines in the area, Henry Vernon, even tried to build a railway to avoid using the Essington Branch. This led to disagreements that lasted for years. The Essington Branch was only about 1.2 kilometres (0.75 miles) long and was the highest point on the Wyrley and Essington Canal. It was also the first part of the canal to close, in the 1830s.

Joining Forces: Amalgamation with BCN

The idea of joining the Wyrley and Essington Canal with the Birmingham Canal Navigations (BCN) was first discussed in 1820. The Wyrley and Essington company initially said no. However, over time, more people wanted a connection between the two canal systems, especially at Walsall. In 1840, the two companies finally agreed to merge, and a new law made it official in April of that year.

The BCN Era: New Connections and Growth

Once the Wyrley and Essington Canal became part of the Birmingham Canal Navigations, a lot of work began to connect the two systems.

Building New Links

• The Walsall Junction Canal was built first. It was a short section with eight locks that connected Birchills Junction to the Walsall Canal. It opened in 1841.
• The Bentley Canal was 5.5 kilometres (3.4 miles) long and went down through ten locks from Wednesfield Junction on the Wyrley and Essington to the Anson Branch. It opened in 1843.
• The Rushall Canal was 4.7 kilometres (2.9 miles) long and went down through nine locks from the end of the Daw End branch to join the Tame Valley Canal at Rushall Junction. It opened in 1847.

Birchills Junction - The branch to the Walsall Canal runs through the bridge on the right

These new connections built in the 1840s were very successful. In 1854, the BCN, which was then controlled by the London and North Western Railway (LNWR), got permission to do even more work.

The Cannock Extension Canal

A major project was building the Cannock Extension Canal. This branch connected Pelsall to the coal mining area of Hednesford, near Cannock. It also included two tramways (small railways). The Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal agreed to build a link from their Hatherton Branch to the new Cannock Extension Canal. This work was finished by 1860, and the Cannock branch opened in 1863.

The 1854 law also allowed for extensions to the Lord Hay's branch and the Wyrley Bank line, which were completed in 1857. These extensions cost over £100,000. Water for the Wyrley and Essington Canal came from the Cannock reservoir through a 2.4 kilometre (1.5 mile) feeder. In the early 1860s, new coal mines opened near the reservoir, so the feeder was made wider for boats. It became known as the Anglesey Branch.

Heavy coal traffic used the Cannock Extension Canal for its whole life. However, the ground sinking due to mining was a constant problem. To deal with this, the BCN put in special safety gates. These gates would close automatically if the canal broke, stopping water from flowing out.

Canal Size and Locks

Like other canals in the Midlands, the Wyrley and Essington was a "narrow" canal. This meant it could only fit narrowboats that were about 21.3 meters (70 feet) long and 2.1 meters (7 feet) wide.

The canal was flat and had no locks for 26.5 kilometres (16.5 miles) from the Birmingham Canal mainline at Horseley Fields Junction. After that, there were 30 locks that went down to Huddlesford over another 11.3 kilometres (7 miles).

Branches of the Canal

Several smaller branches were built to connect to different areas:

• The original mainline section from Sneyd to Wyrley Bank, later called a branch, opened in 1798. It was about 3.5 kilometres (2.2 miles) long with five locks. It was extended in 1799 but wasn't used by 1829. It reopened and was extended again in 1857 to serve mines near Great Wyrley. This branch was closed in 1955.
• The Birchills Branch opened in 1798 and was 3.4 kilometres (2.1 miles) long. In 1840, a link with eight locks was built to connect it to the Walsall Canal.
• The Daw End Branch from Catshill Junction to limestone quarries at Hay Head opened in 1800. It was about 8.7 kilometres (5.4 miles) long with no locks. Over the years, mining has caused the ground to sink, making the canal banks much taller than they used to be. The final section to the limeworks was closed in 1954. Today, the area around it, called Hay Head Woods, is a special place for nature.
• The Lord Hayes Branch was 1.4 kilometres (0.9 miles) long with no locks. It was built under the 1794 Act and closed in 1954.
• There were also three short branches at Gilpins, Slough, and Sandhills, which are all closed now.

The Canal Under Public Ownership

Like most British canals that still had a lot of boat traffic, the Birmingham Canal Navigations (including the Wyrley and Essington) became owned by the government on January 1, 1948. At first, the main goal was to make money, and leisure use of canals wasn't a priority.

Closures and Restoration Efforts

In 1954, a law was passed to close the Ogley Locks section of the Wyrley and Essington from Ogley Junction to Huddlesford Junction. Several branches also closed at this time, including the Sneyd and Wyrley Bank branch, the Lord Hayes branch, and part of the Hay Head branch. The Bentley Canal closed in 1961.

The Cannock Extension Canal closed soon after. In 1960, mining caused the canal bed to drop by 6.4 meters (21 feet). Even though the banks were rebuilt, commercial boats stopped using it in 1961. The canal north of the A5 road was closed three years later. The Churchbridge connection had closed in 1955 because traffic stopped on the Hatherton Branch due to ground sinking. The locks and most of the route north of the A5 have since been destroyed by opencast mining (a type of mining where coal is dug from the surface). Coal traffic on the branch from Anglesey Basin continued until 1967.

After the Ogley Locks section through Lichfield closed, much of it was sold off, and some parts were built over. However, many of the locks were just filled in, and their basic structures are still there. In 1989, the Lichfield & Hatherton Canals Restoration Trust was formed. In 1993, they shared detailed plans to restore the branch, calling it the Lichfield Canal. They have been making steady progress in bringing the canal back to life.

Part of the Lord Hayes branch might also be restored. It has been suggested as a good place to connect the Hatherton Canal if it is reopened.

Why "Curly Wyrley"?

The canal got its friendly nickname "Curly Wyrley" because it's a contour canal. This means it twists and turns a lot to avoid going up or down hills, which would require building locks. Over the years, some of these bends have been straightened because of ground sinking from mining.

Canal Route Highlights