Talk on 22nd January 2020

On January 22nd, Pat Clarke talked to us about ‘Walking the Leeds Liverpool Canal’, and provided an illustrated talk full of interesting facts.

The canal was built over a period of almost 50 years, starting in 1770. Its length, more than twice the crow-fly distance between the two cities, was due to its connecting up major towns on its route, and the requirement to follow land contours. The canal links to all the other canals throughout the country, and it connected the UK with the rest of the world, even being used to ship convicts to Australia via Liverpool!

Pat showed us some of the remaining industrial archaeology associated with the canal, including its 100 locks, 250 original bridges, a couple of tunnels (one a mile long) and 7 reservoirs.

The Canal and River Trust is now responsible for maintaining and developing its infrastructure. Regeneration of industrial buildings from their original functions in the Industrial Revolution has resulted in apartments, offices, museums and many other enterprises, while the canal itself is now primarily leisure and tourism focused.