Portsmouth and Arundel Canal
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The Portsmouth and Arundel Canal was a canal in the south of England that ran between Portsmouth and Ford in the Arundel district. It was built in 1823 but was never a financial success and was abandoned in 1855; the company was wound up in 1888.<ref name="armstrong144"/> The canal was part of a larger scheme for the construction of a secure inland canal route from London to Portsmouth, which allowed craft to move between the two without having to venture into the English Channel and possibly encounter enemy ships or natural disaster. It was built by the Portsmouth & Arundel Navigation company. The canal was made up of three sections: a pair of ship canals, one on Portsea Island and one to Chichester, and a barge canal that ran from Ford on the River Arun to Hunston where it joined the Chichester section of the canal
Ford to Hunston Section
[edit]This section of the canal connected the river Arun at Ford to the junction with the Chichester arm of the canal.<ref name=green18 /> It had two locks at Ford to allow the canal to drop 12 feet down to the river.<ref name=green18 />
Hunston to Birdham Section
[edit]This section (technically part of the Ship Canal) links Chichester Harbour at Birdham with the junction at Hunston.<ref name=green21 /> It contains two locks: Casher's or Manhood End Lock and Saltern's sea lock.<ref name=green21 /> The canal was built to ship canal standards, 8 feet deep and 46 feet 8 inches wide,<ref name=green21/> with locks 18 ft wide.
Chichester Ship Canal
[edit]Template:Main The Chichester Ship Canal ran from the sea lock at Birdham to the junction of the Portsmouth and Arundel Canal at Hunston and then north to a basin in the south of the city of Chichester.<ref name=green24 />
The Portsea Canal section
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This section of the canal ran from Langstone Harbour, across the east and central areas of Portsea Island through Milton, Fratton and Landport ending at a canal basin on what is now Arundel Street, which was named after the canal.<ref name=TC_PLC16 /> This section of the canal was built to what were then small ship canal standards and could take ships of up to 150 tons.<ref name=ltp118>Template:Cite book</ref> There were 2 locks at Milton (a sea lock and an upper lock)
The tidal channels
[edit]The Portsea section was connected to the rest via a 13-mile channel dredged through Chichester Harbour, past the southern side of Thorney Island (original plan was to go around the northern side) and to the north of Hayling Island, and finally across Langstone Harbour.<ref name=hantswaterways /> To ease passage between the Chichester and the Portsea sections a steam vessel, the Egremont, was made to tow 40-ton barges in trains of six.<ref name=TC_PLC30 /> For a while the company also made Portsbridge Creek navigable.<ref name=Vine103 />
History
[edit]Planning and construction
[edit]Template:Infobox UK legislation Template:Infobox UK legislation
The plan for the canal was completed in 1815 and the act of Parliament, the Template:Visible anchor (57 Geo. 3. c. lxiii), passed in 1817.<ref name=TC_PLC9 /> At this stage costs were estimated at £119,000 rising to £125,452 in 1818.<ref name=TC_PLC /> Construction started in 1818 and the canal was finished in 1823, at a cost of £170,000. The resident engineer was James Hollinsworth who was paid £500 per annum.<ref name=green12 />
To supply the canal with water a pumping engine was installed at Ford to pump water from the Arun.<ref name=green18 /> Since the Arun is tidal at Ford the act of Parliament only allowed water to be taken from the river between two hours after high water and one hour after low.<ref name=green18 /> This was to prevent salt water from entering the canal.<ref name=green18 /> In order to allow the passage of masted ships iron swing bridges were fitted to the Chichester and Portsea sections rather than the more typical hump back canal bridge.<ref name=TC_PLC />
Operation
[edit]From the beginning the canal was plagued with various problems, and in 1827 the Portsea section of the canal had to be drained due to complaints about salt water contamination in some of Portsmouth's wells. In 1845 parts of this section were sold to the London and Brighton railway company with another section being sold to the company in 1851.<ref name=TC_PLC />
In 1830 tolls were reduced and for a while traffic picked up with cargoes including 20 tons of marble from the Mediterranean for the king. In the same year the company made Ports Creek navigable to allow the passage of barges around the north of Portsea Island to Portsmouth Harbour.<ref name=Vine103/> The canal was also used to transport gold and silver for the Bank of England.<ref name=ChichesterCanalp14 /> The canal was unable to compete with the sea routes and by 1832 the canal company was being forced to do the carrying itself. By 1847 the canal, with the exception of the Chichester arm, had ceased to be navigable.<ref name=wswp32 />
Later activities
[edit]
On the remaining Portsea Section the issue of maintaining the various bridges became an issue of concern until the company managed to buy itself out of the requirement to maintain them.<ref name=TC_PLC />
The Chichester arm was transferred to the Corporation of Chichester by Chichester Canal Transfer Act 1892 (55 & 56 Vict. c. cxxxviii), the same year in which the canal company was wound up (the winding up order having been applied for in 1888).
Post canal company
[edit]Some visible remains of the Portsea Section still exist in 2011. A section of the Portsmouth-London mainline railway follows the course of the canal between Portsmouth & Southsea and Fratton stations. Beyond them Goldsmith Avenue was constructed along the line of the canal.<ref name=Russell53>Template:Cite book</ref> Off Goldsmith Avenue, the east-west route of the canal can still be traced by more recent residential development along Old Canal and Towpath Mead roads. The tow-path follows the course of the foot-path just north of the caravan site and allotments on the south side of Locksway Road at its easternmost end, with the canal to the north side of this. There is evidence that the canal was filled in here with coke from the local gas works. The remains of the lock into Langstone Harbour are also still in evidence.<ref name=consbooklet /> The lock has been a conservation area since 1977 and is a grade II listed structure.<ref name=consbooklet /> In 1979 Portsmouth City Council agreed to spend £35,000 over the next decade to refurbish the lock.<ref name=Riley89>Template:Cite book</ref>
See also
[edit]- Canals of Great Britain
- Wey and Arun Canal - the two canals together being intended to give secure inland waterway access between London and the naval base at Portsmouth.
