Editing Industrial Revolution (section)

====Canals and improved waterways====
{{Main|History of the British canal system}}
[[File:Barton-on-Irwell 11.05.02R.jpg|thumb|The [[Bridgewater Canal]], which proved very commercially successful, crossed the [[Manchester Ship Canal]], one of the last canals to be built.]]
Before and during the Industrial Revolution navigation on British rivers was improved by removing obstructions, straightening curves, widening and deepening, and building navigation [[Lock (water navigation)|locks]]. Britain had over {{convert|1000|mi|km|order=flip}} of navigable rivers and streams by 1750.<ref name="David S. Landes 1969"/>{{rp|46}} Canals and waterways allowed [[Bulk cargo|bulk materials]] to be economically transported long distances inland. This was because a horse could pull a barge with a tens of times larger than could be drawn in a cart.<ref name="McNeil1990" /><ref name="Grübler">{{Cite book
 | last1 = Grübler
 | first1 = Arnulf
 | title = The Rise and Fall of Infrastructures: Dynamics of Evolution and Technological Change in Transport
 | year = 1990
 | publisher = Physica-Verlag
 | location = Heidelberg and New York
 | url = http://www.iiasa.ac.at/Admin/PUB/Documents/XB-90-704.pdf
 | access-date = 30 January 2013
| archive-date = 1 March 2012
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120301221205/http://www.iiasa.ac.at/Admin/PUB/Documents/XB-90-704.pdf
 }}</ref>

Canals began to be built in the UK in the late 18th century to link major manufacturing centres. Known for its huge commercial success, the [[Bridgewater Canal]] in [[North West England]], was opened in 1761 and mostly funded by [[Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater|The 3rd Duke of Bridgewater]]. From [[Worsley]] to the rapidly growing town of [[Manchester]] its construction cost £168,000 (£{{formatnum:{{Inflation|UK|168000|1761|2013|r=-1}}}} {{As of|2013|lc=y}}),{{Inflation-fn|UK|df=y}}<ref>{{Harvnb|Timbs|1860|p=363}}</ref> but its advantages over land and river transport meant that within one year, the coal price in Manchester fell by half.<ref name="Bridgewatercollieries">{{cite news |newspaper=The Times |title=Bridgewater Collieries |url=http://archive.timesonline.co.uk/tol/viewArticle.arc?toDate=1985-12-31&fromDate=1785-01-01&currentPageNumber=1&resultsPerPage=10&sortBy=default&offset=0&viewName=&addFilters=&removeFilters=&addCat=&queryKeywords=bridgewater+canal&sectionId=1040&currPgSmartSet=1&pageId=ARCHIVE-The_Times-1913-12-01-08&articleId=ARCHIVE-The_Times-1913-12-01-08-001&xmlpath=&pubId=17&totalResults=1638&addRefineFilters=&removeRefineFilters=&addRefineCat=&next_Page=false&prev_Page=false&date_dd_From=1&date_mm_From=01&date_yyyy_From=1785&date_dd_to_range=31&date_mm_to_range=12&date_yyyy_to_range=1985&date_dd_from_precise=1&date_mm_from_precise=01&date_yyyy_from_precise=1785&isDateSearch=false&dateSearchType=range&refineQuerykeywordText= |date=1 December 1913 |access-date=19 July 2008 | location=London}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> This success inspired [[Canal Mania]],<ref>{{Harvnb|Kindleberger|1993|pp=192–193}}</ref> canals were hastily built with the aim of replicating the commercial success of Bridgewater, the most notable being the [[Leeds and Liverpool Canal]] and the [[Thames and Severn Canal]] which opened in 1774 and 1789 respectively.

By the 1820s a national network was in existence. Canal construction served as a model for the organisation and methods used to construct the railways. They were largely superseded by the railways from the 1840s. The last major canal built in the UK was the [[Manchester Ship Canal]], which upon opening in 1894 was the world's largest [[ship canal]],<ref>{{Cite news |title=1 January 1894: Opening of the Manchester ship canal |quote=Six years in the making, the world's largest navigation canal gives the city direct access to the sea |url=https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/from-the-archive-blog/2011/may/17/guardian190-manchester-ship-canal-opens |newspaper=The Guardian |date=1 January 1894 |access-date=28 July 2012 |archive-date=17 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210517080559/https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/from-the-archive-blog/2011/may/17/guardian190-manchester-ship-canal-opens |url-status=live }}</ref> and opened Manchester as a [[Port of Manchester|port]]. However, it never achieved the commercial success its sponsors hoped for and signalled canals as a dying transport mode in an age dominated by railways, which were quicker and often cheaper. Britain's canal network, and its mill buildings, is one of the most enduring features of the Industrial Revolution to be seen in Britain.<ref>{{Cite web |title=A History of the Canals of Britain |url=https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryMagazine/DestinationsUK/The-Canals-of-Britain/ |access-date=2022-10-13 |website=Historic UK |language=en-GB |archive-date=13 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221013112947/https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryMagazine/DestinationsUK/The-Canals-of-Britain/ |url-status=live }}</ref>