Hawthorne Lane Underbridge

Hawthorne Lane Underbridge (Aqueduct)

Bridgewater Canal

April 2010

An impressive three arched aqueduct spanning a road and a dismantled railway immediately to the west of Watch House Cruising Club, near Waters Meeting.

Hawthorne Lane Underbridge (north)

Hawthorne Lane Underbridge (south)

Burford Lane Underbridge

Burford Lane Underbridge (Aqueduct)

Bridgewater Canal

April 2010

A classic Bridgewater design with a raised walkway to keep pedestrian's feet dry.

Burford Lane Underbridge (south)

Burford Lane Underbridge (north)

Dunham Underbridge (Aqueduct)

Dunham Underbridge

Bridgewater Canal

April 2010

A modern addition to the Bridgewater's Aqueducts, built in the 1980's as part of the breach repairs which included the narrows which reach from this underbridge to the River Bollin Aqueduct to the east.

Dunham Underbridge (south)

Dunham Underbridge (north)

Bollin Aqueduct

Bollin Aqueduct

Bridgewater Canal

April 2010

One of the more famous, or possibly infamous structures on the Bridgewater. This aqueduct and its surrounding embankment gave way in the 1980's, flooding a big area and took two years and several millions of pounds to repair.

Note the concrete butress to the  south added in the 1980's.

Bollin River Aqueduct -north portal

Bollin River Aqueduct - south portal

Bollington Underbridge (Aqueduct)

Bridgewater Canal

April 2010

Barsbank Underbridge (Aqueduct)

Barsbank Underbridge (Aqueduct)

Bridgewater Canal

April 2010

A very typical Bridgewater aqueduct, located on the western side on Lymm.

Barsbank Underbridge (north)

Barsbank Underbridge (south)

Walton Underbridge (Aqueduct)

Walton Underbridge (Aqueduct)

Bridgewater Canal

April 2010

Red Brow Underbridge (Aqueduct)

Red Brow Underbridge (Aqueduct)

Bridgewater Canal

April 2010

Notable as the first aqueduct eas one starts the Bridgewater canal form the west, near the Runcorn Arm.

Red Brow (west)

Red Brow (east)

Lumbrook Underbridge (Aqueduct)

Lumbrook Underbridge (Aqueduct)

Bridgewater Canal

April 2010

An unassuming concerete aqueduct just east of Stockton Heath.

Chester Road Underbridge (Aqueduct)

Chester Road Underbridge (Aqueduct)

Bridgewater Canal

April 2010

Aqueducts come thick and fast of the Bridgewater, and a particularly interesting one can be found in Stockton Heath, which carries the canal over both the road and the river.

Barton Aqueducts

Barton Aqueducts
Bridgewater and River Irwell / Manchester Ship Canal

Brindley's original

The very first aqueduct in the UK, conceived by the Duke of Bridgewater and built by James Brindley in 1761 to carry the Bridgewater Canal over the River Irwell. Demolished to make way for the unique Barton Swing Aqueduct. Today only the end abutments remain standing either side of the Manchester Ship Canal.

Brindleys original in the 1880's, pre Manchester Ship Canal

http://www.pittdixon.go-plus.net/

Just before demolition in 1891

en.wikipedia.org

Barton Swing Aqueduct

Built in 1893 to replace Brindleys original masonry version as the Irwell Navigation was expanded into the Manchester Ship Canal.

This iconic structure was designed by Edward L Williams, who was also involved in the construction of the equally famous Anderton Boat Lift, and built by Andrew Handyside.

The structure remains impresive even today, swinging its 235 ft / 1450 ton trough round at 90 degrees on a central pivot to allow ships to pass along the once busy MSC.

http://www.idf50.co.uk/clubhouse/photography-studio/13671-barton-swing-aqueduct.html

Commercial activity in the 1950's
http://www.heritageexplorer.org.uk/web/he/searchdetail.aspx?id=2032&crit=ship

Bollin Aqueduct

Bollin Aqueduct

Bridgewater Canal

This may not be the most spectacular aqueduct, built to carry the Bridgewater Canal over the river Bollin, but it certainly has some contemporary history.

http://mywarrington.me.uk/

In 1971 the canal breached the embankment beside the aqueduct, gouging a 90 foot ravine through theembankment to reach the river 34 feet below.

The repairs cost £250,000 and resulted in a major rumpus about who was liable. Manchester Ship Canal (owners of the canal) were within thier rights to abandon the canal, or pipe the water over the breach, but in the end a consortium of interested partied formed a trust to operate the waterway and the breach was fixed. The waterway was reopened to through traffic in September 1973.

There isnt much to see on the ground now except a long concrete narrows, which bridges the site of the breach.

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/