Reports from our Talks Programme
By Peter Keen

November 2004: West Bank Dock : Albert Constable

The final terminus of the Sankey canal at Spike Island witnessed the passage of large tonnages of cargo as coal and chemicals were carried to and from the Mersey, either directly by canal flats or via the Runcorn Gap Railway Dock. The establishment of John Hutchinson's, Muspratt's and Gossage's chemical works at Widnes occupied both banks of the canal by the mid 1800s and there was little room for expansion, only poor marshland being available to the east of the railway dock.

When Hutchinson wished to expand his premises therefore he bought land further westwards where he built one of the earliest industrial estates in the country, complete with its own railway network. He had already built dwellings for his workers and his next step was to begin a new dock on the West Bank of the peninsula. This was originally planned to be smaller than the railway dock on the east bank but eventually expanded to provide a much larger water area. The first dock was in operation by 1864, before the railway viaduct was built and the railway company had to agree to make two of its arches capable of accepting masted flats. The dock had its own mobile crane and could accept vessels up to 100 tons.

Hutchinson never lived to see the full extent of his plans as he died in 1860. His sons were too young to take over the company so trustees were appointed to continue the business.

A Major James Cross, previously resident engineer on the St. Helens Railway and Canal Company, was made Manager of the dock. Expansion was slow since there was limited money available form the company and there was a decrease in trade as a result of the American Civil War. These were to be the first of many difficulties.

At one stage the Canal and Railway company had agreed to extent the canal below the railway viaduct to West Bank . It would then have continued through the dock and parallel to the coast to reach the sea at Hale Head, eliminating the need to navigate through the narrow fast -flowing Runcorn Gap and offering a longer period of accessibility at high tide. In the event it was never built.

A major difficulty occurred when the Manchester Ship Canal Company decided to demolish Snig Rock which was a considerable hazard to navigation in the Mersey. This was done and the hazard removed but unfortunately it had the effect of moving the river channel from the north bank alongside West Bank Dock to the south bank alongside Runcorn. Although Cross had built up the traffic from an early 100,000 tons to 400,000 tons per year, the build up of mud began to restrict access to the dock and trade fell off back to the 100,000 tons. Whilst Liverpool dredged 40 tons of mud per acre to maintain navigable draught, Widnes had to dredge 100 tons per acre. At Widnes this was carried out by a floating crane with a mud hopper. Suction dredging had been tried and a bucket dredger was planned, but whether this actually arrived is not known.

In the later 1860s the first major improvement took place with the construction of some coal tipplers to speed up the loading of coal from wagons in the extensive sidings alongside the dock. The first one had been built too low and it was necessary to lower the water level in the dock to load the boats but later ones were higher and avoided this problem. The increased height resulted in coal breaking up during loading, but fortunately it was destined for the chemical industry which needed "small" coal.

In 1900 Cross retired , to be replaced for a short period by Captain Clancey but he was only in post for a short while before leaving, his position being taken by William Hale Earl, a sea going engineer. He built a further two coal tips between 1903 and 1906. He began to use his own labourers as dockers instead of contracting out and was soon loading 500,000 tons of bunkering coal per year for just the Cunard and White Star Lines. Horses had been used to shunt wagons round the dock but small steam locomotives were gradually introduced.

By this time a western arm of the dock had been constructed. Fierce eddies outside the lock gates caused considerable difficulties and ships had to enter the dock backwards which needed the expertise of the pilot service, an extra expense. Electric cranes were introduced to unload silver sand from Scotland and river sand from Liverpool Bay, both destined for Pilkingtons' glass furnaces. A photograph from the 1960s shows a still busy dock with a ship unloading pit props, other cargoes being scrap metal, fertiliser, potash and asbestos sheeting.

The building of the Jubilee Bridge signalled the end for West Bank Dock. Its piers caused silting, reducing river depth to only 8 feet, insufficient for the vessels which had been using it. These went across river to Runcorn, leaving West Bank for the pleasure boaters. In the fifties and sixties there were fewer boats in the English merchant fleet since they had a statutory minimum number of crew which was higher than the ships of other countries. It was cheaper therefore to use foreign shipping but they had little incentive to visit the upper Mersey.

In 1967 our speaker was appointed as Manager of the dock. It was not prospering but could not be closed because of previously legal agreements. Some small oil tankers could still access the dock but the quays were in a poor state of repair and there were large amounts of potash taking up space. The 1967 outbreak of foot and mouth resulted in the stoppage of the fertiliser trade leading to tonnages handled becoming as low as in the 1860s. By this time the only source of water for the docks was high tide in the Mersey, with all its variations and attendant problems, not the least of which was the silting. It is hardly surprising therefore that the docks were wound up and filled in during 1970, using mainly clay excavated during the construction of the Runcorn Expressway.

Mr. Constable showed some excellent photographs both historical and more recent. The Society was fortunate to be able to view this unique record of John Hutchinson's dream, the difficulties of its working life and its eventual demise.

January 2005: The Boat Museum Society of Ellesmere Port: Mike Turpin

Mike's presentation took the form of a history of the Ellesmere Port Museum followed by a description of the future plans for the site, making use of a Heritage Lottery grant.

In the early 1960s, during last days of cargo carrying on British canals, the Boating Society was formed. In 1969-70 the North West Museum of Inland navigation was set up and the Boating Society became part of the enterprise. Its major objectives were to collect and preserve representative boats and maintain the building and maintenance skills and techniques which produced them. Initially there was no home for the boats so some were kept at Preston brook until Ellesmere Port became available and the move was made. (Left) The site provided water areas, various buildings, including Telford's island warehouses, and canal links via various locks to the national canal network and the Manchester Ship Canal, thence to the Mersey and the open sea.

Although the port had seen prosperity in the past by 1970 the site was derelict , water areas polluted and buildings decayed and vandalised. As a transhipment port from ocean going craft to canal boats it had been a principal employer in the region but the rise of the railways and the increasing flexibility of the road system brought all this to an end. There was much to be done.

Efforts were made to make some of the buildings serviceable whilst increasing number of boats began to appear on the scene, one Leeds Liverpool canal boat making a unique journey on a low loader through the Mersey Tunnel. Sadly Telford's warehouse was burned down and had to be demolished otherwise it would have formed an excellent home for exhibitions and displays. A temporary dry dock was built (which is still there), and the number of boat repairs being carried out began to increase. It was considered that the recent increase in canal restoration societies would be of little use without the boats which sailed them so workshops were developed to provide these. Small exhibitions were mounted in buildings as soon as they had been made serviceable and as the larger building were pressed into service the exhibitions became larger.

By 2000 the museum had a large selection of craft from canals all over Britain, the upper floor of a large warehouse was fitted up as an exhibition area and café whilst its lower floor formed the boat repair/rebuilding workshops. The old toll house housed its own exhibits, the Tom Rolt Conference and Education Centre was in great demand, whilst other ancillary buildings had been restored to former uses including stables, blacksmiths shop, steam engine house and cottages. There is also an extensive waterway archive, and large collection of artefacts, available to all, providing the opportunity for individuals or societies to research their particular interests.

These were all accompanied by refurbished quays and restored locks, both narrow and broad, improved pedestrian areas and regular boat trips along the canal. Such has been the appeal of the Museum that a boat rally, held as a one off thirty years ago, has become a regular Easter event with one boater having attended every one of them.

Right: The forest of masts of Mersey Flats at the top of this page is a poignant reminder of the sad fact that none of the standard sailing vessels of the Mersey and the Lancashire coast survives anywhere. Only MOSSDALE, a towed dumb flat, exists at the Museum as a reminder of the general construction of the boats for which the Sankey was built.

Project 25 : The refurbishment of the Museum.

Ellesmere Port, the Gloucester Waterway Museum and the Stoke Bruerne Canal Museum now form the National Waterways Museum, under the aegis of the Waterways Trust, but, unlike the National Railway Museum, receives no government grant towards its maintenance and development. Allowing free entry to public museums has resulted in a loss of custom for Ellesmere Port since it cannot afford to allow free entry if it is to finance its objectives and many potential visitors prefer the free options elsewhere. In an attempt to solve this problem an application was made for funding to improve the museum and this was granted. Even with the grant a great deal of the work will have to be carried out by volunteers.

A new entrance area is to be built incorporating a café and gift shop. At present these are on different sites within the Museum. Whilst the locks are in good conditions the tow paths and walkways between them are in need of improvement, especially to allow access for those with mobility problems. There is to be an updated site orientation system with interpretation displays leading the visitors from one exhibit to another. Boat interpretation will be improved and expanded to include historical events in the lives of the individual boats. The exhibition area will be doubled to allow the museum to display materials which are seldom on public view. In the past the Museum's policy has been to collect everything which was offered but this has resulted in a large stock of unrelated and sometimes unknown connection with waterway world. There will have to be a great deal of sorting and winnowing of these materials.

The present toll house is to become the orientation centre with maps and displays designed to ensure that the visitor sees everything that is available. Elsewhere in the building will be a section on "Today's Canals" giving information on towpath walking , the national water grid, cargoes, waterway leisure and conservation. A new floating bridge will allow access to the new lower exhibition hall. The upper floor will house more materials on "life on the Canals" including boat biographies and people biographies.

The Museum staff and its volunteers must build upon its present funding base to pay for the anticipated work. A great deal of design work will be needed for all aspects of the improvement, from ground services to shop design. The collection of artefacts will need to be reviewed, assembled into a coherent pattern then mounted for display. For each exhibit there must be an explanation, which means that someone has to write down the words for the many hundreds of items which will be on display. During all this work the project will have to be carefully managed to ensure that objectives are achieved and time money and effort do not go to waste.

At present the Museum owns 79 boats, 14,500 objects and 80,000 records. Whilst the majority of the objects and records are secure, stored or exhibited in controlled locations to keep them in good condition the situation with the boats is not quite as cheerful. Many have a limited life if left as they are, slowly decaying as they lie moored alongside the quays. Sadly it is the boat building side of the Museum which is being hardest hit.

If the waterway museums are to be efficient in acting as custodians of Britain's canal heritage they are going to need greater financial support. Whilst Ellesmere Port receives 100,000 visitors per year, 10,000 of these are educational visits at reduced charge and the £1m annual income which they bring is not enough to do all that needs doing. The Nation al Railway Museum receives £6m per year , the boat Museum £1m . Mike concluded his talk by asking all Society members to help with the on-going appeal to bring more money to the waterways. Information on how to do this is available on the web site: www.boatmuseum.org.uk.

February: The East Side Development Plan: Bob Massingham

In February the Society was fortunate to be addressed by Mr. Bob Massingham, the officer responsible for the East Side Project. This aims to revitalise that part of St. Helens to the east of Shaw Street, as far south as the linkway and as far north as Pocket Nook gasworks site. The East Side is not an easy project, split as it is by roads, railways and the canal but there were some excellent sites for investigation. There is further difficulty in the multi-ownership of various plots of land but this is not the huge problem it used to be as owners recognise the possible benefits and respond positively.

Bob first made reference to the 1998 Unitary Development Plan which included conclusions from outside consultants that the eastern part of the town was in need of a considerable amount of improvement. A number of development areas were identified, each of which could be tackled individually but each of which would contribute towards the overall development of the area. With the passage of time some of the site mentioned in the UDP have been completed but, with changes in the economy and social requirements, others just did not take place.

The George Street Quarter has been judged as a success, now presenting a clean and pleasant aspect, with new businesses and dwellings bringing increased prosperity. The area to the north of St. Helens Central Station was to be developed as a business area but more recent thinking indicates that it would be better to build more apartments and houses to bring more people back to the town centre. The Atlas Street / Atlas Court development is currently under way with a proposed new road and extensive heath care facilities planned. The railway station itself is to be rebuilt to a completely new design incorporating a great deal of glass, as would be expected in St. Helens. Although beyond the designated area, the proposed stadium site could be tied in with new pedestrian routes from stations to ground.

The major item to interest SCARS is of course the reinstatement of 200 metres of the canal to the south of Corporation Street. Planning permission has been granted and British Waterways is carrying out more detailed design work which will become available in May 2005.

The newly restored section will be to navigable standard. Planning and site investigation have been easy to fund but the actual work is more difficult to finance. The anticipated cost is £3/4M which will come from private investors and St. Helens MBC. It is expected that the canal side sites will be attractive to investors as such sites have been all over the country. The canal corridor is one of the few green spaces in the town and is therefore a valuable amenity. The new terminus of the canal, hopefully with a winding hole, will be surrounded by development, using the water as an integral feature.

There remain many blockages within the town centre but most of the water areas will eventually have been restored. A major obstacle is the planned re-opening of the St. Helens Junction railway, with its fixed crossing of the canal. Replacing it with a swing bridge, which it had originally (see right) is not considered practicable, though they exist elsewhere in England on navigable canals. The embankment at the Hotties is at least elevated above the canal level, and the reinstatement of a proper bridge would allow navigable head room.

Bob concluded by inviting the Society to investigate the display boards which he had brought along and he spent some considerable time answering questions. It proved to be an informative and enjoyable evening all round and the Society is grateful to Bob for his input.

Index for this issue     Index of all Canal Cuttings issues      Home Page

Site design and content © 2002 - 2005 Sankey Canal Restoration Society
Site design by Phil D.Long