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| Volume 7, Number 2 - Summer 2009 | |
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A Letter to the EditorDear Dave Thanks for another interesting issue of Canal Cuttings (Vol. 6 Number 12. 2008/9 - ed.). I was interested to see the pictures of Warrington (Arpley) Railway Bridge. It had a footway on the upstream side which I used as a shortcut around Bridge Foot for five years whilst cycling to and from work between Stockton Heath and Sankey. May I speculate that the Flat is of pre-1836 build - constructed before the year, when the Weaver Navigation locks were lengthened. These boats often had their name carved in the left side of the transom and the place of build or registration carved on the right. The last one to survive virtually complete and afloat was the DARESBURY, which the British Transport Commission claimed in print that they were preserving. It had 'Northwich' carved on the right of the transom. So the same location could well have been carved on the SUSAN. DARESBURY was - with many other wooden vessels - sunk on the Weaver and some may remember was the subject of an abortive proposal by some of us in The Boat Museum Society to raise the remains and rebuild her.
Regarding Fidlers Ferry Lock: You will see from my picture of 17 June 1961 (above) that the top gates are fairly new. (It may also be noted that they didn't leak much - unlike their 1984 modern replacements, as seen on page 9! - DL) Also, in another closer picture of the stone lock walls, they had been patched with recent brickwork. I have no idea why this work was done, although - on a high levelling tide - it might have been possible to get a boat through if required. However, I would suggest that the framing timbers shown on Mr Hall's picture at the top of p.18 are from the dismantled existing top gates and the fact that they were not that old (by waterway terms) explains their apparent good condition. Best wishes,
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