95-562: Butterley Tunnel is a 3,083-yard (2,819 m) disused canal tunnel on the Cromford Canal below Ripley , in Derbyshire , England , opened to traffic in 1794. Along with Butterley Works blast furnaces, part of the canal tunnel and its underground wharf were declared a scheduled monument in 2013. The tunnel was 2,966 yard (2712m) long, 9 ft (2.7 m) wide at water level, and 8 ft (2.4 m) from water to soffit (depending on
190-560: A 1.3-mile (2.1 km) length between Leawood Pumphouse and Cromford Wharf with the aim of making it navigable for narrowboats. Derbyshire CC funded this work, which was carried out by Ebsfleet Environmental using suction dredgers. The Friends of the Cromford Canal obtained a trip boat, originally built as a butty in 1938, but which had been used for trips on the Caldon Canal at Froghall until 2010. It arrived at Langley Mill in 2013, where
285-643: A branch to Pinxton. This would carry coal to Cromford, which was becoming industrialised, and limestone from the area for the growing iron industry. Also important would be lead from Wirksworth and cotton from the Cromford mills. The connection to the Erewash Canal would provide an outlet to the Trent and Mersey Canal and the rest of the country. The canal therefore attracted the support of some powerful figures such as Philip Gell of Hopton Hall and Sir Richard Arkwright –
380-406: A capacity of 250,000 litres (55,000 imp gal; 66,000 US gal), are fitted between the ends of the arms. The caissons, or gondolas, always carry a combined weight of 500 tonnes (490 long tons; 550 short tons) of water and boats, with the gondolas themselves each weighing 50 tonnes (49 long tons; 55 short tons). Care is taken to maintain the water levels on each side, thus balancing
475-459: A day to pass through the flight. By the 1930s these had fallen into disuse, and the locks were dismantled in 1933. The Forth and Clyde Canal closed at the end of 1962, and by the mid-1970s the Union Canal was filled in at both ends, rendered impassable by culverts in two places and run in pipes under a housing estate. The British Waterways Board (BWB) came into existence on 1 January 1963,
570-507: A decade, with the last group assisting the canal in 1988. Other groups which provided volunteer labour included engineering apprentices, Girl Guides , trainee nurses, Matlock Fire Brigade, Alfreton young offenders, Scouts , Foreign Exchange students and Army personnel. The Leawood steam pumping station was restored to working order. Volunteers began visiting it in 1971, by agreement with the British Waterways Board, to assess what
665-530: A gearing mechanism using three large identically sized gears connected by two smaller ones ensures that they turn at precisely the correct speed and remain correctly balanced. Each end of each caisson is supported on small wheels, which run on rails on the inside face of the 8 m (26 ft) diameter holes at the ends of the arms. The rotation is controlled by a train of gears: an alternating pattern of three 8 m (26 ft) diameter ring gears and two smaller idler gears, all with external teeth, as shown in
760-594: A lock was removed as part of a flood prevention scheme. Before the canal was abandoned because it no longer server a commercial purpose, there were official moves to consider its future. As part of the parliamentary discussion for the Transport Bill in November 1952, the British Transport Commission talked to various county and local authorities to see whether they would be interested in acquiring canals, and
855-426: A number of bridges, as well as 600 m (2,000 ft) of access roads. The 180 m (590 ft) Rough Castle Tunnel was driven in three stages, with the two upper quarters being drilled with a standard excavator before the lower half was dug using a modified road planer in 100 mm (4 in) layers. This technique was 15% cheaper and reduced the build time of the tunnel by two weeks. The ground on which
950-423: A pair of hydraulic pumps that drive the hydraulic motors in the chamber above. Power is supplied directly to the axle with 10 hydraulic motors, which also double as brakes. Connected to each motor is a 100:1 gear system to reduce the rotation speed. The caissons are required to turn with the wheel in order to remain level. Whilst the weight of the caissons on the bearings is generally sufficient to rotate them,
1045-471: A pre-requisite to building the actual canal. These involved culverting two watercourses that crossed the work site, and the creation of a flood compensation area, since the canal will run across the Erewash flood plain, reducing its capacity. Spoil removed from the compensation area will be used to build up the banks of the new canal channel. Concern about whether the bridge foundations are strong enough to support
SECTION 10
#17328524872351140-526: A problem. The assumption had been that water would come from Cromford Sough , the drainage from the Wirksworth lead mines. Arkwright complained that the canal crossed his land and insisted that water should be obtained from the river by raising the height of the weir at Masson Mill . This was an unwelcome complication (which would mainly benefit Arkwright himself and his mill) but the canal committee reluctantly agreed. The canal obtained its act of Parliament ,
1235-638: A station behind Newlands Inn approximately 100 yards (91 m) East of the Butterley Tunnel's eastern portal. This section of the GVLR's track crosses the site of the Butterley Park Reservoir. The GVLR operates for the benefit of tourists and is part of the Midland Railway - Butterley . The Newlands Inn served the Cromford Canal as a place where the narrow boat horses were changed and probably where
1330-515: A trip on the John Gray from Cromford to Gregory Dam, beyond the tunnel, and back to Cromford. This was the only passenger boat to use this section of the canal, as heavy rainfall and high winds in February 1989 resulted in three spillways becoming blocked, and the canal over-topping its banks in two places, the first of which was at the same place that a breach had occurred in 1920. The canal beyond Leawood
1425-654: Is a rotating boat lift in Tamfourhill , Falkirk , in central Scotland , connecting the Forth and Clyde Canal with the Union Canal . It opened in 2002 as part of the Millennium Link project, reconnecting the two canals for the first time since the 1930s. The plan to regenerate central Scotland 's canals and reconnect Glasgow with Edinburgh was led by British Waterways with support and funding from seven local authorities,
1520-416: Is itself crossed by a stone railway embankment currently used by the locomotives of the Midland Railway - Butterley 's preserved steam railway. Water flowed from the reservoir directly into the tunnel via an adit 600 yards (550 m) along the tunnel from the western portal. Above the eastern portal the Butterley Park Reservoir once provided water to the canal. This Reservoir was filled in during 1935. Both
1615-537: The Cromford Canal Act 1789 ( 29 Geo. 3 . c. 74). Perhaps because they had quoted too little, basing their estimates on Jessop's cost predictions which may themselves have been too optimistic, the contractors soon found themselves in financial difficulties and, at the end of 1790, simply walked off the site. Benjamin Outram hastily took over full management control and was awarded a salary increase. In January 1792 there
1710-482: The Butterley Company 's old foundry buildings exposed the original blast furnace , dating to 1790. In front of the furnace is at least one vertical shaft, now capped off, which leads down to a short tunnel which connects with the canal tunnel close to the wharf area. Additionally, a number of deep drains below these buildings probably link to the canal tunnel. The site is now occupied by Butterley Engineering, one of
1805-517: The Butterley Company 's quarry at Crich with a plateway to the Amber Wharf at Bullbridge. In an attempt to avoid using cable-haulage or a rack and pinion system, a remarkable steam engine, the "Steam Horse" was tried out in 1813. In 1840 when the North Midland Railway was built, George Stephenson was faced with the problem at Bullbridge of taking the line over the road but under
1900-682: The Butterley Tunnel took it through to the Erewash Valley . From the tunnel it continued to Ironville, the junction for the branch to Pinxton, and then descended through fourteen locks to meet the Erewash Canal at Langley Mill . The Pinxton Branch became important as a route for Nottinghamshire coal, via the Erewash, to the River Trent and Leicester and was a terminus of the Mansfield and Pinxton Railway . A 6-mile (9.7 km) long section of
1995-455: The Cromford Canal into two. The tunnel has not yet been repaired. Rudolph de Salis undertook a government funded survey of the tunnel in 1904 but his report was not favourable. Rudolph de Salis was a director of Fellows Morton & Clayton , a prominent canal freight company. A third tunnel collapse in 1907 and a government report by Sir William Matthews KCMG in June 1907 ended hopes of repairing
SECTION 20
#17328524872352090-507: The Cromford Canal near to the Derbyshire village of Cromford itself. The tunnel has been extended twice since it was originally built. The Midland Railway's Ripley to Heanor branch was built across the front of the western portal with a new section of tunnel passing underneath bringing the total length at this time to 3063 yards (2801m). After the tunnel's closure the A38 road was built over
2185-541: The European Regional Development Fund . The Morrison–Bachy Soletanche Joint Venture Team submitted their original design, which resembled a Ferris wheel with four gondolas, in 1999. It was agreed by all parties that the design was functional, but not the showpiece the BWB were looking for. After being asked to reconsider, a 20-strong team of architects and engineers was assembled by British Waterways. Under
2280-773: The Glenfinnan Viaduct and the Forth Bridge . In March 1999 Donald Dewar , the Secretary of State for Scotland , cut the first sod of turf to begin work at lock 31 on the Forth and Clyde Canal. Over 1000 people were employed in the construction of the wheel, which was designed to last for at least 120 years. The wheel was fully constructed and assembled at the Butterley Engineering plant in Ripley , Derbyshire . The structure
2375-650: The High Peak Junction of the Cromford and High Peak Railway . In late 2020, the Friends of the Cromford Canal were granted planning permission for a 0.5-mile (0.8 km) extension of the canal from Langley Mill towards Cromford, to be known as the Beggarlee Extension. The planning process took four years, as both Amber Valley and Broxtowe councils required onerous conditions to be met. The original route in this area
2470-776: The Potteries . It also allowed the finished products of the area to be exported widely, the Butterley Company 's castings and Arkwright's spun cotton. The opening of the Derby Canal and the Nottingham Canal , both in 1796, further facilitated the latter's trade with these textile centres. Although Arkwright had suggested that water should be drawn from the Derwent (by raising his weir at Masson Mill and feeding it via an aqueduct to Cromford Meadows – thus improving his plans for quarries behind Willersley and adding extra power to his mill wheels at
2565-475: The River Trent to Langley Mill in 1779, but initially there was a lack of traffic. The proprietors appealed for anyone who owned land near the canal which contained coal deposits to open pits. As the pits opened, profits soared, and by 1789 dividends had reached 20 per cent. On 1 May 1787, the proprietors considered two letters at their meeting, which proposed extensions beyond Langley Mill. The proposals were from local landowners, and were seen as an extension of
2660-540: The Scottish Enterprise Network, the European Regional Development Fund , and the Millennium Commission . Planners decided early to create a dramatic 21st-century landmark structure to reconnect the canals, instead of simply recreating the historic lock flight . The wheel raises boats by 24 metres (79 ft), but the Union Canal is still 11 metres (36 ft) higher than the aqueduct which meets
2755-479: The bedrock were used. Due to the changing load as the wheel rotates in alternating directions, some sections experience total stress reversals . In order to avoid fatigue that could lead to cracks, sections were bolted rather than welded, using over 14,000 bolts and 45,000 bolt holes. The aqueduct, engineered by Arup , was originally described as "unbuildable", but was eventually realised using 40 mm (1.6 in) rebar . The original plans also showed
2850-466: The narrow boat crews were refreshed prior to or after legging it through the tunnel. 53°3.3841′N 1°22.3994′W / 53.0564017°N 1.3733233°W / 53.0564017; -1.3733233 Cromford Canal The Cromford Canal ran 14.5 miles (23.3 kilometres) from Cromford to the Erewash Canal in Derbyshire, England with a branch to Pinxton . Built by William Jessop with
2945-424: The narrow boat's crew. This process is called legging . (The external link listed below shows men legging It through Butterley Tunnel.) The sign illustrated (left) was displayed at both ends of the tunnel, and stressed the importance of only using the tunnel in any one direction at particular times. There are reported instances of fines levied for non-compliance with these rules. About 880 yards (800 m) from
Butterley Tunnel - Misplaced Pages Continue
3040-540: The 3,063-yard (2,801 m) Butterley Tunnel for four years, and further subsidence in 1900 resulted in the tunnel being permanently closed. Most of the canal was abandoned in 1944 with the exception of a half-mile (800m) stretch to Langley Mill which was abandoned in 1962. The Bullbridge Aqueduct was removed in 1968 when the Ripley road was widened. In 1985 the Codnor Park Reservoir was lowered by 6 feet (1.8 m) and
3135-506: The Butterley tunnel, and stressed the importance of only using the narrow tunnel in any one direction at particular times. There are reported instances of fines levied for non-compliance with these rules. In 1819 the Mansfield and Pinxton Railway opened up trade with Mansfield including moulding sand for the foundries. In 1831, the Cromford and High Peak Railway opened a route up to Manchester The canal also carried limestone from
3230-535: The Commission announced it would support the Link with £32 million of funding, 42% of the project cost. The Wheel and its associated basin was priced at £17 million, more than a fifth of the total budget. Another £46 million had to be raised in the next two years before construction could commence, with contributions from BWB, seven local councils, Scottish Enterprise , and private donations being augmented by £8.6 million from
3325-553: The Cromford canal between Cromford and Ambergate is listed as a Biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and a local nature reserve . In addition to purely canal traffic, there was a lively freight interchange with the Cromford and High Peak Railway , which traversed the plateau of the Peak District from Whaley Bridge in the north west, and which descended to the canal at High Peak Junction by means of an inclined plane. The Erewash Canal had been opened from
3420-447: The Cromford end of the canal from around 1968, well before the transfer of ownership to Derbyshire County Council. Their first priority was to improve the towpath, which they did with large quantities of limestone and the use of borrowed dumper trucks. They also attempted to create a drainage channel, so that water could pass down the canal rather than becoming a flood hazard in times of heavy rain. As confidence grew, they repaired leaks in
3515-568: The Cromford was one of those. At the time, the Inland Waterways Association (IWA) had the canal earmarked as one that could be restored. The Inland Waterways Preservation Society proposed in 1959 that the upper reaches of the canal, including the Leawood pumping station, shoud be retained. In 1961, Ripley Urban District Council withdrew an earlier proposal to close the canal, and supported Derbyshire County Council in their proposal that
3610-453: The Erewash Canal. One was for a canal from Langley Mill to Pinxton, where there were 6 miles (9.7 km) of coal-bearing land, but the promotors could not reach agreement with the proprietors of the Erewash Canal. The suggestion was declined by the canal company, so local businessmen, including Benjamin Outram's father Joseph, Benjamin decided to go ahead on their own, asking William Jessop to design one between Langley Mill and Cromford, with
3705-494: The U-shape watertight seal is recessed back closer to the upper aqueduct door. Finally, the locking mechanisms are removed before the wheel is turned. This process is similar for the door at the lower canal basin as well. The area housing the machinery to drive the wheel is located in the final pillar of the aqueduct, and contains seven chambers connected by ladders. Access is by a door located at ground level or an entrance halfway up
3800-616: The assistance of Benjamin Outram , its alignment included four tunnels and 14 locks . From Cromford it ran south following the 275-foot (84 m) contour line along the east side of the valley of the Derwent to Ambergate , where it turned eastwards along the Amber valley . It turned sharply to cross the valley, crossing the river and the Ambergate to Nottingham road, by means of an aqueduct at Bullbridge , before turning towards Ripley . From there
3895-495: The banks, and borrowed two Smalley excavators for the Waterway Recovery Group to begin dredging the channel, but they were too small for the job. When ownership transferred to Derbyshire County Council, they obtained a second-hand nine-ton Smith 14 tracked excavator which was much more suitable. Much of the clearance work was achieved by driving the machine along the canal bed, and by 1977 they were able to drive it out of
Butterley Tunnel - Misplaced Pages Continue
3990-466: The boxes were lowered with the aid of a large water bucket descending or ascending a parallel shaft to act as a counterbalance. This system was later replaced by a steam engine winding the boxes up and down the shafts. Reputable sources cited here consider the presence and mode of use of this underground wharf to be if not unique, extremely rare within the United Kingdom. In the mid-1980s, demolition of
4085-410: The caisson bases, and hydraulic clamps that are raised to hold the caissons in place. Additionally, a set of larger securing pins at the lower structure is used to hold the wheel. Although the door of the upper caisson and the door that holds the water at the upper aqueduct are aligned, there is a gap between them. The upper aqueduct door has a U-shape watertight frame which can be extended to push against
4180-410: The caisson door to seal the gap. The water is pumped into the gap to fill to the water level. Once the water in the gap is equalized, the door on the aqueduct side is lowered, followed by the door on the caisson side, allowing the boat to pass. On the reverse direction, when the boat is in the caisson, the caisson door is raised, followed by the upper aqueduct door. The water is pumped out of the gap. Then
4275-533: The canal at Leawood, ready for re-watering the canal. By mid-1977, the canal was in water, and a horse-drawn trip boat was operating on some weekends. This proved to be popular, and regular weekend trips were operated in 1978, with around 8,000 visitors enjoying the experience. The trip boat, named the John Gray , was lengthend from 40 feet (12 m) to 50 feet (15 m) in January 1979 and to 60 feet (18 m) In 1982, Some 15,000 passengers were carried in 1982. As
4370-533: The canal being built straight through the Antonine Wall , but this was changed after a petition in favour of two locks and a tunnel under the wall. On 24 May 2002, Queen Elizabeth II opened the Falkirk Wheel as part of her Golden Jubilee celebrations. The opening was delayed a month due to flooding caused by vandals who forced open the wheel's gates. The damage, which cost £350,000 to repair, resulted in
4465-518: The canal owners first hired a pump and then built the Leawood Pump House in 1849 buying a Cornish-type beam engine from Grahams of Elsecar. In 1802 the canal had carried over 150,000 tons and by 1842 nearly 300,000, then in 1849, the Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midlands Junction Railway was built alongside as far as Ambergate, which reached Manchester in 1867. A further line to Pye Bridge
4560-570: The canal should be maintained for its amenity value. By 1971, Derbyshire County Council were actively considering including the upper reaches of the canal in a High Peak Park development scheme. The transfer of ownership of the top 5 miles (8.0 km) of canal between Cromford and Ambergate from the British Waterways Board to Derbyshire County Council was reported in October 1972 in a new magazine called Waterways World , launched to highlight
4655-439: The canal would be level, Jessop was able to give reassurance, carefully downplaying the problem of the descent, with its locks, to Langley Mill. However, with the assistance of Benjamin Outram, he also spent over a year measuring the flow rate of the Derwent, a precaution which was invaluable when the bill was placed before Parliament. He also proposed to make the summit pound deep enough that it could be replenished on Sundays when
4750-420: The canal, by cutting a ribbon tied across Cromford wharf. Work continued to restore the canal beyond Leawood to Leashaw, passing through Gregory tunnel. Much of the clearance work was carried out using a Smalley excavator mounted on a pontoon. It got as far a Leashaw bridge, before it was needed further back along the canal. On 21 December 1988, the last day of working for the year's Job Creation Team, they made
4845-462: The canal, thus the Bullbridge Aqueduct , in its final form, placed the river, road, railway and canal at four levels. In 1846 the mining beneath Wirksworth had reached such a depth that Meerbrook Sough was built, draining into the Derwent near Whatstandwell , which deprived both Arkwrights mill and the canal of water, leaving the latter with only that from Butterley Reservoir. Accordingly,
SECTION 50
#17328524872354940-555: The carriage of limestone from Cromford and Crich and coal from Pinxton. However, the canal itself encouraged new enterprises. The canal mostly carried coal, lead and iron ore, some extracted from inside the Butterley Tunnel. Copper was brought from as far away as Ecton Hill in Staffordshire and the canal opening the way for lead from Ecton, as well as Wirksworth to be taken to the Lead Market at Hull and chert from Bakewell to
5035-408: The day the Forth and Clyde Canal was closed, with the objective of finding a broad strategy for the future of canals in the United Kingdom. In 1976, the BWB decided after a meeting with local councils that the Forth and Clyde Canal, fragmented by various developments, was to have its remaining navigability preserved by building new bridges with sufficient headroom for boats and continuing to maintain
5130-491: The dry well being flooded, damaging electrical and hydraulic equipment. The wheel has an overall diameter of 35 m (115 ft) and consists of two opposing arms extending 15 m (49 ft) beyond the central axle and taking the shape of a Celtic-inspired double-headed axe . Two sets of these axe-shaped arms are connected to a 3.8 m (12 ft) diameter central axle of length 28 m (92 ft). Two diametrically opposed water-filled caissons , each with
5225-502: The engine, fitted in 1995, was replaced by an electric drive, and then moved to Cromford by road. The historic cargo narrowboat, named Birchwood , has given visitors the opportunity to experience both horse-drawn and electric-powered trips along the dredged section since 2013. Since 2001, most of the Ambergate to Cromford section of the canal has been within the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site , with
5320-445: The existing locks. Restoration of sea-to-sea navigation was deemed too expensive at the time, but there were to be no further restrictions on its use. A 1979 survey report documented 69 obstructions to navigation, and sought the opinions of twenty interested parties to present the Forth and Clyde Local (Subject) Plan in 1980. The Lotteries Act 1993 resulted in the creation of the Millennium Commission to disseminate funds raised by
5415-435: The expense of the canal company), the canal committee had secretly no intention of so doing. The proprietors changed the line of the canal to its present terminus, where a connection was made to the Cromford sough , even though they had to purchase the land from Arkwright at £1,000 and landscape (at unknown cost) the grounds of his then house. Water could be drawn from the sough at night as well as on Sundays, when Cromford Mill
5510-511: The final 547 yards (500 m) at Ambergate located within the Heritage Site buffer zone. The Derbyshire Wildlife Trust manage manage the section from Whatstandwell to Ambergate as it is a designated nature reserve. The whole canal has been a Site of Special Scientific Interest since 1981. The towpath from Ambergate to Cromford is a popular walking route, providing views of the adjacent Derwent Valley Line and access to Leawood Pump House and
5605-470: The final tunnel being lined through most of its length. By 1793 the company had a balance in hand of only £273 and the cost had risen to half as much again as Jessop's original estimate. Nevertheless, the canal was showing an income, unfinished though it was. In August, however, there were problems with the Derwent Aqueduct which required considerable modification. The spandrel walls had parted due to
5700-422: The forces imposed. At any rate, the arch was partly dismantled and steel tie bars and lateral reinforcing arches were installed, together with external buttresses. This Jessop did at his own expense. In the end, despite costing about twice the initial estimate of £42,697 (£6,200,000 in 2023), the canal opened in 1794 and was a financial success. Jessop had based his initial predictions for the expected returns on
5795-510: The growing interest in canal restoration schemes. The Cromford Canal Society (CCS) was formed at the same time, to manage the restoration. The Society was registered with the Charity Commission on 3 October 1972. By the time the IWA held their National Rally in 1974, they announced growing interest in a plan to restore the lower reached of the Cromford Canal as well. Volunteers began working on
SECTION 60
#17328524872355890-400: The horizontal forces imposed by the canal, and a longitudinal split had opened up in the arch. In his report to the canal committee, Jessop gave his opinion that the use of Crich lime, being unusually pure, had delayed the setting of the mortar. Later writers, with the benefit of engineering knowledge acquired after Jessop's time, have suggested that the spandrel walls were simply too slender for
5985-470: The latter initially at least. Matters were taken out of the Erewash Canal owners hands, for, without their co-operation, there was the implicit threat that a competing canal would be built to the Trent. The major opposition came from the water-powered mill owners along the Derwent , of which there were many, downstream of the proposed canal, fearful of loss of flow in dry weather. Since, between Cromford and Pinxton,
6080-519: The leadership of Tony Kettle from architects RMJM , the initial concepts and images were created with the mechanical concepts proposed by the design team from Butterley and M G Bennetts. This was an intense period of work, with the final design concept completed in a three-week period during the summer of 1999. The final design was a co-operative effort between the British Waterways Board, engineering consultants Arup , Butterley Engineering and RMJM. Diagrams of gear systems that had been proposed in
6175-434: The mills were closed, and hold enough water to supply the locks for a week even in the driest weather. The length from the Erewash Canal would be built to match, accessible to barges from the Trent. Through the Butterley Tunnel and along the narrow Derwent valley it would be to narrow boat standards, similar to the Trent and Mersey. At the last minute before the bill was to be presented to Parliament, Richard Arkwright raised
6270-614: The national inland waterway system at the junction with the Erewash Canal at Langley Mill. The group runs a trip boat , Birdswood , between Cromford Wharf and Leawood Pump House, although even after dredging of the section in 2013 it is quite shallow. English actor Brian Blessed is the president of Friends of the Cromford Canal. His voice gives the recorded safety announcement for the tripboat. 53°03′50″N 1°28′57″W / 53.063952°N 1.482618°W / 53.063952; -1.482618 Falkirk Wheel The Falkirk Wheel ( Scottish Gaelic : Cuibhle na h-Eaglaise Brice )
6365-498: The old railway track. The extra width required by the road brought about the introduction of an extra 6-foot-8-inch (2.03 m) wide, 20-yard (18 m) long cylindrical culvert to the Western end of the tunnel bringing the new length to about 3083 yards (2819m). The Golden Valley Light Railway (GVLR) passes less than 30 yards (27 m) North of the tunnel's eastern portal. This 24-inch (610 mm) narrow gauge railway terminates at
6460-400: The picture. The large central gear is fitted loosely over the axle at its machine-room end and fixed in place to prevent it from rotating. The two smaller gears are fixed to each of the arms of the wheel at its machine-room end. When the motors rotate the central axle, the arms swing and the small gears engage the central gear, which results in the smaller gears rotating at a higher speed than
6555-497: The reopening of the canal link, which comprehensively covered the necessary work. In 1994, the BWB announced its plan to bid for funding, which was submitted in 1995 on behalf of the Millennium Link Partnership. The plans called for the canals to be opened to their original operating dimensions, with 3 metres (9.8 ft) of headroom above the water. The whole project had a budget of £78 million. On 14 February 1997,
6650-473: The sale of lottery tickets for selected "good causes". In 1996, when sufficient funds had been accumulated, the Commission invited applications to "do anything they thought desirable ... to support worthwhile causes which would mark the year 2000 and the start of the new millennium." The conditions were that the Commission would fund no more than half of the project, with the remaining balance being covered by project backers. The BWB had made an earlier plan for
6745-408: The same as boiling eight kettles of water. Each of the two caissons is 6.5 metres (21 ft) wide and 21.3 metres (70 ft) long. Each can hold up to four 20-metre-long (66 ft) canal boats . The wheel raises or lowers boats a total of 24 metres (79 ft), and two subsequent locks raise or lower boats another 11 metres (36 ft). Watertight doors at each end match doors located on
6840-491: The scope of the project grew, the society transformed itself into a limited company on 4 January 1979, and employed a full-time worker later that month. The Manpower Services Commission had launched the Job Creation Scheme in October 1975, and the Cromford Canal became one of 20 canals to benefit from this, when in February 1979 they organised a team of workers to carry out maintenance and restoration. This continued for
6935-763: The spine of a fish," and the Royal Fine Art Commission for Scotland described it as "a form of contemporary sculpture." Models and renderings of the Falkirk Wheel were displayed in a 2012 exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Since 2007, the Falkirk Wheel has been featured on the obverse of the new series of £50 notes issued by the Bank of Scotland . The series of notes commemorates Scottish engineering achievements with illustrations of bridges in Scotland such as
7030-500: The successors to the Butterley Company , and noted for its involvement in the construction of the Falkirk Wheel . In 1889 subsidence caused the tunnel to be closed for a period of four years with the tunnel reopening after repairs in 1893. This closure resulted in the permanent loss of some of the canal's customers to competing railway companies. A partial collapse of the Butterley Tunnel in 1900 due to mining related subsidence split
7125-455: The tower, with a gantry crane to facilitate the installation of equipment. The ground floor houses the transformers for powering the wheel. When the wheel was flooded by vandals in April 2002, this room was filled to within 8 cm (3 in) of the 11-kV busbars . On the first floor is a standby generator and switchgear should the mains supply to the wheel fail. The second floor houses
7220-418: The tunnel and reservoirs were constructed by the Butterley Company , formed in 1790 by Benjamin Outram (1764–1805) and Francis Beresford (died 1801) with William Jessop (1745–1814) and John Wright (1758–1840) joining by 1793. There is no towpath within the tunnel, which was for the most part only 9 feet (2.7 m) wide, therefore narrow boats were propelled through the tunnel using the muscle power of
7315-403: The tunnel at this time and the tunnel was pronounced beyond economical repair in 1909. Commercial traffic on the canal ceased in 1944. "The Friends of Cromford Canal" is a group of volunteers whose aim is to fully restore the Cromford Canal and the Butterley Tunnel. A horse drawn narrowboat is brought into service by "The Friends of Cromford Canal" occasionally on the only navigable section of
7410-472: The tunnel's western portal there is an underground wharf about 60 yards (55 m) long with the tunnel here widened to about 16 feet (4.9 m). One of the horizontal tunnels departing from the tunnel at this point used to run to the Butterley Company's Butterley Carr Pit which opened in 1812 and loaded its coal directly into narrow boats at the underground wharf. There were also vertical shafts from
7505-454: The upper structure and lower dock pit. Due to space concerns, where a normal hinged door would dramatically reduce the useful length of the caisson, vertically rising hinged doors were chosen. The doors are raised from a recess in the base of the caisson and powered by a hydraulic lance when docked. After the wheel arms are moved into the vertical position, the locking mechanisms are activated. These include securing pins that are protruded into
7600-492: The very first concepts were modelled by Kettle using his 8-year-old daughter's Lego . Drawings and artist impressions were shown to clients and funders. The visitor centre was designed by another RMJM architect, Paul Stallan . Inspirations for the design include a double-headed Celtic axe (a bearded axe ), the propeller of a ship and the ribcage of a whale. Kettle described the Wheel as "a beautiful, organic flowing thing, like
7695-447: The water level). At the time of building it was the third longest canal tunnel in the World after Sapperton and Dudley . Thirty-three shafts were sunk during construction with the workings dewatered using a Woodhouse steam engine. Water was provided for the Cromford Canal from the 50-acre (200,000 m) Butterley Reservoir situated on the hill above the tunnel. The Butterley Reservoir
7790-482: The weight of a canal means that the canal will be carried beneath the road in a concrete aqueduct, supported on foundations which are beyond those that were constructed for the bridge. The Friends of the Cromford Canal is a charitable organisation whose aim is to see the restoration of the Cromford Canal for the benefit of the general public. The society promotes the restoration of the Canal to navigation, and to connect it to
7885-546: The weight on each arm. According to Archimedes' principle , floating objects displace their own weight in water, so when the boat enters, the amount of water leaving the caisson weighs exactly the same as the boat. Site-wide computer control system maintain the water levels on each side to within a difference of 37 mm (1.5 in) with water level sensors, automated sluices and pumps. It takes 22.5 kilowatts (30.2 hp) to power ten hydraulic motors , which consume 1.5 kilowatt-hours (5,100 BTU) per half-turn, roughly
7980-545: The wharf which allowed goods in tram boxes to be lowered directly from and lifted up to the Butterley Company's works (on the hill above the tunnel) to and from the underground wharf. These tram boxes were used by Benjamin Outram on the Little Eaton Tramway . The box could be lifted from the tram chassis and loaded directly into narrow boats or barges on the Derby Canal . Similar designs were used in other undertakings in which Benjamin Outram had an interest. Initially
8075-413: The wheel but in the same direction. The smaller gears engage the large ring gears at the end of the caissons, driving them at the same speed as the wheel but in the opposite direction. This cancels the rotation due to the arms and keeps the caissons stable and perfectly level. The docking pit is a drydock -like port isolated from the lower canal basin by watertight gates and kept dry by water pumps. When
8170-455: The wheel is built was previously used as an open cast fire clay mine, a coal mine, and a tar works, resulting in contamination of the canal with tar and mercury . Twenty metres (66 ft) of loosely packed backfill from the mining operations containing large sandstone boulders was not considered adequately solid foundation for the size of the structure, so deep foundations with thirty 22 m (72 ft) concrete piles socketed onto
8265-449: The wheel stops with its arms in the vertical position it is possible for boats to enter and exit the lower caisson when the gates are open without flooding the docking-pit. The space below the caisson is empty. Without the docking-pit, the caissons and extremities of the arms of the wheel would be immersed in water at the lower canal basin each time the wheel rotated. The buoyancy of the lower caisson would make it more difficult to turn
8360-580: The wheel. Boats must also pass through a pair of locks between the top of the wheel and the Union Canal. The Falkirk Wheel is the only rotating boat lift of its kind in the world, and one of two working boat lifts in the United Kingdom, the other being the Anderton Boat Lift . The two canals served by the wheel were previously connected by a series of 11 locks . With a 35-metre (115 ft) difference in height, it required 3,500 tonnes (3,400 long tons; 3,900 short tons) of water per run and took most of
8455-468: Was a problem when the Amber Aqueduct failed but, by May, the canal to the east of Butterley was virtually complete and most of the earthworks to the west. The Butterley Tunnel was excavated by first sinking 33 shafts, about 75 yards (69 m) apart as much as 57 yards (52 m) deep to give a number of working faces. Most of the heading was through soil, with some coal measures and iron ore deposits,
8550-560: Was built in 1875. By 1888 trade had shrunk to 45,000 tons a year. The Cromford Canal Sale Act 1846 ( 9 & 10 Vict. c. ccxc) authorised a merger with the MBM&;MJR. The sale was not carried through until 1852 by which time the Midland Railway and the LNWR had assumed joint control and, with railway lines from Rowsley through Ambergate to the north and south, it was being used for little more than local traffic. In 1889, subsidence closed
8645-537: Was drained, and was never used by trip boats. The Cromford Canal Society was wound up in 1990, and the canal gradually became derelict again. After 12 years of neglect, a new organisation was formed to carry on restoration work. The Friends of the Cromford Canal was formed in March 2002, with the stated aim of restoring the whole canal for navigation. Most of the top 5 miles (8 km) of canal owned by Derbyshire County Council remains in water. In March 2013 dredging began on
8740-542: Was not working. Coming from underground, it was slightly warm, and it was said that it never froze. (Arkwright had been using the sough water to power Cromford Mill since the previous century.) The opening of the Nottingham Canal provided further water via the Butterley Reservoir, almost above Butterley Tunnel and on the summit level of the Cromford Canal. The sign illustrated (left) was displayed at both ends of
8835-649: Was required, and to understand its operation. Once Derbyshire County Council owned the canal, they applied for a grant of £5,613 from the Department of the Environment to refurbish the Grade II* listed building. After eight years, the engine was ready to steam again, and once the teething problems were resolved, the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire formally opened the pumping station on 3 May 1980. Later that day they also formally opened
8930-549: Was severed by the construction of the A610 road, which followed the course of the canal for a short distance. The extension will therefore be a new canal, with Beggarlee locks, a staircase pair, lifting the level of the canal sufficiently for it to pass under a bridge constructed for a former colliery railway. It will then skirt around the spoil heaps of Moorgreen Colliery, to rejoin the original route at Stoney Lane, Brinsley. Construction began in mid-2023 on some enabling works, which were
9025-434: Was then dismantled in the summer of 2001, and transported on 35 lorry loads to Falkirk, before being reassembled into five sections on the ground and lifted into place. Construction of the canal required 250,000 m (8,800,000 cu ft) of excavation, a 160 m (520 ft) canal tunnel of 8 m (26 ft) diameter , aqueducts of 20 m (66 ft) and 120 m (390 ft), three sets of locks and
#234765