BCN Experts - Watery Lane Junction

[onward to inlanding]

In 1903 BCN 18686, our old iron day boat, was built by Eli Aston, the Kelly's Directory states he worked on the Toll End Communication Canal out of Iron Boat Dock, Alexandra Road, Tipton.

 

I'm trying to locate the dock and wondered if the BCN Experts might be able to help me out. I had hypothesised that perhaps the dock was located in the basin behind Tipton Railway station, as shown the map below...

 

 

The map, from 1904, shows the area around the junction of the Toll End Communication canal with the Birmingham Main Line in some detail, however, confusingly Alexandra Road (as is today) is called Workhouse Lane on this map.

 

Am I looking at the wrong part of the Communication Canal? Did an Alexandra Road run adjacent to the canal at some other point? Or was Workhouse Road renamed around this period?

 

Any thoughts/idea (or photographs!) would be much appreciated...

 

Cheers

 

Nick

[RLWP]

I have no idea if this is relevant to your quest. If you think about it, boatbuilding needs a dry place, not a wet one, so boats were often built on the bank and launched sideways into the water. This means you may not be looking for a basin at all

 

Richard

[Laurence Hogg]

The papraphets of Workhouse Lane bridge still exist, however its not really in what was Workhouse Lane but just off it. There was a stub end here which formed a junction with the latter extension toiwards the Walsall canal, this would have been very near to Alexandra rd of today. Also on the 1901 1 2500 map a boatdock is clearly marked half way between the last two road bridges before the Walsall, this was or became Worseys. No other docks are marked.

[onward to inlanding]

Hi Richard, very good point. I suppose the fact it's called 'Iron Boat Dock' rather than wharf or basin tends to lend weight to your observation.

 

Anyone out there have a turn-of-the-century list of canalside industries located along the Toll End canal?

 

Hi Laurence, thanks for the detail regarding Worseys being the only boatdock marked on the 1901 1:2500 map. Would this fact tend to support Richard's suggestion that I'm looking for a canalside location launching sideways into the canal rather than explicitly a basin?

 

Is anyone able to confirm how heavily 'industrialised' the Toll End would have been around this period? The portion of map I have only shows the Watery Lane end, but this seems to have been pretty lightly industrialised at the time. perhaps it's time to get another map!

[Laurence Hogg]

Hi Richard, very good point. I suppose the fact it's called 'Iron Boat Dock' rather than wharf or basin tends to lend weight to your observation.

 

Anyone out there have a turn-of-the-century list of canalside industries located along the Toll End canal?

 

Hi Laurence, thanks for the detail regarding Worseys being the only boatdock marked on the 1901 1:2500 map. Would this fact tend to support Richard's suggestion that I'm looking for a canalside location launching sideways into the canal rather than explicitly a basin?

 

Is anyone able to confirm how heavily 'industrialised' the Toll End would have been around this period? The portion of map I have only shows the Watery Lane end, but this seems to have been pretty lightly industrialised at the time. perhaps it's time to get another map!

 

Worseys was a side slip, the buildings still remain as part of an industrial estate the access road now being the line of the canal, clearly visible from the bridge in Toll End rd.

The Toll End was heavily industrialized at the Tipton end, the canal had a complex history and quite a few little branches. Go to Old Maps site and look there.

Most yards did not have a basin as virtually all were side slips into the main canal.

[onward to inlanding]

Thanks for that Laurence, I'll take a look at the Old Maps site and see what I come up with. Given that I might not find a huge amount about Eli Astons boat-dock, is there a good reference book to find out more about Worsley's as a comparison?

Edited May 22, 2013 by onward to inlanding

[onward to inlanding]

Just another thought - Construction techniques - Can anyone point me in the direction of a description of the construction techniques employed in making an iron day boat at the turn of the century.

 

Technical paper, website or book, I'd be fascinated to know more...

[hecla777]

According tto the BCN's Table of Distances Aston's Iron Boat Dock is situated in a side basin between the top and 2nd lock after the L&NW Railway bridge on the north side of the canal.

 

Regards

 

Martin O'Keeffe

[RLWP]

According tto the BCN's Table of Distances Aston's Iron Boat Dock is situated in a side basin between the top and 2nd lock after the L&NW Railway bridge on the north side of the canal.

 

Regards

 

Martin O'Keeffe

 

On the Tipton Green branch Martin?

 

Richard

[Laurence Hogg]

In 1903 BCN 18686, our old iron day boat, was built by Eli Aston, the Kelly's Directory states he worked on the Toll End Communication Canal out of Iron Boat Dock, Alexandra Road, Tipton.

 

I'm trying to locate the dock and wondered if the BCN Experts might be able to help me out. I had hypothesised that perhaps the dock was located in the basin behind Tipton Railway station, as shown the map below...

 

 

The map, from 1904, shows the area around the junction of the Toll End Communication canal with the Birmingham Main Line in some detail, however, confusingly Alexandra Road (as is today) is called Workhouse Lane on this map.

 

Am I looking at the wrong part of the Communication Canal? Did an Alexandra Road run adjacent to the canal at some other point? Or was Workhouse Road renamed around this period?

 

Any thoughts/idea (or photographs!) would be much appreciated...

 

Cheers

 

Nick

 

Having just read Martin O Keefes post looks like you were spot on to start with.

As for books etc on iron boats, very few I am afraid. These boats were not built to plans in many cases and some yards used second hand plates. In my collection of drawings I have only two iron boat drawings for Joey boats and the detail on these is not anywhere close to say Yarwoods drawings.

[hecla777]

I was referring to the Toll End locks branch, as Laurence has pointed out, the map posted and original conclusions were correct.

 

Regards

 

Martin O'Keeffe

[onward to inlanding]

Martin, thanks so much for the information. Are the Table of Distances available so that I can get a copy of the information you've quoted?

 

Laurence, are copies of the joey plans available / purchase-able ?

 

Best wishes and many thanks,

 

Nick

 

(The picture of BCN18686's early life becomes more fascinating and more complete week by week!)

[hecla777]

I can confirm that the boat dock was on the west side of the basin.

 

Regards

Martin O'Keeffe.

 

 

[onward to inlanding]

That would certainly tally with the 1904 map which shows a number of buildings and hard standing adjacent to Workhouse Lane.

[Heartland]

I have a copy of the distance tables which were printed in 1919, but put together earlier, mine is the proof copy which is partly hand written. Astons iron boat dock was located between Moat Bridge and LNWR railway bridge on that arm that has been highlighted in blue. The Tipton Tithe survey of 1848/ 1849 shows the branch extended to Tipton Green Furnaces and in fact that basin was the original link to the Furnace Yard as these furnaces loaded ironstone and limestone at the upper level and iron sent out by boat from this lower arm onto the Toll End Communication. The making of the Three Furnaces Branch rendered the link to the yard redundant and the arm came to have other uses. Tipton Rate Books list James Fellows ( father of Joshua and James of FMC fame) as being located here in his early days of canal carrying ( and when associated with the iron master, Thomas Bagnall)

 

Ray Shill

[onward to inlanding]

Ray,

 

Thanks so much for this additional information, I'm really grateful to you.

 

A couple of questions if I may:

 

Was 'Moat Bridge' the bridge that carried what is called Workhouse Lane on the map I've included above?

Would you know the date of James Fellows' association with the branch?

Is the Three Furnaces Branch the almost dead straight arm that leaves the Main Line to the north of Tipton Station?

 

Cheers

 

Nick

[onward to inlanding]

Hi

 

By the way, if anyone would like to see how the history of 18686 is coming together, the section that's based on the information in this thread can be read here:

 

http://inlanding.wordpress.com/2013/05/24/the-story-of-a-boat-series-iron-boat-dock/

 

best wishes

 

Nick

[Heartland]

Regarding James Fellows I have a note that he was listed in the Tipton Tithe Survey ref 2186, which was on arm close to Moat Bridge and on south side of arm ( at that- according to tithe map).

 

The distance table list the name of bridge as Moat Bridge, there was another bridge called Workhouse Lane Bridge above lock 5. Wilkinson Lockerbie had a works on the main canal above Moat Bridge, by the way,

 

Ray Shill

Three Furnaces branch- this was a straight line waterway off the main line, but built before the Telford Route was joined up

 

Workhouse Lane, I have a map from the Lee Crowder Collection (Birmingham Archives) re Tipton Green estate 1871 that names the road as Workhouse Lane although it is now Alexandra Road

 

Ray Shill

[RLWP]

Annoyingly, Britain from Above has some photos near there, all of the Palethorpe's sausage factory

 

The canal is in this image from 1935:

 

 

http://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/asearch?x=395822&y=292366&extent=1000

 

Richard

[alan_fincher]

I don't know if you have seen it, or even if it is of any interest if not.

 

The 1901 England Census lists the following resident at 42 Waterloo Street, Tipton, Staffs

 

Eli Aston, Head, Married, Aged 53, Boat Builder (Employer)

Phoebe Aston, Wife, Married, Aged 47

William Aston, Son, Single, Aged 20, Boat Builder (Worker)

Gertrude Aston, Daughter, Single, Aged 17

Edith Aston, Daughter, Single, Aged 15

Maud Mary Aston, Daughter, Single, Aged 13, Scholar

Ella Aston, Daughter, Aged 12, Scholar

Eli Aston, Son, Aged 9, Scholar

Joseph Aston, Son, Aged 4

 

All show as born in Tipton, Staffs

[onward to inlanding]

I don't know if you have seen it, or even if it is of any interest if not.

 

The 1901 England Census lists the following resident at 42 Waterloo Street, Tipton, Staffs

 

Eli Aston, Head, Married, Aged 53, Boat Builder (Employer)

Phoebe Aston, Wife, Married, Aged 47

William Aston, Son, Single, Aged 20, Boat Builder (Worker)

Gertrude Aston, Daughter, Single, Aged 17

Edith Aston, Daughter, Single, Aged 15

Maud Mary Aston, Daughter, Single, Aged 13, Scholar

Ella Aston, Daughter, Aged 12, Scholar

Eli Aston, Son, Aged 9, Scholar

Joseph Aston, Son, Aged 4

 

All show as born in Tipton, Staffs

Alan, thanks so much for this information, it's more than I had previously, and provides a vivid portrait-in-miniature of the family.

 

Cheers

 

Nick

 

Regarding James Fellows I have a note that he was listed in the Tipton Tithe Survey ref 2186, which was on arm close to Moat Bridge and on south side of arm ( at that- according to tithe map).

 

The distance table list the name of bridge as Moat Bridge, there was another bridge called Workhouse Lane Bridge above lock 5. Wilkinson Lockerbie had a works on the main canal above Moat Bridge, by the way,

 

Ray ShillThree Furnaces branch- this was a straight line waterway off the main line, but built before the Telford Route was joined up

 

Workhouse Lane, I have a map from the Lee Crowder Collection (Birmingham Archives) re Tipton Green estate 1871 that names the road as Workhouse Lane although it is now Alexandra Road

 

Ray Shill

Ray, thanks! You've really helped sort out my queries and provided a few new leads too, excellent stuff!

 

Best wishes

 

Nick

 

Annoyingly, Britain from Above has some photos near there, all of the Palethorpe's sausage factory

 

The canal is in this image from 1935:

 

 

http://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/asearch?x=395822&y=292366&extent=1000

 

Richard

Brilliant images! Britainfromabove is a wonderful resource. I wonder if other images of the Toll End exist out there?

Edited May 29, 2013 by onward to inlanding

[Nina Davies]

Here is more information on Eli Aston from the 1911 Census, though not sure what a canal boot looks like !

Address: 50 Waterloo Street Tipton County: Staffordshire.

 

ASTON, Eli Head Married M 63 1848 Iron Canal Boot Builder born Tipton Staffs

ASTON, Phoebe Wife Married39 years F 57 1854 born Tipton Staffs

ASTON, Isaiah Son Widower M 38 1873 Canal Boot Rivetter born Tipton Staffs

ASTON, Gertrude Daughter Single F 27 1884 born Tipton Staffs

ASTON, Ella Daughter Single F 22 1889 born Tipton Staffs

ASTON JUNIOR, Eli Son Single M 19 1892 Articled Clerk born Tipton Staffs

ASTON, Joseph Son Single M 14 1897 Canal Boot Rivet Heater born Tipton Staffs

ASTON, May Grand-Daughter Single F 9 1902 Scholar born Tipton Staffs

ASTON, Horace Grandson Single M 7 1904 Scholar born Tipton Staffs

 

Cheers,

Nina

Edited August 8, 2013 by Nina Davies