Kennet & Avon Canal - 1810 booklet, an optimistic prospectus

[magpie patrick]

I have been relaxing between Christmas and New Year, and as part of that process I wondered into our local second hand bookshop and perused the canals section, which is always well stocked but rarely has something I haven't already got. Today however it yielded this booklet - front cover shown below. 

 

The document itself is interesting - a 1969 reprint of an 1811 publication, reprinted for the purpose of promoting the restoration of the canal and originally written (I would suggest) for the purpose of promoting trade on it. The original publication date was just after the K&A had opened throughout, indeed in the closing sentence the booklet states the canal opened "28th December last". It opens with a description of the route, then of the major works, then of the water supply (which, it states, is pumped from "the Bedwin River" at Crofton - Wilton Water had not been built at that time). 

 

Then the book ventures into the Traffic which may be expected to arise... in which it makes an assessment (exceedingly generous in hindsight) of the trade which will arise from the settlements along the route - in this section it also makes reference to the connecting waterways already completed, that is, the Somerset Coal Canal and the Wilts and Berks. Aspirations of thhrough traffic dominate, although local traffic is much discussed too, in particular that between the SCC and the W&B (this one traffic did at least materialise)

 

Then it heads off into fantasy land! detailing the prospects of trade once the Dorset and Somerset Canal is completed and extended to Poole (the construction had been abandoned 17 years earlier), once the Bristol and Taunton Canal is completed and extended via the Grand Western to Exeter - there is even a reference to the improved prospect once the Avon is bypassed by the Bath and Bristol Canal - I have to admit I don't think I've heard of that one. Thus the entire trade between the South West and London would be channeled through the K&A. In the final paragraphs it talks up the prospects of South Wales Coal being routed the same way - at least that didn't need another canal! 

 

In fairness the concept was that 50 tonne barges could go from Exeter to London without transhipment, although why they would do this when ships could do the same thing is unclear - I guess that was the problem for capturing the south Wales coal trade too - it had to come in a ship to Bristol so the ship ended up taking it all the way.   

A fascinating read - one which goes to show that an over-optmistic sales pitch is nothing new!

[BEngo]

11 hours ago, magpie patrick said:

In fairness the concept was that 50 tonne barges could go from Exeter to London without transhipment, although why they would do this when ships could do the same thing is unclear - I guess that was the problem for capturing the south Wales coal trade too - it had to come in a ship to Bristol so the ship ended up taking it all the way.   

At this stage we are talking sailing ships.  Top speed about 8 or 10 knots, with a suitable wind, mostly 3 or 4.  They did not go upwind at all and navigation equipment was rudimentary, to put it mildly. 

  Arising from this, there are two big  problem areas that made sea trade between London and Bristol difficult.

The first was the passage round Kent, and through the narrows off Dover and Calais where the prevailing South Westerly winds are not helpful to sailing and a ship could sit waiting for  a suitable wind for a long time.  The navigation hazards in this bit of the North Sea/English Channel are still a problem today.  Goodwin Sands is perhaps the best known.

 

At the other end of England, the ships needed to round Land's End , and avoid running aground in the Scilies. Lots of navigational hazards here too.  Torrey Canyon any one?  There are others more recently.  Much of the trip from Portland Bill to Wolf Rock is one where a sudden gale (no Michael Fish then) can leave you on a lee shore.  This is not what the master of an unmanoeuvrable sailing ship wants as he is most likely to be driven ashore. 

The north shore of Cornwall and Devon isn't much better if the wind turns against you.  There is a rhyme about that coast.  I can't remember all of it but which ends ' a graveyard by day and by night'.  Not to mention a few wreckers after your cargo.

 

In contrast,  reliable, relatively fast inland transport was a pretty good bet as a business prospect.

 

Then came the GWR.

N

 

[Pluto]

Don't forget that we were at war with France in 1811, and that merchant shipping in the Channel was considered at high risk. The French started building the Brittany canals to avoid such a passage. Back in this country, the successful English canals generally relied upon local traffic, with through trade being relatively insignificant as it was difficult to arrange through tolls. There was never a clearing house to regulate such traffics, as happened on railways. The most successful canals seemed to be those built by local merchants, land owners and mill owners to improve their trade and help the local economy, rather than those promoted as through routes. Perhaps we should pressurise the Department for Levelling Up to build some new canals?

[David Mack]

1 hour ago, Pluto said:

Don't forget that we were at war with France in 1811, and that merchant shipping in the Channel was considered at high risk.

Also a factor in the promotion of the Wey and Arun as an alternative route to London.

[magpie patrick]

9 hours ago, BEngo said:

 

 

In contrast,  reliable, relatively fast inland transport was a pretty good bet as a business prospect.

 

Then came the GWR.

 

I suspect your last statement is the most pertinent!

 

That said, there does seem to have been serious cynicism about replacing coastal transport in the south of England, it was an emotive subject and amongst the arguments against the cross-peninsular canals was that the quality of seamanship would suffer if we didn't have traffic round lands end, and thus the navy overall would suffer. Overall, history tells us that the canals south of the K&A lines had a less than glorious history, only the Somerset Coal Canal was a resounding success, and as I'm sure Pluto would point out, it served a local market. Indeed I wonder what the mine-owners of the North Somerset Coalfield would have made of the bid to carry south wales coal via the K&A - the main purpose of the Coal Canal was to see off the threat of welsh coal in the markets of Bath and Wiltshire. 

 

The Grand Western, the Bristol and Taunton, the Dorset and Somerset, the Chard canal, all schemes that ended up being the remnants of grand plans to reach the south coast. In this context the reference to the D&S in this booklet made me smile - the author refers to "when it is completed and extended" and yet the scheme had been abandoned, unfinished and unopened in 1796. The other canals were but a twinkle in their future promoters eyes - for example the Bridgwater and Taunton (the residual of the much grander Bristol and Taunton scheme) didn't open until 1827 - 16 years after this booklet was written.

 

9 hours ago, Pluto said:

 Perhaps we should pressurise the Department for Levelling Up to build some new canals?

 

I am trying!  Strategically we need more in the south of England, one stringy not quite full size wide cross country canal compared to three trans-pennine routes and numerous cruising rings in the north...  

[matty40s]

1 hour ago, magpie patrick said:

 

 

I am trying!  Strategically we need more in the south of England, one stringy not quite full size wide cross country canal compared to three trans-pennine routes and numerous cruising rings in the north...  

Your one has been open more in the last 3 years....

Have you got a copy of this...

[magpie patrick]

11 hours ago, matty40s said:

Your one has been open more in the last 3 years....

 

   

 

11 hours ago, matty40s said:

Have you got a copy of this...

 

Oooooo No I haven't - I'm not surprised such a document exists but I didn't know of it  

 

 

[John Brightley]

15 hours ago, magpie patrick said:

The reference to the D&S in this booklet made me smile - the author refers to "when it is completed and extended" and yet the scheme had been abandoned, unfinished and unopened in 1796. 

I wonder whether this actually suggests that in 1811 the D&S works hadn't been abandoned but promoters still hoped to get new funding to restart the work. 

[magpie patrick]

10 hours ago, John Brightley said:

I wonder whether this actually suggests that in 1811 the D&S works hadn't been abandoned but promoters still hoped to get new funding to restart the work. 

 Interesting suggestion - the canal was never formally abandoned the company just ran out of money and gave up. The works were left incomplete and unused and the company was probably moribund - I suppose theoretically it could have been revived. 

 

It must be said that the committee would probably find themselves under investigation by the SFO or similar today, £11,000 of the £58,000 they spent went on expenses - around £1 million in today's money. 

 

Just to add, in my original post I left out the prospects for a canal from Basingstoke to Newbury that were mentioned in the 1811 booklet

[magpie patrick]

On 29/12/2022 at 10:09, John Brightley said:

I wonder whether this actually suggests that in 1811 the D&S works hadn't been abandoned but promoters still hoped to get new funding to restart the work. 

Further to this observation there may be a grain of truth in what you suggest - the money ran out on the D&S in 1803, and work stopped, butthe propmoters were looking for more money and  about then the Coal Canal was carrying between Timsbury and Bath and the Wilts and Berks was carrying coal from Semington to Calne, coal that had come from the Coal canal  - the W&B were apparently enthusiastic about more trade to come from the D&S . 

 

On the other canals, The Bristol and Taunton was being promoted in 1811, the Grand Western (which would have extended this from Taunton to Exeter was under construction (the bit that was built opened in 1814) so in the absence of due dilligence there did appear to be a propsect of extensive west country network. Even the Coal Canal were still intending to complete the Radstock branch in 1811, they only gave up the following year.