Horncastle Canal visit

[magpie patrick]

This year I've twice visited Louth on business and managed to visit the nearby Horncastle Canal at the same time - Horncastle and Louth aren't that far apart but the Lincolnshire Wolds lie between them - anyone who thinks Lincolnshire is flat should drive, or better cycle, between the two and be disabused of this view. 

 

Like the Louth Canal the Horncastle is actually a canalised river - the river Bain. It linked Horncastle with the River Witham near Tattershall, a distance of about 12 miles with 11 or 12 locks depending on which source you read (I think it was 11 locks but with two alternatives for the last mile to the Witham, and a lock on each of them) 

 

Top end, visited in April 

 

 

Here the canal is actually the channel for the river Waring - the Bain flows in from the north about a mile away. This length in the picture was known as the South Basin. I can't find a north basin, or one from any other compass point, that said I'm using NLS OS maps of around 1900 and the navigation closed in 1889 (opening in 1795-1802)

 

Next up is the top lock...

 

This lock appears very intact although modified as a sluice structure. 

 

There is no access to the next lock although it can be seen from a road bridge over the canal

 

From this angle it looks like the walls of the chamber have been lowered. This would be consistent with the treatment of the only other lock I've seen - "Second Lock" which is in Coningsby 

 

 

The brick indicates that the head of the lock has always been this high, and thus the walls have probably been cut down for the rest of the chamber. 

 

One of the lower gate recesses has a field drain in it. 

 

This was a very pleasant walk from the nearest parking place I was happy with, about 3/4 mile downstream which includes a railway bridge that crosses the old navgation but the embankment leading to it has gone - my guess is that the embankment was a problem for flooding but the bridge was not. 

 

Finally, some residents of Coningsby like having the old canal there and make use of it...

 

 

 

 

 

 

[John Brightley]

Thanks Patrick. Very interesting.

[Chris Lowe]

15 hours ago, magpie patrick said:

(I think it was 11 locks but with two alternatives for the last mile to the Witham, and a lock on each of them) 

One of the alternatives is Gibsons Cut, (Tattershal canal) build seperately.

15 hours ago, magpie patrick said:

(I think it was 11 locks but with two alternatives for the last mile to the Witham, and a lock on each of them) 

One of the alternatives is Gibsons Cut, (Tattershal canal) build seperately.

 

I have a book about the navigation if you want to borrow it Patrick.

[magpie patrick]

1 hour ago, Chris Lowe said:

One of the alternatives is Gibsons Cut, (Tattershal canal) build seperately.

I have a book about the navigation if you want to borrow it Patrick.

 Oooo yes please!  

 

One more from the very pleasant walk at Coningsby last Thursday as I headed to Louth

[magpie patrick]

21 hours ago, magpie patrick said:

about 12 miles with 11 or 12 locks depending on which source you read (I think it was 11 locks but with two alternatives for the last mile to the Witham, and a lock on each of them) 

5 hours ago, Chris Lowe said:

One of the alternatives is Gibsons Cut, (Tattershal canal) build seperately.

 

 

 A bit of snuffling reveals that the original proposal was for 12 locks following the Bain all the way from the Witham, however the route chosen was via Gibson's cut rather than the river Bain, Gibsons cut bypassed the site of two proposed locks and had one lock on it which was rebuilt, I do wonder is, as well as enlarging it it was deepened as this. 

 

I doubt the alternative via the Bain was ever built, so it almost certainly didn't have two routes to the Witham 

[Chris Lowe]

I'll dig my book out

[the grinch]

On 30/10/2023 at 17:05, magpie patrick said:

 A bit of snuffling reveals that the original proposal was for 12 locks following the Bain all the way from the Witham, however the route chosen was via Gibson's cut rather than the river Bain, Gibsons cut bypassed the site of two proposed locks and had one lock on it which was rebuilt, I do wonder is, as well as enlarging it it was deepened as this. 

 

I doubt the alternative via the Bain was ever built, so it almost certainly didn't have two routes to the Witham 

I have just been up there and also looked at this there definitely was the original Tattershall canal ( Gibsons Cut ) there is still a house at Kirkstead called Lock House this is where Gibson built his lock and the canal ran to Tattershall on the north side of the castle.

The River Bain / Horncastle Canal and Tattershall Lock are to the south East of the castle and joined the Witham south of Tattershall so there were 13 locks in total 2nd lock is Coningsby the junction of the 2 routes is now the site of the modern weir to the east of the castle. Interestingly the view finder board at the top of the castle is actually wrong saying the Horncastle canal ran to the north which as my research proved that it did not ! Wikipedia and a few other sources show this and I found a site that gives the grid coordinates of all the 13 locks. The only lock ive actually seen is in Coningsby ( I was not actually looking for it! But found it by accident whilst looking for where my late partner grew up) she said that as a young lady she would go for walks along the old canal ( her Father was based at RAF Coningsby for a few years 

 

[RAB]

The Coningsby lock was one of our favourite swimming locks as young youths, on hot summer days! Obviously frowned upon now and havent seen anyone in there for years.