St. Aidan's breach on the A&CN in 1988

[Guest]

http://bomfi.co.uk/archive/mt/mt37.htm

 

After reading the above I'm trying to research the breach location that flooded the open cast mine adjacent to the Aire & Calder navigation near to where we moor (the marina top left in the images) in 1988. I'm also trying to figure out the previous route as apparently the A&C was re-routed after the breach and a lock between Lemonroyd and Casleford removed as a result.

 

This historical image from Google earth seems to show an open cast mine fully operational (but is dated as 2002 by Google earth)

 

 

This one is later but shows the mine abandoned and partly flooded. It doesn't however show any difference in the route of the A&CN and no lock between Lemonroyd and Castleford so this is why I am a tad confused.

 

 

There is evidence of abandoned 'loops' in both images (in the centre) and a a much smaller flooded area to the north side of the A&CN and the east of the open cast mine, is this the (much smaller) mine that was actually breached? and the other larger one closed down and flooded in a controlled way. If it is I have obviously mis-understood as I thought the navigation breached much closer to our marina. The site I linked to also refers to the lock houses at Lemonroyd lock being put in jeopardy after the breach but this would seem strange given it is so far away......

 

I also understand our marina was built at or around the time of the re-route meaning that doesn't tie in with the images either.

 

This picture from the site I linked to also seems to place the breach very much closer to the lock at Lemonroyd.

 

 

and it has the following caption with it -

 

Lemonroyd Locks, March 1990, looking west. A barge is leaving the lock. Houses, petrol containers and lock gates can be seen in the in the distance. In the foreground the waste water may have been a 'basin' for boats. On the right can be seen the breach in the River Aire, a part of the expanse of water created when St. Aidan's Opencast site was flooded on 19th March, 1988.

 

 

 

Any info. welcome.......

Edited January 1, 2012 by MJG

[carlt]

During the breach:

 

and showing the canal and river merged:

Edited January 1, 2012 by carlt

[Guest]

Thanks Carl - the second photo clearly shows the mine dated in the GE image (dated as being 2002) as completely flooded then, which must put the date on GE imagery as incorrect...

 

But I'll admit to still having a problem reconciling the dates/images though.

 

The first GE image I posted I realise now shows the A&CN as it was after it was re-routed (comparing it with your second image)

 

I can't work out why the mine in your image is flooded and the one in the first GE image it is shown completely operational.

Edited January 1, 2012 by MJG

[carlt]

Thanks Carl - the second photo clearly shows the mine dated in the GE image (dated as being 2002) as completely flooded then, which must put the date on GE imagery as incorrect...

No I don't think so. I believe the mine was drained, operations recommenced, then reflooded after it closed again (in a more controlled manner).

 

Iirc there were several million tons of coal under the water, so leaving it as a lake wasn't an option.

[Guest]

No I don't think so. I believe the mine was drained, operations recommenced, then reflooded after it closed again (in a more controlled manner).

 

Iirc there were several million tons of coal under the water, so leaving it as a lake wasn't an option.

 

Cross posted cheers,

 

I'd assumed it was abandoned and never 'worked' since.

 

Thanks - where did you get those excellent images from - I couldn't pull anything up with Google...

[carlt]

Cross posted cheers,

 

I'd assumed it was abandoned and never 'worked' since.

 

Thanks - where did you get those excellent images from - I couldn't pull anything up with Google...

I don't know.

 

They are in my Photobucket collection so I claim "educational purposes" means I'm not breaching anyone's copyright.

 

I usually tag details but I haven't this time I'm afraid..

 

Found it: Clicky:

[Guest]

Found it: Clicky:

 

Fantastic!!

 

Especially this one - as it confirms my original understanding that it was much closer to the marina, or rather where the marina is now.

 

 

 

Compared with today-

 

 

Edited January 1, 2012 by MJG

[mrsmelly]

Fantastic!!

 

Especially this one -

 

 

It caused quite a few problems in the vicinity. I lived there at the time of the breach and went down in mi panda car for a look, it was like lake michigan. I cant remember when the whole area was finaly put back together but I travelled down from Leeds along this section in

1991/2 on mi boat, cant recall exactly when but if I remember correctly Lemonroyd caravan club didnt exist then ?

Edited January 1, 2012 by mrsmelly

[AJLintern]

Take a look at the old OS maps on this site: http://www.ponies.me.uk/maps/osmap.html You can overlay the Google aerial pics to see how river and canal course has altered.

[Guest]

Take a look at the old OS maps on this site: http://www.ponies.me.uk/maps/osmap.html You can overlay the Google aerial pics to see how river and canal course has altered.

 

One for the bookmarks - cheers..

 

ed to add - that also confirms the location of the other lock that was taken out at the time of the re-route.

 

 

 

..

Edited January 1, 2012 by MJG

[mrsmelly]

One for the bookmarks - cheers..

 

Further to my earlier post. I have just checked and Lemonroyd caravan park was not built till 2001 so it was long after the event though probably paid for by the NCB as it was.

[carlt]

Take a look at the old OS maps on this site: http://www.ponies.me.uk/maps/osmap.html You can overlay the Google aerial pics to see how river and canal course has altered.

Great link!

 

Thank you.

[Guest]

The other thing which I hadn't fully appreciated was that it was the river that breached and not the A&CN itself.

 

Looking at the way and where they have been merged compared to how they were then I had taken it that the 'canalised' section drained rather than the river.

[Guest]

Further to my earlier post. I have just checked and Lemonroyd caravan park was not built till 2001 so it was long after the event though probably paid for by the NCB as it was.

 

are you sure about that Tim - Carl's aerial shot clearly shows the marina right at the top and looking at the lack of canal side vegetation compared to how it now looks I would say a lot earlier than 2001.

 

Also the 'Derelict places' website that Carl linked to it refers to the work to pump out the mine being completed in 1995, Carl's picture shows the mine still full of water from the breach - the later controlled fill seems to show a degree of 'landscaping' was added indicating the pic. is not of the mine since the mine was re flooded at a later date...

 

 

 

 

PS caravan site my backside -

 

(Just noticed our boat is in the shots of the marina on the BWML web site - third from the right.)

 

Edited January 1, 2012 by MJG

[the grinch]

the original lock was just below the new weir outfall channel, the ground was unstable from what i recall as the scour dragged a lot of soil away from the strip between the river and the canal, i seem to recall that the breach was so severe that the river flowed backwards for a couple of days

[MartinClark]

the original lock was just below the new weir outfall channel, the ground was unstable from what i recall as the scour dragged a lot of soil away from the strip between the river and the canal, i seem to recall that the breach was so severe that the river flowed backwards for a couple of days

 

It is flowing backward in the aerial photo that Martin linked to:

 

 

No doubt it was being topped up with water arriving at Castleford down the River Calder from Wakefield.

[Pluto]

In 1996, I was working at Dock Street, sorting the old Aire & Calder Navigation drawings and was invited down to Lemonroyd as, following draining of the open cast mine, they had found the remains of several wooden keels in the river. There were also the remains of one of the early locks and its associated weir, and stone sleepers from an old tramway close to the early cast iron bridge which carried the tramway over the river. Through various contacts, the local historical society from Castleford recorded the site prior to everything being destroyed by continuation of the open cast excavations. Their work was written up in British Archaeology, and some of the finds are kept at the Yorkshire Waterway Museum at Goole.

 

The drained river and one of the wooden boats.

 

Sam Yates, who served his time as a wooden boatbuilder at Whitebirk (Blackburn), with a section of clinker-built keel.

 

The lock and weir as revealed after the river had been drained. The lock had stone sides built on a wooden foundation which extended across the river to support the weir.

[Hairy-Neil]

I'm no geologist/civil engineer, and with the benefit of hindsight, but surely I can't be alone in thinking that digging a 70 metre deep hole that close to the river was somewhat foolhardy....

[greywolf]

reading this thread bells started ringing and i am fairly certain i dug on that site for 2 weekends it was a rescue dig run by a mate and his then girlfriend who did the non boat archeology.I have an early report on that section which they wrote.There were some other buildings there as well associated with the river.I will have a look for the report though it is only a very early thought on the site.

[mrsmelly]

the local historical society from Castleford recorded the site prior to everything being destroyed by continuation of the open cast excavations. Their work was written up in British Archaeology, and some of the finds are kept at the Yorkshire Waterway Museum at Goole.

 

 

 

Indeed the waterways museum at Goole although small is well worth a visit ( free entry ) I am very interested in the working boats of the area as my Dad was born in Goole and worked on barges form the age of 14 in 1934. My great Uncle owned a couple of barges and plied his trade on the Ouse, Humber and Trent with my old Dad as his " Lad " at first. Some of the type of old stuff my dad used to steer are at Goole at the museum. He has told me many a tale about working boats in the 30s first hand, and of going OVER weirs rather than through locks when the river was in flood on occasion.

Alas he died in July so my first hand experience of talking to a real working boatman has now ended, though my old mum now 91 did go with him on occasion much later on in err the 1940s and she can still remember it like it was yesterday.

Edited January 2, 2012 by mrsmelly

[greywolf]

I'm no geologist/civil engineer, and with the benefit of hindsight, but surely I can't be alone in thinking that digging a 70 metre deep hole that close to the river was somewhat foolhardy....

 

i do not think they had permission i think the did the mining and then reaped the consequences. From what i was told the mine payed for the making good but was allowed to mine the dry section of river.The week ends i worked there were separated by some weeks and the mine was visibly closer on the second visit to where we were digging.

 

The lorries were massive that worked there the wheels alone were about one and a half times bigger than a six foot person.Not much in the way of finds but there was some glass clinker in small amounts.There was a the remains of a wicker fence in the bed of the river but we had just found the top of that on my second visit stretching across the river.

[Pluto]

I'm no geologist/civil engineer, and with the benefit of hindsight, but surely I can't be alone in thinking that digging a 70 metre deep hole that close to the river was somewhat foolhardy....

I seem to recall that there was a geological fault where the breach took place which had not been previously identified.

[greywolf]

found the report titled

ST Aidans quarry excavations interim report on phase 1

 

The site was excavated and recorded on the 23rd of november and the 7th of december 1997 by members of the nautical Archaeology society and Pontefract and district archaeological society.

 

the near complete barge was estimated to be 1.95 metres from the center of the keelson to the outer edge of the starboard side giving an overall width measurement of 3.90 metres or 13 ft.The best guess on the length of the vessel was indicates it was 16 to 17 metres long [52-56 ft] long. The date of the vessal was then uncertain but almost certainly within the period 1700-1950.

 

the boat had a limber and 2 plugholes apparently that let the water out when drydocked.

[pearley]

If you are at Lemonroyd, if you cross the weir and take the path to the right towards Caroilina footbridge you can see the remains of the old lock about 50feet inside the wire fence. The gates are gone but you can clearly see the lower wing walls and plenty of bollards remain. I have a photo that I took last winter when we were stuck in the ice just above the current lock.

 

The two photos in the original post both show the new lock and weir and the marina in the top LH corner but I can't make out the line of the new canal.

 

As you go down river the piling that made up the later coal loading staithe is clearly seen but nothing else appears to remain. On the old line there were two loading points, one on each side of the canal. Unfortunately didn't take any photos as couldn't afford the film processing. No problem now with digital. We cruised here many times in the 90s, both old line and the new just after it was opened (had to walk through the embryo marina site to get to the pub on the other side of the railway)

 

One of our favourite moorings is on the other side of Fleet Bridge in the layby just past the oil terminal. Used to be the loading staithe for Water Haigh Colliery.

 

The open cast mine had a huge drag line excavator on the far side from the river. Is it still there?

 

Regards

Pete

Edited January 2, 2012 by pearley

[carlt]

The open cast mine had a huge drag line excavator on the far side from the river. Is it still there?

Yes it is.

 

They walked it out of the mine, very slowly, as the waters rose.