Trent & Mersey Canal Minute Books

[Heartland]

The recent gathering at Etruria reminded me of a question which crop up from time to time- what ever happened to the Trent and Mersey records? David Gladwin was of the opinion that they existed somewhere in private ownership, if this is the case then by now some mention might have surfaced by now. This question relates to the period of the canal prior to the take over by the North Staffordshire Railway, which do have surviving records at Kew and previously mainly accounts for the independent T& M exist there too. There are also various documents at Stafford Records Office, but comprehensive minute books like exist for most other canal companies remains a matter of speculation as to their continued existence somewhere.

 

Ray Shill

[oldironsides]

Some records exist scattered about but when the canal was bought by the railway, they destroyed most of the paper. After all, why keep it? By the way, that was sarcasm.

[Heartland]

Sarcasm or not, in most cases railway acquisition was accompanied by record retention. The NSR continued to operate the canal and also chose to maintain and improve it as needed. Records were essential to this process, all be it to deal with legal claims, land ownership and water rights.

 

A major change however was the move of the company offices. The canal offices occupied part of the office complex at the 1849 Stoke Station.

 

Ray Shill

[Heartland]

It is possible that no formal minutes of proceedings existed. There was a complex structure with the T & M.Printed AGM documents can be found, which are a help for some years, but the canal shareholding, maintenance and development was controlled by one group and a separate, but linked, organisation looked after the carrying department Hugh Henshall & Co.

 

Finding company records are the "holy grail" of canal research.

 

Ray Shill

[Heartland]

From time to time records and plans do turn up. At Etruria for example, the original canal was altered some time during the 1830's it seems when the Summit Lock was relocated nearer the graving dock and a new cut made to a single lock that faced a site where Shirley's Bone Mill was established. Prior to that there appears to have been a water mill, Bells Mill, whose mill pool was bisected by the T & M canal with Bells Mill Aqueduct crossing the water link between two halves. Above Bells Mill aqueduct and between this and the original Summit Lock was a stair case pair, Etruria Double Lock.

 

Ray Shill

[magpie patrick]

Thinking of the records for the Coal Canal, and the Kennet and Avon, the lack of these minutes for the T&M explains why there is less certainty over some of the detail changes that took place. For example, I haven't yet found a source that clearly states whether it was a two rise or a three rise at Meaford originally, and it's only recently I heard of the Etruria two rise.

 

By contrast, we have committee notes of a decision to narrow the entrance lock to the Coal Canal in 1832 - a change that is less obvious on the ground than the T&M at Meaford

 

I'm still trying to work out those changes at Etruria though - but in that case subsidence interferes with interpreting the exiisting siituation as well.

[oldironsides]

There are a number of plans and maps which show Etruria and the changes which took place when the staircase locks were removed to speed up traffic. The line of the canal was shifted eastwards to the present position and the houses, yards and so on built against the new towpath line. Shirley's Etruscan Bone and Flint mill was built later, in 1857, to replace the older mill and mill pond on the site. The gas works wharf wide is perhaps a relict of the pond. I would like to see any plan evidence that anyone knows of for these changes. Of course, much of this work was done as part of the removal of the other staircases along the T&M.

 

The minute books are still missing, believed destroyed!

[Heartland]

That the minute books were destroyed is also to be positively established, the theory which I am looking at is that the Sparrow family and other shareholders had a distinct control and made more decisions than other canal concerns. Minute books as we know it may never have been compiled. This is one of the few canal company that kept a tight control of trade. Hugh Henshall & Co was operated as their official carrier. Nineteenth Century canal carriers in general have left few records

 

The alterations at Etruria may coincide with the period James Trubshaw was engineer to the company

 

As to plans showing the changes some useful maps are available at Staffordshire RO D3191/2/3 and D3191/1/1 which show the before and after arrangements respectively.

 

Ray Shill