BCN Districts

[AMModels]

Is there a definitive list of the districts within the BCN? 

[Heartland]

They changed with time as the system was merged and expanded. The lock cottages were numbered in district order and the maintenance boats were allocated to these districts. also. I know of an early list that was at Gloucester for the Mid 19th Century, and Roy Jamieson sent me a copy, that listed 6 districts. Generally there were 4 numbered districts, but became before the cottages were numbered in the present series. Ocker Hill for boat allocation was a separate district at one time.

[AMModels]

Thanks for replying, sounds like its far more complicated than I thought. 

[Heartland]

Yes the districts were 5 in the end No 5 included the Fradley, Ogley section

[Ray T]

Does that include the length of the Birmingham - Fazeley Canal which joins the two sections of the Coventry Canal?

Edited May 1, 2018 by Ray T

[Heartland]

Yes,

 

The cottage numbers are the clue

 

1-100 Birmingham District

100-149- Tipton/Wolverhampton

150-199- Dudley etc

200-249- Walsall

250 plus No 5 district- top end of B & F and part of W & E

 

The district inspectors also came to have some large accommodation, that at Tipton, for example was a large building at the top of Factory- now demolished.

 

These districts also changed with time, as previously stated, a factor in this regards was the merger with the W & E and the Dudley. There was also some reorganisation at times to save costs. References can be found in BCN company minutes.

 

[AMModels]

So would that list Walsall as District 4 at least for part of its life anyway?
A friends dad lived in 204 Canalside Sneyd, were the cottages numbered in order from a certain point? Say from Horseley Fields for the W&E and onward Walsall/Daw End etc etc?

[Heartland]

The cottages were initially numbered separately per district, then later the numbering sequence as a whole was adopted. There were also properties not numbered but recorded in a list. or lists.

 

The numbering was sort of sequential as per location, but new cottages were added at the end. That is why the two cottages at Winson Green are not together.