Braunston

Tonight’s mooring is in Braunston. This morning we were in Warwickshire, and now Northamptonshire (heading for Oxfordshire), having climbed the three locks at Hilmorton.

Hilmorton locks were originally built as singles in 1790, however due to the volume of boat traffic they were duplicated in 1840

If Gas Street Basin in Birmingham is the ‘geographic’ heart of the canal system, then Braunston is its ’emotional’ heart, having seen more than 200 years of water transport hustle and bustle. Its history goes back much further than the canal having said that – the surrounding fields still showing signs of their mediaeval ridge and furrow patterns.

Each ridge would have been farmed by a local peasant, before the open fields were enclosed by ruthless landowners and turned over to pasture sometime prior to the 17 century

Over the years Braunston was home at one time or another to many of the fabled names of canal history; Pickfords, Fellows Morton & Clayton, Samuel Barlow, and Nursers who were famous boatbuilders and painters of perhaps the best ever ‘roses and castles’.

There has been a marina at Braunston for decades, and a number of canal businesses still flourish there.

Looking toward the marina entrance

In the village itself there are several fairly old properties.

Cruck gable end

 

Ancient front door

Braunston Church the ‘Cathedral of the Canals’

Whilst sat here in the late afternoon sun writing this post, another old working boat came by – ‘Clover’, built in 1935 by Yarwoods on the River Weaver, and fitted with a Bolinder 1053 engine.

 

 

 

‘Gavotte’

Tonight we’ve stopped at Hilmorton which when you look at the map above looks as if it is an intrinsic part of Rugby. However by canal, having gone through Rugby at lunch time with an exciting visit to Tesco, Hilmorton feels very independent, seemimgly separated from Rugby by miles of open countryside. We often remark that canals bring the country into the city (or town). Tomorrow we go up three locks – the first in the last three days of cruising.

Last night we moored at Stretton Stop, home of a long established boatyard and boat hire base. We hired a little boat here back in 1996 (nineteen years ago), named ‘Gavotte’. As we tied up we spotted a familiar little boat right opposite – you guessed – ‘Gavotte’.  It was old when we hired it but was obviously still afloat, albeit in private ownership now.

‘Gavotte’ right opposite

A short walk with the dogs took us into the village of Brinklow, which in being an ancient staging post on the Fosse Way (Exeter to Lincoln – the Roman way !), had a lot of attractive old buildings and the remains of a Mott and Bailey castle, from which there were expansive views over the Warwickshire countryside.

 

 

 

 

Sutton Stop

Between Bedworth and Coventry

We’ve reached the junction of the Coventry Canal and the northern part of the Oxford Canal. The former carries on a little further into the centre of Coventry, and (we have on good authority) is nicer than you’d expect. We’ll save up the visit until we come back through this way in the new year. The Coventry Canal has been a delight all the way, with only Nuneaton looking a little scruffy from the canal’s perspective – the town just doesn’t seem to embrace it at all.  Go back 100 or even 200 years ago and you might understand that attitude – whilst the canal would have been responsible for bringing new wealth to the town, at the time most considered it a grubby ditch (it probably was at the time!).  Nowadays most towns and villages have discovered the benefits to the local economy of having a ‘waterfront’, but not Nuneaton.  Near Bedworth (an old coal-mining town), we passed ‘Charity Dock’. The following photos sort of tell their own story of what was there :

Boat and Morris Minor junkyard

 

Obviously this crew member couldn’t cope with the canal side landscaping

 

I wonder if he realises the war is over ?

The canal junction is known officially as Hawkesbury Junction, or colloquially by the boat people of the past as Sutton Stop. The canal companies had offices here, and as the canal widened out at the junction there was room for a number of boats to moor and wait for their next cargo orders. There is a pub right on the junction too – the Greyhound. In the past, in addition to beer, it used to dispense fresh food, chandlery, and even fuel ! It was a very important establishment, where boat families would have a chance to catch up with the latest news (or gossip), and let off a bit of steam with a sing song.  It’s still there so we had to call in for a swift jar.

The Greyhound

Hawkesbury Junction presents a very attractive canal scene, and when one also considers it’s social history, it’s hard to resist transporting  yourself back in time.  The cast iron junction bridge dates from 1837.

Hawkesbury Bridge ( the pub was behind me as I took the photo)

In the 1940s,  a number of evocative photos were taken of the area, and I’ve tried to show a ‘then and now’ comparison of three of them.

Turning under the bridge – late ’40s

The same view in 2015

 

Winter scene Hawkesbury Junction Bridge

The current view on a misty morning in 2015

 

Wash day with Coventry Power Station behind

The view from exactly the same spot today !

 

We went exploring to see what had happened to the power station. This is exactly where it had been – not a trace !

 

 

 

 

 

No going back for Peacock

We took the opportunity of lovely sunny weather today to climb the ‘Atherstone Eleven’ locks up to the small town of – Atherstone.  It’s main industries in the past were coal-mining and hat making, both now gone.  The locks took 3 1/2 hours. They’re supposed to take around two, but we got a bit stuck behind four boats who just happened to set off ahead of us as we were approaching. Oh well, it’s not a race !

On the way we passed an old ‘working’ boat by the name of Peacock.  She was built in 1915 (making her 100 years old this year), and was built as a fly boat for the FMC company (more on them in a minute).  FMC were one of the first to fit diesel engines in their boats, and picked a Swedish manufacturer, Bolinder. Peacock is fitted with a single-cylinder Bolinder engine rated at around 15 hp.  There are not many left, and in being ‘semi-diesels’, the engines are just a bit different from ‘conventional’ diesels. They aren’t able to be cold started as there just isn’t enough compression, so a blowlamp has to be used to get the top of the engine red hot. Starting is by putting a peg into the fly wheel and kicking down on it (with stout boots), to get it to turn over ! On occasions the engine might have a tendency to start running in reverse apparently. Most Bolinder engines were direct drive, without a reversing gearbox, so basically there was no going backwards ! Once running, the engines have a characteristic rhythm to them, but sound like they’re missing the odd beat now and then. In fact they are – rather than altering the amount of fuel each stroke, the fuel is cut off on the odd stroke in order keep the engine at a set speed. Below is video of Peacock I took whilst coming out of a lock :

Bolinder semi-diesel engine

FMC, or more fully Fellows, Morton & Clayton Ltd, were one of the largest canal carriers in the country, having been established by James Fellows in 1837. By 1860, the fleet had grown to 50 boats, and Frederick Morton provided investment capital in 1876 to help expand the business. The third partner was Thomas Clayton whose father had established a fleet of boats, a merger taking place between the two businesses in 1889. At that time, the the fleet consisted of over a hundred horse-drawn butty boats, and 11 steamers. They were based in Birmingham. The steamers were converted to semi-diesels at around the time (1915) that the boat Peacock in our little video above, was built and fitted with one.  In being a ‘fly’ boat, it travelled 24 hours a day (often with just a small oil lamp during the hours of darkness), and had a crew of four men – two working the boat, whilst the other two slept in the cabin – which as you can see, wasn’t very big ! Eventually the fleet was nationalised in 1948, and shortly afterwards most boats were scrapped. Peacock is today considered the most original of the few FMC boats that have survived.

Now you know !

Being a bit nosey

Today we’ve moved on a bit further along the Coventry Canal, and as yesterday we like the understated quietness of this canal. By the late afternoon we’d reached the bottom of the Atherstone flight of eleven locks and thought it was time to call it a day.

I wanted to share something that some might consider being a bit nosey, yet it’s quite interesting really. On occasions the canal passes along the bottom of the gardens of a row of houses, and the different designs and features (or lack of) can be quite marked. The following selection were between Fazeley and Polesworth :

A secret sitting out area – warm summer evenings and a glass of red wine spring to mind

 

Intended to keep interlopers out, or occupants in ?

 

“Don’t really care that the canal’s there at all”

We stopped for lunch at the village of Polesworth, again with history going back over 1200 years. An Abbey was established in the year 827, and by all accounts prospered until the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 1500s. Some of the Abbey and its gatehouse are still there, and rather grand.

Polesworth Abbey

Abbey gates

Polesworth Bridge over the River Anker

Wandering around the village, we came across a secondhand bookshop, G & J  Chesters, and looking through the doorway, there were books piled and stacked in every conceivable space. I’m always on the look out for canal books to add to my collection (Deb despairs !), but without spending literally days in the shop looking through everything, I didn’t hold out much hope. Then I spotted an old boy sat at a desk behind yet another pile of books, and asked if by any chance he had any canal books. In essence whilst it looked like a complete muddle to me, he knew exactly where they all were ! I came away with a history of the Kennet & Avon Canal, published in 1968 before it was restored, and 1970s Hoseasons holiday map of the UK canal system (don’t ask !).

Only spotted him after a while !

The interesting thing is that it obviously doesn’t show the canal which have been more recently restored

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sign post

This morning, having turned on to the Coventry Canal at Fradley Junction, we had a lock-free cruise towards Fazeley Junction, which is a mile or so outside of Tamworth (see map above – click on it for more detail). This stretch of canal is again rural and not unattractive. Almost soporific really – the hours just slip by without either of us noticing. Lunch was at a nice open stretch where we could have towpath dog racing.

Wednesday’s lunch stop

To give the dogs a bit of light relief we stand around 30 – 40 yards apart, and let them race each other between the two of us. Poppy always wins. Even if Miry is given a head start, she’ll generally wait for Poppy to catch up before racing !

We reached Fazeley Junction at around 4:30, and our winter plans of being ‘down South’ looked to be step nearer when we came across a signpost confirming we’re going the right way !

Given a further choice of Coventry or the South, we thought we might leave Coventry until another day (or year !)

 

Rugeley presents its best side

 

Overnight near Lichfield

Tonight we’re at Fradley Junction, where the Trent & Mersey Canal meets the Coventry Canal – in fact we’ve turned just on to the latter, now on our way south. Both the canal from Great Haywood to Rugeley (where we stopped last night), and the stretch down to Fradley, are meandering and really rather pleasant. On Sunday we had had a great day with friends Martyn and Vanessa who came over for a canal trip with us up to the Hollybush Inn, in a village called Salt – yet another place where historically salt was extracted (bit obvious really!).

This morning’s highlight in Rugeley (well for Deb at least), was the realisation that the local Tesco was just a stone’s throw from the canal. Another chance to try out our ‘sholley’ (65 litre rucksack on a suitcase trolley).

Here’s Rugeley Tesco with the power station as a lovely backdrop

As I mentioned earlier, by contrast the canal is actually rather pleasantly rural, surprising in a sense given the industry that abounded in the area from the late 18th century onwards. Rugeley was particularly noted for coal mining, and the power station was built in 1960 to take advantage of the local supply of coal. Nothing much remains of the industry now save for some old wharves by the canal side, and the sanitary ware factory at Armitage (male readers think urinals!).

Rural bridge 60 on the Trent & Mersey Canal – typical of many.

 

A statue spotted by the canal side, near to Rugeley – not really sure what it signified but the sun was over the yard arm at the time !

 

The Armitage factory from the canal (in Armitage unsurprisingly)

Fradley Junction was a busy commercial area for some 150 years, and whilst it is still busy particularly on a weekend with boats milling around, and visitors arriving to take in the ambience, the only industry now is leisure-based. The old British Waterways workshops and depot is still there, but converted into a cafe and visitor information centre.

Visitor centre and cafe Fradley Junction

 

The same view as above, but some 60 years earlier

 

 

 

George Anson

Until today we hadn’t heard of George Anson, however in Naval circles he is by all accounts as famous as Admiral Lord Nelson. We’ve dropped down a few locks from Penkridge, under a lovely ‘turnover’ bridge on the way, where the canal towpath changes sides, and are moored in Tixall Wide. It’s almost like a small lake which suddenly appears around a corner. It’s said the owner of the land through which the canal was built insisted that rather than seeing a ‘ditch’ at the bottom of his garden, he wanted to look across his estate to an ornamental lake, so they had to make one to appease him.

Horse path over the turnover bridge

The Shugborough Estate is around a half hour walk from where we’re moored and in being another National Trust property we could get in with our new membership cards. Shugborough was latterly the home of Lord (Patrick) Lichfield, the photographer to the royals and celebrities, until his death in 2005. The present hall replaced an earlier manor house belonging to the Bishops of Lichfield, until the dissolution of the monasteries in 1540. It passed through several hands until being bought by a William Anson in 1624.  His grandson, another William, demolished the original manor in 1693 and a built the current hall in its place.

Shugborough Hall as it is today

The driveway bridge to Shugborough, over the river Trent

Much of the grandeur of the hall today was down to George Anson, a son. Born in 1697, he joined the Royal Navy as a 15 year old volunteer, and rose through the ranks, until in 1737 by which time he had been promoted to the rank of Commodore, he was given the task of ‘relieving’ the Spanish of their South American possessions.  The trip ultimately involved a round the world voyage, as the Spanish at the time were involved with considerable trade between Mexico, and the Chinese. He  searched for, found and captured a Spanish treasure galleon which was loaded with over a million ‘pieces of eight’.

Painting of HMS Centurion capturing the Spanish galleon.

By today’s value that’s the equivalent of about £ 130 million.  For his troubles he was allowed to keep 3/8 of it – the equivalent today of around £ 50 million ! He used the money to elaborately decorate Shugborough Hall :

George Anson went on to become First Sea Lord after some other major successes against the French Navy later in his career. Why is he well known in Naval circles ?  It was he who introduced the concept of a uniform for the Navy – in blue, white and gold. He wrote the articles of war for the Parliament of the day, still the basis for current conflicts, he designed the system of ‘rating’ for Naval vessels based on guns carried. He improved Naval medical care, and the transfer of the Marines from Army to Navy authority. Coming right back up to date, Patrick Lichfield’s full name was Thomas Patrick Anson, Earl of Lichfield; a direct descendant. He in fact leased some rooms from the National Trust, as it had been arranged for the property to pass to them in lieu of death duties on the death of his father.

So now you know !

 

 

 

Devizes

In case anyone is interested, we’re planning to spend November and December in Devizes (Wiltshire), at a marina. The plan is to catch a train back home to pick up Deb’s car, so we have more than a single fold up bike to get around in/on ! Prior to moving on in the new year, we’ll do the reverse and take the car back home, before continuing our canal odysey. Let us know if you’d like us to catch up whilst down South.

Penkridge Gaol

Penkridge is quite a bustling little village (in a nice way !), and has a convenient Co-op about 5 minutes from where we’re moored. The A449 from  Wolverhampton to Stafford passes through, but most of the nice bits are between there and the canal. Having left the dogs on the boat and done the shopping, we were intreagued to see a sign to the Gaol. Now a couple of things struck us. Penkridge seemed like an unlikely village to lock people up, and anyway shouldn’t it be spelt ‘jail’ ?

Penkridge gaol, with the stocks out the front

A bit of research cleared up the latter – there were two spellings in old English (and old French), and that beginning with ‘g’ largely went out of use in the UK during the 19th century.  The gaol had been a ‘jail’ from the 1700s, when the 500 year old village stock were relocated there as it was next to the Bell Brook, into which all the rubish lobbed at miscreants in the stocks could be thrown away afterwards ! Not very environmentally friendly ! It was last used as a gaol in 1837.

Across the road was a lovely cottage, which it turns out used to be the village constable’s – makes sense to have it near the Gaol really.

The constable’s cottage

Whilst taking the dogs for a walk up the canal, we came across a bridge slightly grander than the rest. Turns out it was once the driveway to Teddesley Park, and in order to get the cooperation of the owner of the estate (Sir Edward Littleton) when the canal was built in 1771, the bridge would have been required to be more decorative .  It originally would have had ornate balustrades comensurate with its importance as a gateway to the hall, but sadly with exception of a couple, most have now been infilled.

The hall was apparently requisitioned during WW2 as a prison camp for German officers. The army then demolished it !