Your floating hotel on the Canals and Rivers of the UK

Our guide to the waterways of the UK in detail.

The history of the Worcester & Birmingham Canal.

In 1791 the canal was authorised after great opposition from The Birmingham, Dudley, Stourbridge and Staff and Worcs canal companies all afraid that providing a shorter route to the Severn this canal would take away their trade. A result was the Worcester bar, a solid barrier where the Worcester and Birmingham connected to the Birmingham canal to force goods to be transhipped between boats.

The first part to fourteen and a half miles to Tardebigge proved relatively easy to build, despite the four tunnels, and two embankments because of the absence of locks which also eased the need for great reservoirs, although two reseviors were required at Bitall, one to hold water for the millers.. This stretch was constructed to a 14 foot width as the initial intention was to build a broad canal from Worcester to allow barges from the river Severn to read Birmingham.

Traffic was soon flowing on this summit stretch. In 1798 Dudley number 2 canal was connected to the Worcester and Birmingham via Selly Oak tunnel giving a direct connection to the Black Country instead of the longer Birmingham canal route. Also in 1793 the Stratford canal had been authorised to run South from King's Norton. This would via the Warwick canals provide a direct connection to the Grand Junctions new route to London. Again avoiding using the Birmingham canal.

Finally the canal company resumed building down to the River Severn, however due to cost and the problems of water supply it was now only built to 7 ft width. It took 48 locks and another short tunnel to reach Worcester at last in 1815. Here the terminus basin at Diglis was constructed with broad barge locks to allow barges to come up off the Severn and transfer cargo to narrow boats. However soon narrow boats were working down the River Severn direct to the docks at Gloucester and eventually those at Sharpness.

In 1852 the Worcester and Birmingham canal company promoted the Droitwich Junction canal to connect from their canal at Hanbury Junction to the Droitwich barge canal from the centre of Driotwich to the River Severn.

After thirteen years of fighting against various railways to save the Worcester & Birmingham Canal, the Gloucester & Sharpness company in 1874 leased the Worcester & Birmingham from the liquidators. They also leased the Droitwich Barge Canal and the Droitwich Junction Canal. The Gloucester &Sharpness company now controlled all of the artificial waterways between Bristol and Birmingham. They did a lot of work in improving their new acquisitions during the following months, including dredging the Droitwich Barge Canal for the first time since it had opened. However, none of these canals ever paid any profits and, in fact, the tolls didn't even cover maintenance costs but the Gloucester & Sharpness company kept the routes to Birmingham open because it was very important to their own canal's survival.

Sources.

Nicholson Guides to the Waterways.

Canal Companion, South Midlands J.M. Pearson. Published by Central Waterways Supplies of Rugby in 2004. ISBN 0-9545383-8-2

Some pictures of this canal?

Pictures from Worcester to Kings Norton / Pictures from Kings Norton to Birmingham

General information on the canal.

Find our information about other canals and rivers on the canal index page.

If you have any questions then do ring us on 07977 229103
or email us at martinreed@reedboats.co.uk