Rochdale Canal Lock 75 – Newton Heath, UK
Posted by: 
dtrebilc
N 53° 29.786 W 002° 11.942
30U E 553134 N 5927795
The Rochdale canal is 32 miles long and connects Manchester on the west side of the Pennine Hills and Sowerby Bridge on the east side.
Waymark Code: WMKC9Y
Location: North West England, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 03/18/2014
Views: 2
The Canal History
The Rochdale Canal was completed in 1804 and is one of three canals that cross the Pennine hills. This is the only one that doesn’t use a summit tunnel. In addition it was a broad canal with bridges and locks that allowed boats of 14 feet width to pass through.
The one downside of not using a summit tunnel is that it originally had 92 locks. These days two of them have been combined into one deep lock.
Competition from railways and roads subsequently led to a decline in goods being carried and by 1937 the only section left in operation was at the Manchester end of the canal.
In 1965 there was talk of abandoning the canal but by this time leisure boating had become very popular in the UK and there was a campaign to keep it open. Work was started and the canal slowly re-opened in a number of different stages. The whole length finally reopened in 2002.
Details of this lock
This lock is also known as Slaters Highest Lock, the highest of a pair of locks with the same name.
Next to the bottom lock gates is a small wooden footbridge that gives access to both sides of the lock for boaters to operate the lock gates.
At the time the photo of the lock was taken, the top gates had been left slightly open.
The lock gates were replaced in 2001 with gates made in Northwich as part of the canal's restoration. They have a plaque on them commemorating the event.
Waterway Name: The Rochdale Canal
Connected Points:
The city of Manchester on the western side of the Pennine hills and the town of Sowerby Bridge on the east.
Type: Lock
Date Opened: 01/01/1804
Elevation Difference (meters): 2.00
Site Status: Operational
Web Site: [Web Link]
Date Closed (if applicable): Not listed
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