Arch Bridge 9 Over The Macclesfield Canal – Windlehurst, UK - Stone Bridges on Waymarking.com

The Macclesfield Canal
The Macclesfield Canal was one of the last narrow canals to be built, indeed, it was very nearly built as a railway! A variety of ideas were proposed and the present canal was approved by Act of Parliament in April 1826. The route of the canal was surveyed by Thomas Telford and construction was engineered by William Crosley. The completed canal was opened on 9th November 1831 at a cost of £320,000.

The route takes the canal from Marple Junction with the Peak Forest Canal in the north 26¼ miles to the stop lock at Hall Green near Kidsgrove passing along the side of the most westerly Pennine hills through High Lane, Higher Poynton, Bollington, Macclesfield and Congleton, all in Cheshire, and Kidsgrove in Staffordshire in the south. Nowadays we normally regard the last 1½ miles to Harding's Wood Junction with the Trent & Mersey Canal as a part of the Macclesfield Canal although it was built as a branch of the T&MC. link

The Bridge
This bridge is an English Heritage Grade II Listed Building link "Road bridge. Completed by 1831. William Crossley engineer. Dressed stone. Skew elliptical horseshoe keystone arch. Convex parapet walls with a stone band and rounded copings which are terminted in square piers. Mouth grooved for stop planks."

The canal banks next to the bridge have grooves in them to take stop planks. From time to time it is necessary to block off sections of the canal for maintenance. Bridges are usually at narrow points in the canal to reduce building costs and so provide convenient points to use stop planks.

There is a number of stop planks stored next to this bridge.

The bridge was built on a slight bend in the canal, and as horses towed the canal boats, the tow ropes rubbed against the bridge sides and cut deep grooves into the stone abutments. In order to protect the bridge a metal post was attached to the side of the bridge. This was done on many bridges on the canal but only a few still remain.

At some point when traffic volumes increased a footbridge was erected next to the bridge for pedestrians.

Physical Location (city, county, etc.): Windlehurst, Greater Manchester Road, Highway, Street, etc.: Andrew Lane Water or other terrain spanned: The Macclesfield Canal Architect/Builder: William Crossley Construction Date: 1831

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