Thomas Telford - Harecastle Tunnel - Kidsgrove, Staffordshire.
N 53° 05.078 W 002° 14.668
30U E 550604 N 5881952
The blue plaque is located on the canal keepers office at the Harecastle Tunnel, North Portal in Kidsgrove.
Waymark Code: WMVMW4
Location: West Midlands, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 05/06/2017
Views: 6
Harecastle Tunnel is a canal tunnel on the Trent and Mersey Canal at Kidsgrove in Staffordshire.
It is made up of two separate, parallel, tunnels.The fist tunnel was built by James Brindley and the second by Thomas Telford. Today only the Telford tunnel is navigable.
This plaque commemorates the tunnel constructed by engineer Thomas Telford.
Brindley's Tunnel was a great success but was unable to cope with the increasing traffic on the canal and the slow process of legging meant that the Harecastle Tunnel was becoming a major bottleneck on the canal.
The second tunnel was commissioned and built by Thomas Telford. Due to advances in engineering, it took just three years to build compared with the eleven years it took to build James Brindley's tunnel. The 2962 yard tunnel was completed in 1827. It had a towpath so that horses could pull the boats through the tunnel. After its construction it was used in conjunction with the Brindley tunnel, with each tunnel taking traffic in opposite directions. The Brindley tunnel was closed in 1914.
Between 1914 and 1954 an electric tug was used to pull boats through the tunnel. In 1954 a large fan was constructed at the south portal. While all the boats are within the tunnel an airtight door is shut and all the air is pulled through the tunnel by the fan. This allows diesel boats to use the tunnel without suffocating the boaters. Today the journey takes about 30–40 minutes.
In the late 20th century, the Telford tunnel also began to suffer subsidence, and was closed between 1973 and 1977. The towpath, long disused, was removed, allowing boats to take advantage of the greater air draft in the centre of the tunnel. Source: (
visit link)
The blue plaque is located on the canal keepers office at the Harecastle Tunnel, North Portal on the Trent and Mersey Canal, Kidsgrove. The entrance to the tunnel can also be seen at this location.
The plaque is inscribed as follows;
'Newcastle-under-Lyme Civic Society
Harecastle Tunnel
2962 yards(2528m) long by 14 feet(4.03m) wide
Opened 1827
Surveyed and Engineered by
Thomas Telford
British Waterways Dyfrffyrdd Prydain
2007'