On Sunday 15 May 2011 the Institution of Civil Engineers North West Historical Engineering Group toured both the Wet Earth Colliery at Clifton, and the Bridgewater Canal at Worsley.
Development at both sites was facilitated by the pioneering vision of James Brindley, one of the most prominent engineers of the 18th century. Brindley is credited with numerous works associated with mining and water engineering, including the establishment of a large part of the English canal network.
Wet Earth Colliery, Clifton Country Park
The day began at Clifton Country Park. Alan Davies, professional mine manager and former curator of the Buile Hill Mining Museum, led a tour of the features of the former Wet Earth Colliery which are located throughout the park.
The site was home to one of the earliest pits in the country, with coal extraction going back to the 17th century. The Irwell Valley fault which runs through the site displaced the coal seams upwards by 600m. This made them relatively shallow and easy to work. Problems with flooding as the coal workings were driven deeper were solved by Brindley in 1756. He constructed a weir upstream of the site on the adjacent River Irwell, diverting water under the river and bringing it up onto the colliery site using his ingenious inverted siphon. This water, carried by a system of surface canals, was used to power a 7m diameter water wheel which de-watered the coal workings. Brindley's solution was so successful it remained in operation for over 100 years until it was replaced by a water turbine.
Visible remains of several of the developments at the colliery as it progressed through the various stages of the industrial revolution include the addition of a canal basin to create a direct link to the adjacent canal system, the change from water turbine to steam pumping in the Wheel chamber in the 1920s and the Fan House which provided mechanical ventilation for the mine shafts. The colliery remained in operation until 1928. The siphon along with many of the tunnels and shafts are now silted up, although some were opened up and recorded in recent years. Further information can be found at the park visitor centre or through Alan Davies via HEG.
Bridgewater Canal at Worsley
The afternoon comprised a walking tour of the Bridgewater Canal at Worsley Green. John Aldred, an extremely knowledgeable local historian and author, took us through the development of the Bridgewater Canal and the surrounding area as a result of the need for ever larger quantities of coal to power the rising demands of industry and more efficient ways of delivering it to the adjacent towns.
The first stretch of the canal was opened in 1761 to link the Duke of Bridgewater’s coal mines at Worsley to Manchester and is regarded as the first British canal of the modern era. The loading basin where the canal linked to the underground canals within the coal mines is still visible and although the canals are not open to the public they still exist within the mine workings. The canal water in this area has a characteristic red colour caused by ochre washing out of the old coal workings. John outlined the history of the local Worsley Brook watercourse which was dammed to power mills in the area and is now diverted below the canal providing a modern day function of draining the adjacent dry docks which are some of the oldest still in use.
The name given to the ‘Packet House’ at the canal basin, a reflection of its function as a mail and package centre, illustrates the importance of the early canal as a means of transporting goods and connecting people. Worsley Green itself was home to numerous factories and workshops which were cleared to form the green in the early 1900s. The chimney of one factory has been preserved as a landmark on the green and together with some of the surviving clusters of 18th century workers cottages provides some of the little visible evidence that this now desirable residential area was once a centre of industry. One wonders whether James Brindley had any idea of the future heralded by his works of engineering.
Note
For readers with a further interest in a hands-on guided tour of the Canal, there is an all-day event on 21st October 2011 organised by Manchester Regional Industrial Archaeology Society. Details via HEG.
Denis O’Gara
Historical Engineering Group
All photos courtesy Denis O’Gara.