Feted as being the first of the modern commercial canals, it opened in 1761 and set off the canal mania era. Whilst it was the first of the single cut canals not following an existing watercourse an argument could be made that the Sankey, St. Helens Canal, was the one that proved the point.

The Sankey canal opened in in 1757 and was the only canal project not to have anyone object to it. Whilst not a new cut canal, it followed the line of the Sankey Brooke, it was built as though it was a new canal. Its act of parliament said “for making navigable the River or Brook called Sankey Brook, and Three several Branches thereof from the River Mersey below Sankey Bridges, up to Boardman’s Stone Bridge on the South Branch, to Gerrard’s Bridge on the Middle Branch, and to Penny Bridge on the North Branch, all in the county palatine of Lancaster” (Thank you Wikipedia)

But whatever the rights or wrongs of that Worlsey is a lovely spot with some super architecture and now the addition of some lovely sculptures.

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We have been down to Worsley, lovely place and the wonderful Barton Swing Aqueduct.

The Barton Swing Aqueduct is the first and only swing aqueduct in the world. It carries the Bridgewater  canal across the Manchester ship canal. It replaces the earlier unmovable aqueduct built as part of the original Bridgewater canal. The swinging action allows large vessels using the ship canal to pass underneath, the swing bridge opened in 1894 and remains in regular use .

I have uploaded a couple of videos to YouTube of it operating, we were lucky when we got there they had it open and we watched it close.

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