Garston Lock () is a

lock Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...

on the

Kennet and Avon Canal The Kennet and Avon Canal is a waterway in southern England with an overall length of , made up of two lengths of navigable river linked by a canal. The name is used to refer to the entire length of the navigation rather than solely to the cent ...

. It is near the

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and near

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England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

Garston Lock was built between 1718 and 1723 under the supervision of the engineer

John Hore John HoreAlternative spellings of Hore's surname include "Hoar" and "Hoare" (baptised 13 March 1680 – 12 April 1763Other sources give Hore's year of birth as 1690, and year of death as 1762) was an English engineer, best known for making the Ri ...

of Newbury, and this stretch of the river is now administered by

Canal & River Trust The Canal & River Trust (CRT), branded as in Wales, holds the guardianship of 2,000 miles of canals and rivers, together with reservoirs and a wide range of heritage buildings and structures, in England and Wales. Launched on 12 July 2012, the ...

and known as the Kennet Navigation. It has a rise/fall of 7 ft 7ins (2.29m). One of only two remaining working examples of turf sided locks on the canal (the other being

Monkey Marsh Lock Monkey Marsh Lock is a lock on the Kennet and Avon Canal, at Thatcham, Berkshire, England. Monkey Marsh Lock was built between 1718 and 1723 under the supervision of the engineer John Hore of Newbury. The canal is administered by Canal & River T ...

), Garston Lock has been described as needing "more water to operate than the now more common brick or stone-sided variety" as the sloping sides increase the volume of the lock. The two sets of lock gates work differently: the upper set operates via a mechanical system, while the lower gates are hydraulic. The top part of the lock chamber has sloping banks which are covered by vegetation of various types rather than by turf. An arrangement of steel rails ensures that boats stay in the centre of the lock during the rise/fall of 7 ft 7 in (2.31 m). The lock is a grade II*

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

. Two pillboxes dating from

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

at the northwest and southeast corners of the lock, which were built as anti tank defences, are also listed buildings. Image:GarstonLockPillBox.JPG, Pill Box at Garston Lock. Image:GarstonLockPillBox2.JPG, Canal Boat next to Pill Box at Garston Lock.

References

See also