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Stratford-upon-Avon Canal
The Stratford-upon-Avon Canal is a canal in the south Midlands of England. The canal, which was built between 1793 and 1816, runs for in total, and consists of two sections. The dividing line is at Kingswood Junction, which gives access to the Grand Union Canal. Following acquisition by a railway company in 1856, it gradually declined, the southern section being un-navigable by 1945, and the northern section little better. The northern section was the setting for a high-profile campaign by the fledgling Inland Waterways Association in 1947, involving the right of navigation under Tunnel Lane bridge, which required the Great Western Railway to jack it up in order to allow boats to pass. These actions saved the section from closure. The southern section was managed by the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, National Trust from 1959, and restored by David Hutchings and the Stratford Canal Society between 1961 and 1964, after an attempt to close it was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edstone Aqueduct
Edstone Aqueduct is one of three Navigable aqueduct, aqueducts on a length of the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal in Warwickshire. At , ''Edstone'' is the longest cast iron aqueduct in England. It crosses a minor road, a stream, and a field, a railway line (the North Warwickshire Line) and the trackbed of the disused Alcester–Bearley branch line, Alcester branch line. There was once a pipe from the side of the canal that enabled steam locomotives to draw water to fill their tanks. The aqueduct was built between 1812 and 1816 and is an early example of a prefabricated structure. Its cast iron trough is formed of 35 separate sections bolted together, which sits on thirteen brick piers, creating 14 spans. The trough is wide, and deep. The towpath is set level with the base of the trough, which is a somewhat unusual design feature. It was threatened with closure in 1958 along with the entire canal, but was saved by enthusiasts in the 1960s. The aqueduct became a grade II* listed s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
M40 Motorway
The M40 motorway links London, Oxford, and Birmingham in England, a distance of approximately . The motorway is dual three lanes except for junction 1A to junction 3 (which is dual four lanes) a short section in-between the exit and entry highway ramp, slip-roads at junction 4 (which is two lanes in both directions) and also between the slip-roads at junction 9 (in the south-eastbound direction only). An Active Traffic Management system operates on the short section north-westbound from junction 16 (A3400 road, A3400) to the M42 motorway, M42. History London to Great Milton The motorway between London and Oxford was constructed in stages between 1967 and 1974. The first section opened in June 1967, from Handy Cross roundabout, High Wycombe to Stokenchurch (junctions 4–5). In 1969, extending in a southerly direction to Holtspur, Beaconsfield, a temporary junction 2 was opened. The section bypassing Beaconsfield was built in 1971 and the section past Gerrards Cross to jun ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
River Cole, West Midlands
The River Cole is a river in the English Midlands. It rises on the lower slopes of Forhill, one of the south-western ramparts of the Birmingham Plateau, at Red Hill and flows south before flowing largely north-east across the plateau to enter the River Blythe below Coleshill, near Ladywalk, shortly before the Blythe meets the Tame. This then joins the Trent, whose waters reach the North Sea via the Humber Estuary. Its source is very near the main watershed of Midland England: tributaries are few and very short except in the lower reaches, so the Cole is only a small stream. The stretch between Shard End and Tyseley formed part of the historic border between Warwickshire and Worcestershire. Geology The average gradient of the central reaches is . There is a fast run-off from the drift covered Keuper marl clay which makes up its catchment area, and heavy rain produces sudden floods; in the absence of replenishing side-streams these subside as quickly as they rise. The C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Major's Green
Major's Green is a village in the Wythall parish of Bromsgrove district and is the northeasternmost settlement in the county of Worcestershire, England. The village is served by Whitlocks End railway station as well as bus service A4 to Solihull, and is the location of The Drawbridge Public House named after the adjacent drawbridge on the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal. The village is closely associated with the surrounding West Midlands county (3 of the 4 roads from the village lead into the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull) in respect of transport and amenities, and as such can also be considered an outer suburb of Shirley. The Solihull suburbs of Hasluck's Green and Solihull Lodge are directly to the northeast and northwest respectively. Indeed the village was located within Solihull Municipal Borough and hence the county of Warwickshire until 1962. Originally the county boundary had continued along the River Cole between Houndsfield Lane northward to Peter Brook but in the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shirley, West Midlands
Shirley is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull, in the West Midlands, England. Historically a rural settlement within the county of Warwickshire, it is now contiguous with nearby Solihull and Birmingham. History The earliest known settlement in the Shirley area was at Berry Mound Camp at what is now Solihull Lodge, in the west of Shirley. This was the site of an Iron Age Hill Fort, which may have been the scene of a battle between the forces of King Alfred and besieged Danes (and with archaeological evidence which would indicate defense of the site during this period). The site at Berry Mound Camp is a rare example of a univallate hillfort with evidence of a timber revetments and a re-cut V-shaped ditch which demonstrates the importance of this hillfort as a defensive site. The remains of the fortified village, protected by up to three series of earth banks, dating back to the 1st century BC, covered approximately . For the majority of the Medieval and Early-M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brandwood End
Brandwood End is a locality in Birmingham, England, and makes up the central part of the Brandwood electoral ward. It lies within the B14 postcode and is a sub-area of Kings Heath Kings Heath (historically, and still occasionally King's Heath) is a suburb of south Birmingham, England, four miles south of the city centre. Historically in Worcestershire, it is the next suburb south from Moseley on the A435 road, A435 Alces .... The area is centred on Brandwood End Cemetery. Areas of Birmingham, West Midlands {{WestMidlands-geo-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Canal Lock
A lock is a device used for raising and lowering boats, ships and other watercraft between stretches of water of different levels on river and canal waterways. The distinguishing feature of a lock is a chamber in a permanently fixed position in which the water level can be varied. (In a caisson lock, a boat lift, or on a canal inclined plane, it is the chamber itself (usually then called a caisson) that rises and falls.) Locks are used to make a river more easily navigable, or to allow a canal to cross land that is not level. Over time, more and larger locks have been used in canals to allow a more direct route to be taken. History Ancient Egypt In Ancient Egypt, the river-locks was probably part of the Canal of the Pharaohs: Ptolemy II is credited by some for being the first to solve the problem of keeping the Nile free of salt water when his engineers invented the lock around 274/273 BC. Ancient China During 960–1279 CE, the natural extension of the flash lock, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Guillotine Lock
A guillotine lock is a type of canal lock. The lock itself operates on the same principle as any normal pound lock, but is unusual in that each gate is a single piece, usually of steel, that slides vertically upwards when opened to allow a boat to traverse underneath. The resemblance to the French guillotine is obvious. Guillotine locks are relatively uncommon, but many are found on the waterways of East Anglia. The advantages over the more traditional design are that the lock occupies less space, does not require room to swing open, and is quicker to fabricate and install. It also acts as a tidal lock, able to hold back water whichever side is higher, and can function as a stop lock (for example, Lifford Lane stop lock near Kings Norton Junction). It is mechanically more complex, however, requiring the use of a gantry and overhead lifting gear. A significantly larger one can be found at the northern terminus of the Maas-Waal Canal, between Nijmegen and Weurt in the Netherl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
King's Norton Stop Lock
Kings Norton Stop Lock () is a Grade II* listed building at Kings Norton Junction on the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal near its junction with the Worcester and Birmingham Canal. It is the only guillotine-gated stop-lock on a canal. Description This stop lock was built to prevent water flowing from one canal to another, regardless of which side was higher, but normally the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal was six inches higher. Canal companies were always concerned with the conservation of their own water supplies. There was also a toll house adjacent to the lock. The wooden guillotine style gates are suspended in a slightly raked cast iron girder frame by a chain which passes through a small block on the gate. One end of the chain passes over two large wheels to a winch mechanism. The other end passes over two more large wheels to a hidden counterweight built into the side wall of the lock. There was no need for paddle gear to fill or empty the lock. With such a small difference in w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kings Norton Junction
Kings Norton Junction () is the name of the canal junction where the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal terminates and meets the Worcester and Birmingham Canal at Kings Norton, Birmingham, England. History The Worcester and Birmingham Canal was authorised by an Act of Parliament in 1791, after overcoming opposition by the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal and the Birmingham Canal Company. The first saw the new route as direct competition, while the second would not allow a junction between the two canals. The canal was built southwards from Birmingham, where there was a gap between the canal and the Birmingham system. Shortly after passing through King's Norton, a ridge of hills was pierced by the Wast Hill Tunnel. Construction of it began in 1794, and by 1807, boats could reach Tardebigge. There was then a period of no activity, but the canal was finally completed to Diglis Basin and the River Severn in 1815. An agreement enabled a stop lock to be built to connect the can ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reservoir
A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of water, interrupting a watercourse to form an Bay, embayment within it, excavating, or building any number of retaining walls or levees to enclose any area to store water. Types Dammed valleys Dammed reservoirs are artificial lakes created and controlled by a dam constructed across a valley and rely on the natural topography to provide most of the basin of the reservoir. These reservoirs can either be ''on-stream reservoirs'', which are located on the original streambed of the downstream river and are filled by stream, creeks, rivers or rainwater that surface runoff, runs off the surrounding forested catchments, or ''off-stream reservoirs'', which receive water diversion, diverted water from a nearby stream or aqueduct (water supply), aq ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Earlswood, Warwickshire
Earlswood is a village split between the counties of Warwickshire and the West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. Most of the village is located in the Tanworth, Tanworth-in-Arden civil parish of the Stratford-on-Avon District, Warwickshire, while the northern part is in the Tidbury Green parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull. A hamlet called Warings Green lies to the south east of the village, with the northernmost point crossing into the parish of Cheswick Green in the borough of`Solihull. The village is surrounded by farmland and forests and it gives its name to Earlswood Lakes (entirely within Warwickshire) as well as to Earlswood (West Midlands) railway station, Earlswood railway station (on the border with West Midlands), even though The Lakes railway station is located closer to the main part of the village. Amenities The Earlswood Lakes are close to the centre of the village. There are numerous footpaths for walking around the lakes and in the adjacen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
