Aston Junction () is the name of the
canal junction where the
Digbeth Branch Canal
Digbeth is an area of central Birmingham, England. Following the remodelling of the Birmingham Inner Ring Road, Inner Ring Road, Digbeth is now considered a district within Birmingham City Centre. As part of the Big City Plan, Digbeth is under ...
terminates and meets the
Birmingham and Fazeley Canal
The Birmingham and Fazeley Canal is a canal of the Birmingham Canal Navigations in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. Its purpose was to provide a link between the Coventry Canal and Birmingham and thereby connect Birmingham ...
near to
Aston
Aston is an area of inner Birmingham, in the county of the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Located immediately to the north-west of Birmingham city centre, Central Birmingham, Aston constitutes a wards of the United Kingdom, war ...
,
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
,
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
.
History
The Birmingham and Fazeley Canal was authorised by an
act of Parliament in 1784, once the company had negotiated an agreement with the
Oxford Canal
The Oxford Canal is a narrowboat canal in southern central England linking the City of Oxford with the Coventry Canal at Hawkesbury (just north of Coventry and south of Bedworth) via Banbury and Rugby. Completed in 1790, it connects to th ...
, the
Coventry Canal
The Coventry Canal is a navigable narrow canal in the Midlands of England.
It starts in Coventry and ends to the north at Fradley Junction, just north of Lichfield, where it joins the Trent and Mersey Canal. It also has connections with the ...
and the
Trent and Mersey Canal
The Trent and Mersey Canal is a canal in Derbyshire, Staffordshire and Cheshire in north-central England. It is a "narrow canal" for the vast majority of its length, but at the extremities to the east of Burton upon Trent and north of Middl ...
to ensure that the links between the existing end of the Coventry Canal at Atherstone and the Trent and Mersey at
Fradley Junction
Fradley Junction () is a canal junction between Fradley and Alrewas near Lichfield, Staffordshire, EnglandOS Explorer Map 245: The National Forest :(1:25 000) : , and from the end of the Oxford Canal to the
River Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...
at Oxford would be built. The Atherstone to Fradley link would connect with the end of the Birmingham and Fazeley at
Fazeley Junction
Fazeley Junction () is the name of the canal junction where the authorised Birmingham and Fazeley Canal terminates and meets the Coventry Canal at Fazeley, near Tamworth, Staffordshire, England.
History
The Coventry Canal was authorised by an ...
. The company wanted to ensure that the canal would be part of a larger network, once completed, that would carry trade to
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. The canal was completed from Farmers Bridge Junction, in the heart of Birmingham, to Fazeley in 1789, and the connecting links were completed in the following year.
Shortly after the passing of the act, the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal merged with the Birmingham Canal Company and eventually became known as the
Birmingham Canal Navigations
Birmingham Canal Navigations (BCN) is a network of canals connecting Birmingham, Wolverhampton, and the eastern part of the Black Country. The BCN is connected to the rest of the English canal system at several junctions. It was owned and opera ...
. The Digbeth Branch, which joined the original Birmingham and Fazeley line at Aston Junction, was built using the powers of the
Birmingham Canal Navigation Act 1768 (
8 Geo. 3
This is a complete list of acts of the Parliament of Great Britain for the year 1768.
For acts passed until 1707, see the list of acts of the Parliament of England and the list of acts of the Parliament of Scotland. See also the list of acts of ...
. c. 38), although the work was not undertaken until 1799. It was a short branch with six locks, which terminated at Typhoo Basin. Just before the end of the branch was a junction with the Warwick and Birmingham Canal, which became part of the Grand Union Canal following amalgamations in 1929.
The junction was increasingly congested, as it was the main link between the Birmingham Canal network and the Warwick and Birmingham Canal route to London. Travel in any direction from the junction involved a flight of locks, and options to bypass the Farmers Bridge locks had been under consideration since 1793. On 14 February 1844, the congestion was significantly reduced by the simultaneous opening of the
Tame Valley Canal
The Tame Valley Canal is a relatively late (1844) canal in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands of England. It forms part of the Birmingham Canal Navigations. It takes its name from the roughly-parallel River Tame, West Midlands, River Tam ...
, which bypassed the Birmingham Canal Navigations main line, and an extension of the Warwick and Birmingham Canal from Bordesley Junction to Salford Junction, enabling boats to avoid ascending through the eleven locks of the Aston flight and then descending through the six locks of the Ashted flight on the Digbeth Branch. Instead, the Garrison flight on the new line had just five locks.
[
]
Location
From the junction, the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal heads to the south-west and ascends through the 13 Farmers Bridge locks, rising to reach Farmers Bridge Junction, away. To the north-east, it descends through the eleven locks of the Aston flight, to reach Salford junction, away, where it is joined by the Tame Valley Canal
The Tame Valley Canal is a relatively late (1844) canal in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands of England. It forms part of the Birmingham Canal Navigations. It takes its name from the roughly-parallel River Tame, West Midlands, River Tam ...
and the Grand Union Canal. The Digbeth Branch heads south-east, and is just long. Typhoo Basin is also known as Digbeth Basin or Bordesley Basin.
Aston Junction is notable in having two bridges serving the same lock; an iron Horseley bridge at the top and a brick bridge at the bottom.
See also
* List of canal junctions in Great Britain
*List of canal aqueducts in Great Britain
This list of canal aqueducts in the United Kingdom covers Navigable aqueduct, aqueducts that have articles in Wikipedia. The actual number of canal aqueducts is much greater.
See also
*:Aqueducts in the United Kingdom
*Navigable aqueduct
*C ...
*List of canal basins in Great Britain
This List of canal basins in the United Kingdom is a list of articles about any canal basin in the United Kingdom.
Birmingham Canal Navigations
* Caggy's Boatyard, Tipton, on the BCN New Main Line
*Gas Street Basin, Birmingham, at the junc ...
* List of canal locks in Great Britain
*List of canal tunnels in Great Britain
This is a list of canal tunnels in the United Kingdom.
Listed by name
Navigable adits and mine levels
An adit is a horizontal entrance to a mine:
Listed by canal Grand Union Canal
*Blisworth Tunnel, Northamptonshire
*Braunston Tunnel, Nort ...
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
References
{{Birmingham Canal Navigations
Canal junctions in England
Transport in Birmingham, West Midlands
Birmingham Canal Navigations
Canals in the West Midlands (county)
Canals opened in 1799