The Canal Museum, formerly known as the National Waterways Museum at Stoke Bruerne and The Canal Museum at Stoke Bruerne, is a

canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface ...

museum located next to the

Grand Union Canal The Grand Union Canal in England is part of the Canals of the United Kingdom, British canal system. It is the principal navigable waterway between London and the Midlands. Starting in London, one arm runs to Leicester and another to Birmi ...

just south of the

Blisworth Tunnel Blisworth Tunnel is a canal tunnel on the Grand Union Canal in Northamptonshire, England, between the villages of Stoke Bruerne at the southern end and Blisworth at the northern end. Measurements The northern end is about from the northern e ...

, near the village of

Stoke Bruerne Stoke Bruerne is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in West Northamptonshire, England, about north of Milton Keynes and south of Northampton. The civil parish population at the 2011 Census was 373. History Stoke Bruerne ...

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshi ...

. It is about north of

Milton Keynes Milton Keynes ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in Buckinghamshire, England, about north-west of London. At the 2021 Census, the population of Milton Keynes urban area, its urban area was 264,349. The River Great Ouse forms t ...

and south of

Northampton Northampton ( ) is a town and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is the county town of Northamptonshire and the administrative centre of the Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority of West Northamptonshire. The town is sit ...

near junction 15 of the

M1 motorway The M1 motorway connects London to Leeds, where it joins the A1(M) motorway, A1(M) near Aberford, to connect to Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle. It was the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the UK; the first motorway in the count ...

History

The museum was established in 1963, as "The Canal Museum". It was founded by two canal workers and enthusiasts, Charles N. Hadlow, the first curator, and Jack James, its first caretaker, whose personal collections formed the main part of its initial exhibits. It was subsequently known as the "National Waterways Museum Stoke Bruerne", one of three museums operated by

The Waterways Trust The Waterways Trust was an independent registered charity, established in 1999, that worked with partners to see the waterway network in England, Wales and Scotland supported, valued and enjoyed by a wide audience. The Trust was formerly register ...

that focused on the history of

canals Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flow u ...

in Britain. After the creation of the Canal & River Trust in 2010, the Stoke Bruerne museum was rebranded to its original name.

Museum

The museum is housed in a restored Grade II listed corn

mill Mill may refer to: Science and technology * Factory * Mill (grinding) * Milling (machining) * Millwork * Paper mill * Steel mill, a factory for the manufacture of steel * Sugarcane mill * Textile mill * List of types of mill * Mill, the arithmetic ...

at the top of a flight of

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 i ...

s, and is one of several museums and attractions operated by the

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 ...

, the successor to

. The museum tells the story of Britain's inland waterways and the people who worked on them. It provides an insight into the transport system which was fundamental to the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution, sometimes divided into the First Industrial Revolution and Second Industrial Revolution, was a transitional period of the global economy toward more widespread, efficient and stable manufacturing processes, succee ...

in Britain. There are working models and 3-D displays including a model of the short-lived inclined-plane mechanical lift at Foxton in Leicestershire. Exhibits include models of working boats including narrow boats,

barges A barge is typically a flat-bottomed vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. Original use was on inland waterways, while modern use is on both inland and marine water environments. The first modern barges were pull ...

, butties and tugs, painted ware and canal crafts, traditional clothing, canal-side signs and specialist tools. The museum has a shop and café, and a school/activity room available for educational visits.

References

External links

The Canal Museum
- Canal & River Trust
The Friends of The Canal Museum

July 1963 episode of ''Look Around''
featuring Charles N. Hadlow at the newly-opened museum * Canal museums in England Museums in Northamptonshire {{UK-canal-stub

History

Museum

See also

References

External links