Editing Chester Canal (section)

==History==
In 1771, the people of Chester, fearing that the construction of the [[Trent and Mersey Canal]] would divert trade away from their city to [[Liverpool]], announced in the Press that they would be applying to build a canal between [[Middlewich]], on the Trent and Mersey, and Chester. The city was at the time served by the [[River Dee (Wales)|River Dee]], and the River Dee Company had recently spent £80,000 on improvements to the river, but they realised that without a connection to the growing canal network, there was little future for the river or the Port of Chester. The idea had first been raised three years earlier, when merchants suggested a line from the Trent and Mersey to near [[Runcorn]]. There were no objections from the Corporation of Liverpool, but the canal company was non-committal. By 1770, the plans were a little clearer, with a main line from Chester to Middlewich and a branch to [[Nantwich]]. Although the Corporation of Chester subscribed £100 towards the scheme, and the societies and clubs of Chester put up another £2,000, there was little enthusiasm for it. Neither the [[Weaver Navigation]] nor the Trent and Mersey were supportive, as both might have lost some trade if the canal were built, and when the [[Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater|Duke of Bridgewater]] was approached for support, he replied that provided the canal did not physically link with the Trent and Mersey at Middlewich, he would not oppose the plans. Despite attempts at flattery, the Duke would not alter his position, and so the company promoting the [[Bill (proposed law)|bill]] in Parliament began with a serious disadvantage.{{sfn |Hadfield |1985 |pp=42–43}}

{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title           = Chester Canal Act 1772
| type                  = Act
| parliament            = Parliament of Great Britain
| long_title            = An Act for making a navigable Cut or Canal from the River Dee, within the Liberties of the City of Chester, to or near Middlewich and Nantwich, in the County of Chester.
| year                  = 1772
| citation              = [[12 Geo. 3]]. c. 75
| introduced_commons    = 
| introduced_lords      = 
| territorial_extent    = 
| royal_assent          = 1 April 1772
| commencement          = 
| expiry_date           = 
| repeal_date           = 
| amends                = 
| replaces              = 
| amendments            = Chester Canal Act 1777
| repealing_legislation = 
| related_legislation   = 
| status                = 
| legislation_history   = 
| theyworkforyou        = 
| millbankhansard       = 
| original_text         = 
| revised_text          = 
| use_new_UK-LEG        = 
| UK-LEG_title          = 
| collapsed             = yes
}}
The bill became an act of Parliament, '''{{visible anchor|Chester Canal Act 1772}}''' ([[12 Geo. 3]]. c. 75), on 1 April 1772, authorising the construction of a canal to run "from the River Dee, within the liberties of the city of Chester, to or near Middlewich and Nantwich".{{sfn |Priestley |1831 |p=236}} The act allowed the company to raise £42,000 by issuing £100 shares, and an additional £20,000 if necessary. Of this, only £28,000 had been subscribed at the time of the act, but construction began near Chester, with Samual Weston acting as engineer and John Lawton working as his assistant. Weston had previously worked as a surveyor, and had been involved in excavating canals as a contractor, but had no experience of managing a major engineering project. The Mayor of Chester cut the first sod at the end of April. There were concerns that while the canal was being constructed past Northgate Gardens, prisoners from Northgate Prison might escape, and the company had to give a bond against this possibility.{{sfn |Hadfield |1985 |p=43}} The canal was conceived as a broad canal, designed with locks which were {{convert|80|ft}} by {{convert|14|ft|9|in|m}} suitable for broad-beam barges.<ref name=nic>{{harvnb |Nicholson |2006 |p=80}}</ref> Most of the Trent and Mersey Canal north of the proposed junction was suitable for barges which were {{convert|14|ft|m}} wide, but the final three locks in Middlewich, and all of those south of the junction, are only suitable for {{convert|7|ft|m|adj=on}} narrow-beam barges.{{sfn |Nicholson |2006 |p=156}}

The project was hampered by financial and engineering problems, and so progress was slow. At the Chester end, the River Dee Company had managed to insert a clause into the act of Parliament which restricted the width of the final lock into the river to {{convert|7|ft|m}}. Although the lock was built, and some narrow boats capable of using it were constructed, agreement was reached on a wider connection after four years of argument. The solution adopted was a single pair of gates, which provided a {{convert|15|ft|m|adj=mid|-wide}} entrance into a basin from which the canal rose to the Northgate level. The land on which the basin was built was owned by the River Dee Company, who therefore charged tolls on all traffic using it. In 1774, part of an aqueduct collapsed, and had to be dismantled and repaired.{{sfn |Hadfield |1985 |pp=43–44}}

{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title           = Chester Canal Act 1777
| type                  = Act
| parliament            = Parliament of Great Britain
| long_title            = An Act for varying and enlarging the Powers of an Act, made in the Twelfth Year of the Reign of His present Majesty, for making a navigable Cut or Canal from the River Dee, within the Liberties of the City of Chester, to or near Middlewich and Nantwich, in the County of Chester.
| year                  = 1777
| citation              = [[17 Geo. 3]]. c. 67
| introduced_commons    = 
| introduced_lords      = 
| territorial_extent    = 
| royal_assent          = 2 June 1777
| commencement          = 
| expiry_date           = 
| repeal_date           = 
| amends                = Chester Canal Act 1772
| replaces              = 
| amendments            = 
| repealing_legislation = 
| related_legislation   = 
| status                = 
| legislation_history   = 
| theyworkforyou        = 
| millbankhansard       = 
| original_text         = 
| revised_text          = 
| use_new_UK-LEG        = 
| UK-LEG_title          = 
| collapsed             = yes
}}
{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title           = {{visible anchor|Chester Canal Act 1778}}
| type                  = Act
| parliament            = Parliament of Great Britain
| long_title            = An Act for the more effectually carrying into Execution the Powers contained in Two several Acts of Parliament, the One made in the Twelfth Year of His present Majesty's Reign, for making a Navigable Cut or Canal from the River Dee, within the Liberties of the City of Chester, to or near Middlewich and Nantwich, in the County of Chester; and the other made in the Seventeenth Year of His said Majesty's Reign,[c] for varying and enlarging the Powers of the said former Act.
| year                  = 1778
| citation              = [[18 Geo. 3]]. c. 21
| introduced_commons    = 
| introduced_lords      = 
| territorial_extent    = 
| royal_assent          = 27 March 1778
| commencement          = 
| expiry_date           = 
| repeal_date           = 
| amends                = 
| replaces              = 
| amendments            = 
| repealing_legislation = 
| related_legislation   = 
| status                = 
| legislation_history   = 
| theyworkforyou        = 
| millbankhansard       = 
| original_text         = 
| revised_text          = 
| use_new_UK-LEG        = 
| UK-LEG_title          = 
| collapsed             = yes
}}
Soon afterwards, Weston left the project, and Thomas Morris was recalled from Ireland to take over. He had previous experience building the extension of the [[Bridgewater Canal]] to Runcorn. Under his direction, the canal opened from Chester to Huxley Aqueduct on 16 January 1775, and to Beeston in June. Morris was sacked in September, to be replaced by [[Josiah Clowes]]. He too was sacked, and was followed by Moon, who had previously acted as assistant to Morris. The canal was completed under the direction of Joseph Taylor. In September 1776, the junction with the Dee was opened, but the project was now in financial difficulties. By late 1777, they had spent all of the share capital of £42,000 and another £19,000, which had been raised as a loan guaranteed by Samuel Egerton of Tatton. He was a shareholder in the company and related to the Duke of Bridgewater. They applied for another act of Parliament, the '''{{visible anchor|Chester Canal Act 1777}}''' ([[17 Geo. 3]]. c. 67), which allowed them to raise another £25,000, by additional calls on existing shareholders, and to borrow £30,000 as a mortgage. They succeeded in raising £6,000 by making additional calls, and borrowed £4,000 from [[Richard Reynolds (ironmaster)|Richard Reynolds]],{{sfn|Hadfield |1985 |p=44}} an ironmaster from Ketley, who was responsible for several of the East Shropshire Canals, including the [[Wombridge Canal]] and the [[Ketley Canal]].{{sfn |Hadfield |1985 |p=151}}

The money was used to complete the line to Nantwich, and to build a reservoir at Bunbury Heath. The work was completed in August 1779, and the company hoped to raise enough money to then build the line to Middlewich. They proposed building it with narrow locks, to reduce the cost, but the shareholders were not prepared to support them; instead they concentrated on trying to generate traffic on the line that had been built. They attempted to mine salt at Nantwich, but failed to find any, and tried running boats on the Trent and Mersey, from which goods were carried over land to Nantwich, for onward carriage to Liverpool. They also ran boats for cargo and passengers on the canal itself. By the end of 1781, the company had no money and was unable to meet interest payments on the loans. They decided to forfeit the canal to Egerton, the main mortgagee, but he did not respond to their offer. Angry landowners who had not been paid drained Bunbury reservoir in March 1782, but somehow the committee managed to keep the canal open, by selling boats and land. Disaster struck in November 1787, when Beeston Staircase Locks collapsed, and there was no money to fund repairs.{{sfn|Hadfield |1985 |pp=44–45}}

===The impact of the Ellesmere Canal===
{{Chester Canal map}}
In 1790 the plans for the [[Ellesmere Canal]] were published, and the directors of the Chester canal saw this as a chance to make the canal profitable again, and to build the Middlewich branch.<ref name=nic/> Following the chairman's report to a meeting of the shareholders, they resolved to try to raise some money to carry out repairs, any by the end of the year reported that the canal was "nearly filled with water and business begins to stir."{{sfn|Hadfield |1985 |p=45}} The Ellesmere scheme was extensive, with a line from the [[River Mersey]] at Netherpool (later renamed [[Ellesmere Port]]) to the River Dee near Chester, to give access to the Chester Canal, and branches to [[Shrewsbury]], [[Ruabon]], [[Llangollen]], [[Bersham]], [[Llanymynech]] and maybe [[Whitchurch, Shropshire|Whitchurch]] and [[Wem]].{{sfn|Hadfield |1985 |p=167}} Although [[William Jessop]] estimated that the cost would be £196,898, it was the time of the [[Canal Mania]], and 1,234 subscribers offered £967,700. Applications were scaled down and the company accepted £246,500.{{sfn|Hadfield |1985 |p=168}} A rival group were proposing canals to the east, which resulted in the first group proposing a direct link with the Chester Canal from their Whitchurch Branch, and in February 1793, the two groups amalgamated. On 30 April they obtained an act of Parliament ([[33 Geo. 3]]. c. 91) authorising them to raise £400,00 with an additional £100,000 if necessary. Jessop was assisted by John Duncombe, Thomas Denson and William Turner, and from 30 October, [[Thomas Telford]] was appointed to set out the line and oversee the construction.{{sfn|Hadfield |1985 |p=168}}

Work began on the Wirral line from Ellesmere Port to Chester in November 1793, and packet boats began using most of it on 1 July 1795. The locks connecting it to the River Mersey were completed early the following year, and the connection to the Chester Canal opened in January 1797. The {{convert|8.75|mi|km}} line was supplied with water from the Chester Canal, supplemented by a steam engine at Ellesmere Port which pumped water from the Mersey. Passenger boats along the canal proved very popular, with connections from Ellesmere Port to Liverpool provided by larger boats, although passenger services from Chester to Nantwich lasted for less than a year. Commercial traffic also grew steadily, helped by the construction of new basins at Chester and the provision of a tide lock into the Dee, which made access into the lower basin possible at all times, and helped to keep it free from silt.{{sfn|Hadfield |1985 |pp=169–170}}

The Ellesmere Canal company had been constructing canals to the west, linking Llangollen to Frankton, but the route from there to Chester had not been decided. In 1796, they obtained an act of Parliament ([[36 Geo. 3]]. c. 71), authorising a line from near the great aqueduct at [[Pontcysyllte Aqueduct|Pontcysyllte]] running roughly northwards through Ruabon, Bersham, [[Gwersyllt]] and [[Pulford]] to join the River Dee opposite the canal basin at Chester.{{sfn|Hadfield |1985 |pp=173–174}} The Chester company, who were trying to put their financial affairs into order, noticed that the 1796 act failed to mention a connection with their canal. They decided to obtain an act of Parliament to enforce a connection, and to stop supplying water to the Wirral line. The Ellesmere company responded quickly, agreeing to make changes to their act of Parliament, and the Chester company continued to supply water. On the strength of this, they were also able to raise some money to put the canal into good order and to repay some of their debts. The Ellesmere company extended their canal eastwards from Frankton to [[Whitchurch, Shropshire|Whitchurch]], and in 1802, the two companies reached agreement on a line from near Whitchurch to [[Hurleston Junction]], just to the north of Nantwich. It opened on 25 March 1805, and water supply was enhanced by the construction of a navigable feeder through Llangollen to [[Horseshoe Falls (Wales)|Horseshoe Falls]] on the River Dee at Llantisilio.{{sfn|Hadfield |1985 |pp=177–178}}

{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title           = Ellesmere and Chester Canals Unification Act 1813
| type                  = Act
| parliament            = Parliament of the United Kingdom
| long_title            = An Act for uniting the Interests and Concerns of the Proprietors of the Chester Canal and Ellesmere Canal; and for amending the several Acts of His present Majesty, relating to the said Canals.
| year                  = 1813
| citation              = [[53 Geo. 3]]. c. lxxx
| introduced_commons    = 
| introduced_lords      = 
| territorial_extent    = 
| royal_assent          = 21 May 1813
| commencement          = 
| expiry_date           = 
| repeal_date           = 
| amends                = 
| replaces              = 
| amendments            = 
| repealing_legislation = [[Ellesmere and Chester Canal Act 1827]]
| related_legislation   = 
| status                = repealed
| legislation_history   = 
| theyworkforyou        = 
| millbankhansard       = 
| original_text         = https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/Geo3/53/80/pdfs/ukla_18130080_en.pdf
| revised_text          = 
| use_new_UK-LEG        = 
| UK-LEG_title          = 
| collapsed             = yes
}}
In 1804, the Ellesmere company offered to buy out the Chester Canal for 1,000 of their shares, and to take over debts up to £4,000. The Chester Canal held out for more, and the negotiations failed. Three years later, the financial position of the Chester Canal was better, and they began paying off their debts. Finally in 1813, they agreed to amalgamate, and the action was authorised by a further act of Parliament, the '''{{visible anchor|Ellesmere and Chester Canals Unification Act 1813}}''' ([[53 Geo. 3]]. c. lxxx). The Ellesmere company paid just half of their 1804 offer, and the 500 Ellesmere shares were distributed between the various Chester shareholders. The Ellesmere and Chester Canal Company took over on 1 July 1813. A new section of canal and an iron lock were built at Beeston in 1827, to resolve continual problems with leakage there.{{sfn|Hadfield |1985 |pp=178–179}}

===A new route to the south===
In 1826, the [[Birmingham and Liverpool Junction Canal]] was authorised by an act of Parliament, to construct a canal from Nantwich to a junction with the [[Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal]] at [[Autherley Junction|Autherley]] in the Midlands. With the prospect of being part of a link between Liverpool and the Midlands,<ref name=nic/> the joint company had again pressed for the construction of the Middlewich branch, which would give them an outlet to Manchester and the Potteries industrial centre around Stoke-on-Trent. The Trent and Mersey Canal refused to sanction the idea of a canal which would effectively reduce their income until the Birmingham and Liverpool Junction Canal was authorised. Once it was, the Ellesmere and Chester company obtained an act of Parliament in 1827, but the Trent and Mersey insisted that they build a short connecting canal, the [[Wardle Canal]], consisting of a lock and not much more, the tolls for which were exorbitant. The 1827 act repealed all previous legislation for the Ellesmere and Chester Canals and consolidated their position. The branch was built as a narrow canal, and cost £129,000. It opened on 1 September 1833, but was little used until the Birmingham and Liverpool Junction Canal was completed. It finally opened on 2 March 1835,{{sfn |Hadfield |1985 |p=181}} having suffered from engineering problems during construction. Again, it was a narrow canal, suitable for boats which were {{convert|7|ft|m}} wide.<ref name=nic/>

The two canal companies worked together from the start, in a bid to ensure that both remained profitable despite competition from the railways.<ref name=nic/> This came soon, for the Grand Junction Railway from Warrington to Birmingham had been authorised before the canal opened, and was carrying goods by January 1838. Tolls on the canals were considerably lower than had been envisaged when the route was promoted.{{sfn |Hadfield |1985 |pp=186–187}}  Experiments with steam tugs to haul trains of narrow boats were carried out in 1842, and a report in 1844 indicated that they were then used extensively. By the following year, however, the Ellesmere and Chester company were thinking about converting the canal to a railway, and argued that steam tugs were no cheaper than locomotive haulage on a railway. A merger with the Birmingham and Liverpool Junction Canal was discussed in 1844, and was authorised by the [[Ellesmere and Chester Canal Company Act 1845]] ([[8 & 9 Vict.]] c. ii) on 8 May 1845, the new company retaining the name of the Ellesmere and Chester Canal.{{sfn |Hadfield |1985 |pp=188–189}}

===Part of the Shropshire Union===
Almost immediately, the company began looking at the possibility of converting all or part of the system into railways. W. A. Povis, their engineer, was convinced that railways could be built along the routes at around half the cost of building a new line. The move was opposed by the [[Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal]] who argued that closing bits of the inland waterways system would have serious repercussions on the parts left.{{sfn |Hadfield |1985 |pp=231–232}} [[Robert Stephenson]] suggested that a number of railways and canals should amalgamate, to reduce competition when bills were presented to Parliament. The canals to join the Ellesmere and Chester Company were the eastern and western branches of the [[Montgomeryshire Canal]], the [[Shrewsbury Canal]] and the [[Shropshire Canal]]. Although some would be converted to railways, the route from Ellesmere Port to Middlewich via Barbridge Junction was part of the system that would be retained as a waterway, on which salt was a major source of revenue. The plans resulted in the formation of the [[Shropshire Union Railways and Canal Company]] in 1846. The new company could raise £3.3 million of new capital, in addition to that already in existence, with another £1.1 million if necessary.{{sfn |Hadfield |1985 |pp=232–233}} They prompted new railways, but before any of the existing canals were converted, the company was leased to the [[London and North Western Railway]], who took control in June 1847.{{sfn |Hadfield |1985 |pp=233–234}} They allowed the Shropshire Union to continue to operate fairly independently, and by 1849, the idea of conversion had been dropped, as the canals could still operate profitably.<ref name=nic/>

Profitability was maintained, with the result then when most of the Shropshire Union network of canals were abandoned in 1944, the sections which had originally been the Chester Canal, the northern part of the Ellesmere Canal, the Birmingham and Liverpool Junction Canal and the [[Middlewich Branch]] were all retained. The only other section which was not abandoned was the Llangollen branch; this was kept because of its function as a water supply channel, rather than for navigation.<ref name=nic/>