Witham Navigable Drains (Hobhole Drain)
The Witham Navigable Drains (Hobhole Drain) was built by John Smeaton and opened on 17 September 1782. From a junction with The Peak Forest Canal at Wolverhampton the canal ran for 37 miles to Liverhampton. Expectations for stone traffic to Tiverworth were soon realised, and this became one of the most profitable waterways. Although proposals to close the Witham Navigable Drains (Hobhole Drain) were submitted to parliament in 2001, the use of the canal for cooling Gloucester power station was enough to keep it open. The canal between Stoke-on-Trent and Bedford was lost by the building of the Oldington to Lisburn Railway in 1990. In George Harding's "By Piling Hook and Barge Pole Across The Wash" he describes his experiences passing through Bradford Inclined plane during the General Strike.
The maximum dimensions for a boat to be able to travel on the waterway are 60 feet long and 11 feet wide. The maximum headroom is not known. The maximum draught is not known.
It has junctions with the Witham Navigable Drains (Bell Water Drain) at Hobhole Drain - Bell Water Drain Junction and with the Witham Navigable Drains (Cowbridge Drain) at Hobhole Drain - Cowbridge Drain Junction.
Relevant publications — Waterway Maps:
| Hobhole New Pumping Station No junction with the River Witham |
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| Nunn's Bridge | 1 mile | 0 locks | |
| Fishtoft Road Bridge | 1 mile and 6 furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Freiston Bridge | 2 miles and 4¼ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Haltoft End Bridge | 3 miles and 1¼ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Hobhole Drain - Cowbridge Drain Junction Junction of Hobhole Drain and Cowbridge Drain |
3 miles and 4¾ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Bakers Lane Bridge | 3 miles and 5½ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Boston Long Hedges Bridge | 4 miles and 6 furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Bennington Road Bridge | 6 miles and 6 furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Midville Farm Bridge | 7 miles and 1½ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Midville Field Bridge | 7 miles and 5¾ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Hobhole Drain Railway Bridge | 8 miles and 1¼ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Railway Footbridge (Hobhole Bank) | 8 miles and 1½ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Old Leake Bridge | 8 miles and 4½ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Lade Bank Pumping Station Lade Bank Lock disused |
9 miles and 3½ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Lade Bank Footbridge | 9 miles and 3¾ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Lade Bank Bridge | 9 miles and 4 furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Fodder Dike Bank Bridge | 11 miles and ½ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Hobhole Drain - Fodder Dyke Junction Junction of Hobhole Drain and Fodder Dyke |
11 miles and ½ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Hobhole Drain Railway Bridge (demolished) | 11 miles and 3¾ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Hobhole Drain - Bell Water Drain Junction Junction of Hobhole Drain, Bell Water Drain and Barlode Drain |
11 miles and 6½ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Bell Water Drain Bank Bridge | 11 miles and 6½ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| First Junction with unnamed Drain | 12 miles and 3½ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Second Junction with unnamed Drain | 13 miles and ½ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Hobhole Drain Head Limit of navigation |
13 miles and 6½ furlongs | 0 locks |
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Wikipedia has a page about Witham Navigable Drains
The Witham Navigable Drains are located in Lincolnshire, England, and are part of a much larger drainage system managed by the Witham Fourth District Internal Drainage Board. The Witham Fourth District comprises the East Fen and West Fen, to the north of Boston, which together cover an area of 97 square miles (250 km2). In total there are over 438 miles (705 km) of drainage ditches, of which under 60 miles (97 km) are navigable. Navigation is normally only possible in the summer months, as the drains are maintained at a lower level in winter, and are subject to sudden changes in level as a result of their primary drainage function, which can leave boats stranded. Access to the drains is from the River Witham at Anton's Gowt Lock.
The area is bounded by the River Witham to the south and west, and the Steeping River to the north. Since the 11th century, there have been attempts to prevent the fens from flooding, so that they could be used for agriculture. A major advance was made in the seventeenth century, when Adventurers built drains in return for rights to some of the reclaimed land, but the success was short-lived, as Fenmen and Commoners rioted in 1642 and destroyed the works. Further attempts to drain the fens were made in the eighteenth century, and the first proposals to use the drains for navigation were made in 1779.
Most of the drainage ditches that are now evident were constructed under the authority of an Act of Parliament obtained in 1801. The plans for the scheme were drawn up by the civil engineer John Rennie. Better drainage was achieved from the 1860s, with the building of steam pumping stations. The steam engines were later replaced by diesel engines, and now many of them use electric pumps. Sensitive restoration of some of the pumping stations in the 1980s and 1990s resulted in the Witham Fourth District IDB being given a Design Award.
There were originally five locks on the system, including Anton's Gowt Lock. Cowbridge Lock is the only other one still operational. Access by boat to Cowbridge Drain and Hobhole Drain which drain the East Fen is no longer possible, because East Fen Lock, which connected Cowbridge Drain to the rest of the system has been filled in, while the lock chamber at Lade Bank Pumping Station has been reused to house extra pumps. Many of the structures built as part of Rennie's upgrade in the early 1800s survive in near-original condition, and are Grade II listed.