Ashton Canal (Main Line)
The Ashton Canal (Main Line) is a narrow canal and is part of the Ashton Canal.
It runs for 6 miles and 6½ furlongs through 18 locks from Ducie Street Junction (where it joins the Rochdale Canal) to Ashton-under-Lyne Junction (where it joins the Huddersfield Narrow Canal).
The maximum dimensions for a boat to be able to travel on the waterway are 72 feet long and 7 feet wide. The maximum headroom is 6 feet and 5 inches. The maximum draught is 3 feet.
It has junctions with the Ashton Canal (New Islington Canal Arm) at Junction with the New Islington Canal Arm and with the Peak Forest Canal (Lower) at Dukinfield Junction.
Notable features of the waterway include Ancoats Locks, Beswick Locks, Clayton Locks and Supermarket Tunnel
The Ashton Canal was promoted as an unconnected waterway connecting Ashton-under-Lyne to Manchester. With several branches to serve local trade, and being soon joined by the Rochdale, Peak Forest and Huddersfield Narrow Canals, it was a prosperous navigation until the railways came. In 1848, seeing the writing on the wall, the company sold the canal to the Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne & Manchester Railway. Traffic levels slowly dropped, and the branches fell victim to mining subsidence. All traffic had stopped by 1950 and the canal was derelict by the 1960s. Volunteer restoration in the mid 1960s, and promotion of the idea of the "Cheshire Ring" cruise eventually convinced the authorities that the canal should be saved, and it was officially reopened in 1974.
Relevant publications — Waterway Maps:
- Waterway Routes 01M - England and Wales Map
- Waterway Routes 83M - Cheshire Ring Map (Downloadable)
- Waterway Routes 82M - South Pennine Ring Map (Downloadable)
- Waterway Routes 26M - Ashton and Peak Forest Canals Map (Downloadable)
Relevant publications — Waterway Guides:
| Ducie Street Junction Junction of Rochdale and Ashton Canals |
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| Ducie Street Road Bridge | ¼ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Jutland Street Bridge No 2 | ½ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Jutland Street Arm | ¾ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Store Street Aqueduct | 1¼ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Piccadilly Village Footbridge | 1¾ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Thomas Telford Basin | 1¾ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Piccadilly Village Arm | 2 furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Piccadilly Village | 2¼ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Great Ancoats Street Bridge No 3 | 2¾ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Ancoats Bottom Lock No 1 | 2¾ furlongs | 0 locks | |
| Junction with Islington Branch (closed) | 3¼ furlongs | 1 lock | |
| Ancoats Lock No 2 | 3½ furlongs | 1 lock | |
| Junction with the New Islington Canal Arm | 3¾ furlongs | 2 locks | |
| Ancoats Top Lock No 3 | 4 furlongs | 2 locks | |
| Carruthers Street Bridge No 4 | 5¼ furlongs | 3 locks | |
| Beswick Street Bridge No 5 | 6 furlongs | 3 locks | |
| Cambrian Street Bridge | 7¾ furlongs | 3 locks | |
| Upper Helena Street Pipe Bridge | 1 mile and ¾ furlongs | 3 locks | |
| Beswick Aqueduct Located under New Viaduct Street |
1 mile and 1¾ furlongs | 3 locks | |
| New Viaduct Street Bridge No 7 | 1 mile and 2 furlongs | 3 locks | |
| New Viaduct Winding Hole | 1 mile and 2¼ furlongs | 3 locks | |
| Beswick Bottom Lock No 4 | 1 mile and 2½ furlongs | 3 locks | |
| Beswick Lock No 5 | 1 mile and 3 furlongs | 4 locks | |
| Stadium Bridge | 1 mile and 3¾ furlongs | 5 locks | |
| Manchester City Football Ground | 1 mile and 4 furlongs | 5 locks | |
| Forge Lane Bridge No 8 | 1 mile and 4¼ furlongs | 5 locks | |
| Beswick Lock No 6 | 1 mile and 4½ furlongs | 5 locks | |
| Alan Turing Bridge | 1 mile and 4¾ furlongs | 6 locks | |
| Beswick Top Lock Footbridge | 1 mile and 4¾ furlongs | 6 locks | |
| Beswick Top Lock No 7 | 1 mile and 5 furlongs | 6 locks | |
| Stuart Street Bridge | 1 mile and 6¼ furlongs | 7 locks | |
| Clayton Power Station Aqueduct | 1 mile and 7½ furlongs | 7 locks | |
| Ashton New Road Winding Hole | 1 mile and 7½ furlongs | 7 locks | |
| Ashton New Road Footbridge | 2 miles | 7 locks | |
| Ashton New Road Bridge With accompanying pipe bridge |
2 miles and ¼ furlongs | 7 locks | |
| Clayton Bottom Lock No 8 | 2 miles and ½ furlongs | 7 locks | |
| Clayton Lock Arm | 2 miles and 1 furlong | 8 locks | |
| Bridge Inn (Clayton) (Permanently Closed). |
2 miles and 2¼ furlongs | 8 locks | |
| Clayton Lane Bridge No 11 | 2 miles and 2¼ furlongs | 8 locks | |
| Clayton Lock No 9 | 2 miles and 2½ furlongs | 8 locks | |
| Clayton Lane Footbridge | 2 miles and 2¾ furlongs | 9 locks | |
| Clayton Lock No 10 | 2 miles and 3½ furlongs | 9 locks | |
| Clayton Junction Junction with the closed Stockport Branch |
2 miles and 4¼ furlongs | 10 locks | |
| Clayton Lock No 11 | 2 miles and 4½ furlongs | 10 locks | |
| Clayton Lock No 12 | 2 miles and 5¼ furlongs | 11 locks | |
| The Strawberry Duck PH | 2 miles and 6¼ furlongs | 12 locks | |
| Clayton Lock No 13 Pipe bridge sits over the top gate |
2 miles and 6¼ furlongs | 12 locks | |
| Clayton Lock No 14 | 2 miles and 7½ furlongs | 13 locks | |
| Clayton Lock No 15 | 3 miles | 14 locks | |
| Edge Lane Bridge No 13 | 3 miles and ½ furlongs | 15 locks | |
| Clayton Top Lock No 16 | 3 miles and ¾ furlongs | 15 locks | |
| Droylsden Footbridge | 3 miles and 2¼ furlongs | 16 locks | |
| Droylsden Swing Bridge No 14 | 3 miles and 2¼ furlongs | 16 locks | |
| Fairfield Swing Bridge No 15 | 3 miles and 3¾ furlongs | 16 locks | |
| Fairfield Lock No 17 | 3 miles and 5 furlongs | 16 locks | |
| Fairfield Top Lock Footbridge | 3 miles and 6 furlongs | 17 locks | |
| Fairfield Top Lock No 18 | 3 miles and 6¼ furlongs | 17 locks | |
| Fairfield Junction Junction with the closed Hollinwood Branch. Access to Droylsden Marina. |
3 miles and 6½ furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Fairfield Road Bridge No 17 | 3 miles and 7 furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Ashton Hill Lane Bridge No 18 | 4 miles and ¼ furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Audenshaw Bridge No 19 | 4 miles and 2 furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Ridgeway Bridge No 20 | 4 miles and 3 furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Lumb Lane Bridge No 21 This is an extremely low bridge - take care |
4 miles and 4¾ furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Lumb Lane Bridge Winding Hole | 4 miles and 5 furlongs | 18 locks | |
| M60 Motorway Bridge | 4 miles and 6½ furlongs | 18 locks | |
| M60 Motorway Railway Bridge Site of Ashton Moss Colliery |
4 miles and 7 furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Hanover Street North Wharf | 4 miles and 7½ furlongs | 18 locks | |
| China Bridge No 24 | 5 miles | 18 locks | |
| Manchester Road East Road Bridge | 5 miles and ¼ furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Guide Bridge Bridge No 25 | 5 miles and ¾ furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Guide Bridge No 26 | 5 miles and 2¼ furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Jeremy Brook Footbridge No 27 | 5 miles and 4¾ furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Site of Factory Bridge No 27A | 5 miles and 5¾ furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Walk Mill Bridge No 28 Ashton-under-Lyne |
6 miles | 18 locks | |
| Dukinfield Junction Junction of Ashton Canal with the Peak Forest Canal |
6 miles and 2½ furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Portland Street Footbridge No 29 | 6 miles and 2½ furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Cavendish Street Bridge No 30 | 6 miles and 3¾ furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Supermarket Tunnel (western entrance) | 6 miles and 4¼ furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Supermarket Tunnel (eastern entrance) | 6 miles and 5 furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Ashton-under-Lyne Railway Viaduct No 32 | 6 miles and 5½ furlongs | 18 locks | |
| Ashton-under-Lyne Junction Junction of Ashton and Huddersfield Narrow Canals |
6 miles and 6½ furlongs | 18 locks |
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Wikipedia has a page about Ashton Canal
The Ashton Canal is a canal in Greater Manchester, England.
Other Wikipedia pages that might relate to Ashton Canal
[Ashton-under-Lyne]
the mid-19th century Ashton had emerged as an important mill town at a convergence of newly constructed canals and railways. Ashton-under-Lyne's transport
[Ashton]
Lancashire Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester Ashton Canal Ashton, Inverclyde Ashton Lane, Glasgow Ashton, Georgia Ashton, Idaho Ashton, Illinois Ashton, Iowa
[Rochdale Canal]
nine locks opened in 1800 and boats using the Ashton Canal could reach Manchester. Officially, the canal opened in 1804, but construction work continued
[Peak Forest Canal]
Dukinfield in Greater Manchester, where it makes a junction with the Ashton Canal at the southern end of the Tame Aqueduct (grid reference SJ934984) through
[Huddersfield Narrow Canal]
with the Ashton Canal at Whitelands Basin in Ashton-under-Lyne. It crosses the Pennines by means of 74 locks and the Standedge Tunnel. The canal was first
[Droylsden]
Lancashire, in the mid-19th century Droylsden grew as a mill town on the Ashton canal. Beginning in the early 1930s, Droylsden's population expanded rapidly
[Wooden Canal Boat Society]
The Wooden Canal Boat Society (WCBS) is a waterway society and a registered charity in England, UK, based at Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester. The
[Macclesfield Canal]
northern end would be isolated under plans to close the Ashton Canal and the lower Peak Forest Canal in the early 1960s, but vigorous campaigning and a growing
[Stockport Branch Canal]
Stockport Branch Canal was a 5-mile (8 km) branch of the Ashton Canal from Clayton to Stockport. The canal left the main line of the Ashton Canal at Stockport