The restoration of a former waterway is taking another major step forward, with a charity starting work on its latest exciting project.
The Wilts & Berks Canal Trust has been rebuilding Pewsham Locks, which was a busy site in the nineteenth century with a lock-keepers cottage, wharf and carpenter’s workshop. The flight of three locks lifted narrowboats almost 30 feet on their journey from Melksham to Chippenham.
Volunteers recently celebrated the completion of the adjacent dry dock and a new bridge across the top of the flight. Now they are clearing the lower lock – known as Bottom Lock – so that it can be connected to the restored stretch of waterway leading towards Lacock. This will be followed by the rebuilding of the two remaining locks.
The work is being carried out by members of the Melksham, Chippenham & Calne branch, supported by other organisations from across the UK.
Project lead Roger Noyce said:
“Once the lock is restored and we’ve cleared the pound above so that it can hold water again, we’ll be able to move tripboats and workboats from the restored canal into the dry dock whenever they need repairs.
“Teams have been excavating the southern entrance so that we can rebuild the wing walls, and carefully removing loose bricks and roots from the lock chamber itself. Hopefully we can clean and reuse many of the bricks at a later stage.
“Teams have also been casting new coping stones along the top of the lock. It’s time-consuming work but we’ve received fantastic support from partners including the Waterways Recovery Group and the Kent and East Sussex Canal Restoration Group, who kindly provided their own volunteers to support us.
However, it’s a major project so we’d welcome any additional help, particularly with fundraising. The more support we receive, the sooner we can bring this wonderful waterway back to life.”
The aim of the Wilts & Berks Canal Trust is to restore the waterway from the Kennet & Avon Canal near Melksham to the Thames & Severn Canal near Cricklade and the River Thames near Abingdon, connecting Chippenham, Calne, Royal Wootton Bassett and Swindon.
Visit www.wbct.org.uk
