Canals around Coventry

My opinion on this is, if it was a full breach it would have flooded more than it did given the amount of water between the basin and Sutton Stop.

Hi Peterk and NormK Thanks for the link to a photo of Foleshill Bridge showing the slots for placing planks to isolate. Of all my years as a kid walking along the canal and under the bridges, I never noticed those slots, or if I did, It never registered. This throws up other questions though, are they placed under all bridges, or how frequently and are they identified on any map of canals. I obviously still have a lot to learn about canals!! NormK, I agree with you that should all of the water from the canal from the Coventry Basin to Hawkesbury locks have drained out it may have caused much more of a disaster than it already was.

First, I had completely forgotten Cash's bridge. Now in the history of the canal, they built canal houses, for the repair workers (lengthmen) until the 60s. Most of you knew the canal house at the New Inn Bridge. He had the authority with the police to stop any building work he thought might endanger the canal, until engineers had visited. My post on 208 the same thing happened, but the water flowed through fields only killing animals, around the late fifties, and same as Coventry the lengthman no longer had a job and the house was demolished. Reading above, it seems as few people knew who to contact, where the planks were, or little about anything, in the old days it would never have happened unless by a miracle or war, the contact would have been known and the planks would have been in in minutes nearest place to the break. Now if you think that was chaos reading the above When my dad popped his head into the shelter and told mum her relatives had been 'hit' and the 'cut' has gone, he told my sister to look after mum and the baby, and asked me and my brother if we would come and help. Mum said 'No' but I jumped at the chance, excited, frightened, all kinds of emotions, I grabbed my bike, there was police or fire bells clanging, people rushing, wardens etc. At the canal the water was rushing away, but I stood aghast when I saw the boats tilting to the centre. Dad told me and a boy that I knew from school to go along and tell people help was on its way, women were crying, kids wailing, one boatman was in the cut trying to keep his boat upright, we threw our bikes by the pub wall, and ran along the towpath, leaping over taut ropes, where tied to bush the roots were being pulled from the ground, the women were trying to scramble over cabins that was tilted the wrong way, we could hear things sliding about in the cabins as the boats tilted on both sides of the cut leaned to each other as the water was sucked away, boats that had broken their moorings were almost on their side in the middle of the cut. Many people including kids were wet through, there must have 30/40 boats along that 'pound' by the time we got to the Stop. A number of men were shovelling or throwing things into the 'break'. Dad sent me home a little while later, he knew mum would be so worried. Next morning the cut was a small trickle, a number of us kids gathered fish from small pools along the bottom, and tipped them over the planks. During the war the wardens, Home Guard, Police etc met often in some way or other and became great friends, became a good community.

I have never noticed the board slots along the Coventry canal but no doubt they are there. I have noticed board slots elsewhere and have wondered the purpose of them. I have never noticed boards nearby so how long would it take for a lengthman to respond to an emergency such as the one on the Coventry canal? I can't imagine the lengthman running perhaps half a mile with half a dozen planks under his arm. How water tight are they? Yes there must have been thousands of fish lost along with rats,voles and several hundred dead dogs.

Hi PeterB Thanks for the link showing "Foleshill Bridge" with the slots easily identified for the drop planks in the event of a canal breach. Where in fact is the "Foleshill Bridge"? I first thought it was the one on the Foleshill Road, near Courtaulds, by Lockhurst Lane, but now I am unsure. I also cannot recognise it as any other bridge between the Coventry basin and Hawkesbury locks.

Both my parents were born on the boats, both worked the boats when about 12 years of age. In the old days I never ever heard of board slots, it was always the planks, they were always right there beside the drop. Most people would even say something like 20 yards past the planks, rather than 20 yards past the bridge. I forget the name the uprights were called but they were iron girders in a squared off U. I believe they had holes at waterline to push a bolt through to stop the planks popping up. And where they placed them they built a house and put in a workman. To answer Norman C, how long in emergency, two minutes at the most, his bedroom was fifty yards away, give or take a yard. Yes the water did leak through but only a small amount. Not every bridge, two bridges close together, one set of planks was enough. They were much cleverer than that, they built them where they were needed most, and distance they could afford to lose water. For instance. the Oxford was built before the Coventry and they followed the land round hills etc. Sutton Stop to Tusses Bridge, the land had a little flat top, on one side it sloped slightly down behind Parrots Grove, on the other, a large drop, where they built the Power Station, so they built along the side of the flat, and the land bent round. If you look at my post 208 is a good example. This was the new canal, it had just come through a hill, where the old one had circled it, the hill dropped away so they built the canal on a large bank, large pressure, danger of a 'break', but the bridges were some distance away so they filled in the old canal by the towpath and built a canal house right on top of the old canal and placed a workman there (dad). They narrowed the canal to one boat width right outside his front door, made it so it would take planks, placed them right alongside the towpath, but at the far side of the photo the bank begins again (the high bridge), so another cutting, and another narrow, one boat width, and planks, but the narrow width meant he could manhandle a plank across the canal and so he had access to the side of the canal to the opposite side of the break. My dad was transferred from that house to New Inn Bridge, to clean up the Cov. cut. The house was demolished, no one took his place, 4/5 years later the break happened, and they had to call him and I think transport him to the break. As you see him inspecting the work, when he retired he wasn't replaced, canal house demolished and you had the 'break' at Foleshill.

John, It is indeed the Foleshill Road bridge near Courtaulds. You can just make out the stump of the Courtaulds chimney through the arch. Peter.

Yes that is Matlock Road through the bridge on the left, the gardens led down to the canal. I lived there for a short while in 1961. But you set another poser for me, I can't remember the planks at Sutton Stop?

Kaga, the planks at Sutton Stop are between what was Sephton's boat builders and the old engine house. They are in the narrow bit of the canal as you explained previously.

Not Local, good morning to you, yes of course, been bugging me for days, so annoying. Thanks, Kaga.

Mr Simpson, sir. We also lived in Matlock Rd 1961. Only other people that I remember are Martin Roddy who was found dead in his back garden, the Slevins who broke into my house, then there was a nice couple who lived near the car park, woman named Margaret, also the Clark couple. Courtaulds wanted my house and it was sold to them for a handsome profit.

Mr Conquest, sir, I knew it, you are dogging my life LOL No, my wife has just corrected me, we were there in 63 till Jan 66 on the right hand side, half way down. We sold, moved to Lythalls Lane, sold and moved to Brighton, Aug 66. In 63 the canal froze solid, no boats moved for months. johnwright, yes the reason they narrowed the gap was not only because the planks were easier to manhandle but they had a wider, lighter plank. They stood on end, dropped it across the canal, giving access for the second assistant to help lower the planks

johnwright, if I remember what I knew as a kid, the Coventry Canal only ran to somewhere near Atherstone, then it was the B'ham or Fazeley Canal I think I've got that right, and the bridges are numbered on the Coventry and Oxford Canal but the bridges had names on the B'ham Canal, and then back to numbers farther up the cut.

Kaga, not an expert but, living in Tamworth, the Coventry Canal comes from Atherstone to Fazeley and continues on from there to Fradley Junction, the Birmingham Fazeley Canal starts there.

Annewiggy, thank you No, I do not know that area, I remember being told that the Coventry Canal stopped at Atherstone, they ran out of money. The B'ham Co. built on twenty years later, and the cut ran on to the Trent. I also remember being told, somewhere up north, the canal has a tunnel a mile long, a cow fell in the cut and swam the mile through the tunnel and climbed out the other end, became a hero, but I'm not sure if it was a tall tale or not.