Canals around Coventry

Neil, Doubt very much they were storage for coal, have no idea where they are or their use.

NeilsYard, The last time I saw those tunnels was in the early fifties, and completely different, completely encased in the brick building. They had great wooden doors either side, a brick building above them, there had been a wooden staircase fixed to the wall that led to the top floor. On the water side was in bad state. I was sleeping aboard an old working motor boat converted to a houseboat, the very first one to do so, right where that one is moored in your photo - the building you see through them was Cartwrights timber yard, where I worked for a couple of weeks, to put me on the tax radar. And as far as I know they were built as entrance and storage tunnels for water wagons, but let's go back to early 18th century.

Cannot say I remember the arches but I do remember the great stack of coals against the wall. Used to play in the basin in the 50s, much to the despair of our mothers we used to slide down the coal heaps.

I have to do it this way, I lose so much. The Coventry Canal, or "Navigation" as it was first called, was obtained by an Act of Parliament in April 1768. It opened August the following year, the first two loads of coal from Bedworth came into the Coventry Basin to great applause. The canal system helped to facilitate the removal of heavy goods from place to place, before the better roads of 1800. Goods damaged in those days by water were often dried in a malt kiln. Thomas Bache did a lot of water carrying trade. I believe he built the first warehouse for his cart. His cart was a barrel on wheels which held 100/30 gallons of water let out of a tap into buckets at a halfpenny each. The water carts of which there was about half a dozen helped the supply of water to the city before the opening of the water supply from Spon End water works around 1830 - these Coventry water carriers were named Frank Crab, Billy Tibbets, "Short-Arm" Johnson, and "Bacco" Westwick. Thomas Goodall was the agent for the canal company at the canal house. After that era then coal became more prominent. But it would be doubtful that coal was stored there as it was the main entrance to the basin, the weighbridge gates used mostly for outgoing.

Rob has kindly put my photo of the Simpson boat repair yard at Tusses Brodge on this topic (post 110), mistakenly put on Wyken Slough by my son. This shows my great granddad about 1880 on his own boat and his own repair yard. The canal in those days was a very slow horse-drawn boats affair, but imagine on a nice summer's morning heading out into our beautiful countryside, slowly gliding through the water, the plop of the water vole. There was no prop-wash frothing at her stern, there were reed banks with tall flowing bullrushes that bent with the wind, catkins kissed your cheeks, bright yellow flags bent, seemed to say good morning. Quietude, you hear the wind rustle over the fields, the owls shriek, then alone with your thoughts. Coots with their blood curdling scream, bats brushed your hair when you approached a tunnel in the evening. But the old boat people new a thing or two, every mile or so they built a pub, run by boat people, and always the flurry of changing or feeding the horses, the smell of leather, brasses to be polished, a hard life, but never a visit to a "shrink". NeilsYard, if you look at post 69 you will see the height over those bunkers.

Kaga, some lovely memories you have captured again. I imagine a few of the old boat people would have glided passed the Navi on a few of those occasions, and maybe met a few bats under the bridge. Have a good day.

Here is the way I see it, In 1927 the Craven Mine closed, this was devastation to the narrow boats, most folded. The Wyken Basin became obsolete, so did the railway line between the mines and Aldermans Green Road. The basin was left to rot and became overgrown with weeds, and so did the Coventry canal from Sutton Stop to the Basin at Bishop street. The canal between the Greyhound and Grange Road bridge was overgrown with reeds and weeds, except under Grange Road bridge where the kids swam and paddled, and people threw old bed frames, etc. in the cut. My school friend "Chunky Finch" dived off the bridge and was speared. This was the late 30s so the canal was not navigable for boats into Coventry because it was not used and not serviced. So what I am saying? No boat entered that part of the canal (except one) until my father and his team dragged the rubbish out of the canal in the late fifties. Now many of you have visited the Greyhound pub, here is history. Not more than six yards from that pub the lock was fractured, the towpath breeched and the water lost as far back as Tusses Bridge, by German bombers. This was not luck, this was aimed for, it can be traced by the rest of the bombs, yet no one has mentioned it. I am sure there must be some trace or photo or story in that pub. I have a very small photo of the lock being repaired in 1940. I am amazed that I cannot find a post by any Coventry Canal Society member with information, criticism, or whatever on this topic?

Midland Red, Your photo on 378 has to be the old toll house (there's one down by you on the Oxford Road), which also became the lock keeper's house. He would measure the load of the boat by the depth of the boat in the water, with a special stick, he then would calculate the charge - there was a charge for unloaded boats. He also would be in charge of the order of boats through the lock if there were more than one, but he would not open or close the lock - the boatmen did - he only supervised. The canals were first called the Navigation Com, so the men that did the work with shovels and barrows were called 'Navies', and travelled from site to site. But for cheapness, especially tunnels, created the width of the narrow boat which created the width of the canal, but costs made them follow the contours of the land, to the annoyance of boatmen on the Oxford Canal, who swore they could travel all day and still hear the hour chimes of Brinklow church, and in places could look over the fields and be level with a boat that was hours ahead. The Grand Junction Canal was made to connect four main Rivers: Trent, Mersey, Severn and Thames. I wrote this in a more detailed and better way but lost it, so you get the brief version.

NeilsYard, Your first picture on 381 is looking into the basin, the second looking out from the basin, so are they one and the same archways? Are they Foleshill side, or Radford side? Is the photographer inside or outside the basin compound on the one without doors? Neil, I am trying to put them into an early frame of the early 1950's, when the Radford side was completely hidden from view. Neil, I would really appreciate your help. Regards, Kaga.

Hi Kaga. Yes they are the same archways - as mentioned it's now all covered over and used as a music venue called 'The Tin' although where the stage is is known as 'The Coal Vaults.' You can see them here - Google-Map'ed

Neil. Thank you for your swift reply. Yes, they were hidden behind Cartwrights Woodshed for many years, the woodshed was between those and the canal. Yes, they were for storage and more likely for coal in the 19th century, but I still feel they were unused from 1930 onwards, but thanks again. Neil, to change the topic, I have just watched my grandson two hours ago on the drive from Munich (after the beer festival) to Venice in a Aldi R8 V10 engine doing 260 kilometers per hour (fantastic), the pictures from inside the car. I know there are car people on this Forum. (mods move this if you wish)

Sorry Kaga, not trying to be clever but I just have to say it, I have never seen one of those in the middle aisle in Aldi, I am sure you mean Audi!! Easily done and I think you said you are using someone else's computer. I also find my iPad has a mind of its own and changes words. ??

Very nice Audi R8, Kaga - but hopefully not too soon after the Beer Festival!

NeilsYard, There's no doubt that your arches were just the roads in and out of the basin for very heavy goods, and almost a century before gas was installed in Coventry.