June 2014 Number 21

NEWSLETTER

CHESTER WATERWAYS STRATEGY LAUNCHED The long-awaited Waterways Strategy for Chester was officially launched on Tuesday 3rd June by the Admiral of the Dee and Lord Mayor of Chester, Councillor Bob Rudd, in highly appropriate fashion during an evening cruise up the River on board the boat Lady Diana. This represents a significant milestone in the campaign by Chester Canal Heritage Trust (CCHT), the Canal & River Trust (CRT) and the Inland Waterways Association (IWA) to find ways of enhancing and fully using the attractive and distinctive network of waterways in the city. The Strategy’s theme of "joined up, connected" is the basis of a series of specific action points that, if successfully pursued, will generate significant economic and social benefits.

One particular action point that CCHT is pleased to see in the strategy document is the commissioning of a ‘feasibility study to explore improved navigation between the lower and upper Dee by way of the old mill race on the Handbridge side of the weir’. This proposal, strongly supported by CRT and IWA, also needs the restoration of navigation through the

Dee Branch and River Lock. CCHT will now be pressing for the feasibility study to start as soon as possible so that this initiative does not lose momentum.

Chester Waterways Strategy -June 2014

“Chester Waterways will be better connected. The ‘joined up’ strategy will deliver an impact in terms of social, economic and physical regeneration more than the sum of its individual parts. Chester’s waterways will, once again, play their part in delivering

growth and vitality for the city.”

The Chester Waterway Link

would open up at least 10

miles of navigable water to

canal and river boats,

cruising upstream to

Farndon and beyond

WINTER TALKS 2014 -2015 - NEW VENUE!

Wednesday 5th November 2014

Historic Industry around the local Waterways In this talk, Ray Buss looks at various industries that grew up close to the waterways of the area and uncovers traces of what remains of them today, reflecting on how this important aspect of the region’s history deserves to be more widely recognised.

Wednesday 3rd December 2014

The Shrewsbury & Newport Canals and their restoration

A talk by members of the Shrewsbury & Newport Canals Trust on these historic and unique canals that once formed part of the Shropshire Union and might do again if the ambitious plans for their restoration prove successful.

Wednesday 4th February 2015

A look at the River Weaver through the ages.

The well known local historian and author Colin Edmondson on the history of the River Weaver and the salt mining that produced much of the cargo it carried, from 1670 to the present day.

Talks start at 8.00 pm in

the Clubhouse at

Chester Boughton Hall

Cricket Club

Boughton Hall Avenue, Boughton,

Chester,CH3 5EL

Free to members of CCHT, IWA

& SUCS, non-members £2.50

Admiral of the Dee and Lord Mayor, Councillor Bob Rudd flanked

by Julie Sharman, National Head of Enterprise for the Canal &

River Trust (left) and the Lady Mayoress, Mrs Sandra Rudd

June 2014 Page 2

FIVE GENERATIONS OF FLATMEN Terry Kavanagh recounts tales of his family’s connections

with the wide boats or ‘flats’ that used to ply their trade along the Chester Canal.

Chester Canal Heritage Trust’s Newsletter Number 16

(November 2012) was especially interesting to me because it contains a photograph of the Shropshire Union Co’s flat

Lord Stalbridge, which had just been sold to the Bishops

Wharf Carrying Co., of Liverpool, in late October 1921. Built in the Canal Company’s Chester Boatyard in 1908, this

dumb barge was captained by my great-great uncle William Campbell.

He wasn’t the first flatman on my mother’s side of the family. That was g-g-g-great grandfather John Potter, “a

coloured man” born about 1778, who married Frances Fisher, daughter of a Handbridge salmon fisherman, in

Liverpool St Peters Church on 3rd February 1807. He signed

his name in the parish register; she made the illiterate cross. They lived for the next ten years or so in Pall Mall,

Liverpool, before moving to Chester, the city of Frances’s birth. By the mid 1820s, if not earlier, he had been

appointed captain of two of Coffield & Co’s sailing flats, the William and the Chester, trading to Liverpool and back

down the River Dee and the Wirral Line of the Ellesmere & Chester Canal. These two mast flats were subsequently

bought by the Canal Company, and cut down to towing barges.

John Potter’s son John (b1822), was later the captain of

the Shropshire Union’s flat James; and two of the latter’s sisters, Frances and Charlotte, married flatmen – William

Woodworth and Richard Randles, in 1828 and 1838 respectively. Richard and Charlotte’s son Richard Randles

grew up to become captain of the SU flat Ann. But his father Richard, master of the privately-owned mast flat

Dee, did not live to see it. He was drowned in the river Dee at the Crane, Chester one night in August 1858, aged

41 years.

“Soon after midnight...deceased, who had been drinking for some hours, went on board his flat, which had been taken out of the canal lock, and had drifted alongside Moss’s wharf...The flat had got alongside another vessel, and deceased with a quant was going to shove her off, when he missed getting ground with the quant, and he fell into the river. Being drunk, he sank at once, and rose only for an instant, although two men tried with ropes and a shaft to pick him up.”

Twelve months earlier, in August 1857, my great-great grandfather William Campbell, a Shropshire Union flatman,

died from natural causes, at the age of 34. His brother, John, was also a flatman; and their elder sister, Lydia,

married Robert Buckley, skipper of the Leadworks sailing flat Patent – of which John Campbell himself was mate, in

the late 1840s.

About seven years after William Campbell’s death, his

widow, Ann, married a widower named James Carman.

Like his father, Richard, James (and his three brothers) had worked on flats since boyhood. On the 1861 Census, James

Carman is listed as the master of one of the Shropshire

Union’s market flats, the Catherine, which carried wines

and spirits that went straight to the bonded stores, as well

as perishable goods that went to the shops in Chester. By 1879 he had been appointed captain of the Shropshire

Union’s flat Richard. Five years later, in October 1884, they agreed to pay a 5s (25p) per week pension to “Jas Carman of the flat Richard who had been in the employ of the Company 50 years, but was not expected to live through the winter...” In the event, he lingered on for another six months. His old market flat Catherine, which

lay derelict in the Dee Basin, was cut up in April 1890.

There were no children by James Carman’s second

marriage. But his widow Ann had had two sons by her first

marriage to my great-great grandfather William Campbell: great-great uncle William Campbell (b1847), captain of the

Shropshire Union’s flats Arthur, Ismay, and Lord Stalbridge; and great grandfather Joseph Campbell

(b1854). Joseph captained at least two Canal Company flats: the Bancroft, and the

Bactria – the latter was built by Ferguson & Baird, at Connah’s Quay,

in 1913.

Twenty four years earlier, in 1879, Joseph Campbell married Jane Ann

Parry, great granddaughter of the above-mentioned John Potter,

senior. Their three sons, my maternal grandfather James

(b1880), and great uncles Thomas and Edward, were also Shropshire

Union flatmen. My mother recalled as a little girl seeing them all in their

flatmens’ overcoats; especially her

jovial grandfather Joseph laughing the while. Her elder sister May and brother Joe often went

with their father, James, on his flat to Liverpool in the years leading up to the First World War. Auntie May loved

the life afloat. “Our Joe didn’t like the water; he would never have made a flatman,” she used to say. “But I would!”

The Campbells came ashore, however, when the

Shropshire Union Company ceased carrying in August 1921

and disbanded their river and canal fleet. Except for my grandfather, James Campbell, that is; he had joined the

army as a volunteer soon after war broke out in 1914, and was killed in action during the Battle of Cambrai in

November 1917. But that’s another story!

The old market flat Catherine laid up in the Dee Basin

James Campbell in

his WWI uniform

NEWSLETTER Page 3

W A N T T O K N O W M O R E ?

Are you interested in the Chester Canal and

what the Trust is doing ?

Then there are a numbers of ways in

which we can help. For further

information, contact the Secretary:

Gwynneth Buss on 01244 665855

Or via the website:

www.chestercanalheritagetrust.co.uk

The latest edition of the Waterways Journal, published by The Boat Museum Society contains the following articles. Copies can be obtained from the shop at the National Waterways Museum, Ellesmere Port or

through the Society’s website: www.boatmuseumsociety.org.uk

Robert Aickman and the 'garish Wild West melodrama of the campaign for the waterways'.

Joseph Boughey

In the year of his centenary, Joseph has researched the life, background and character of Robert Aickman, 'Founder and Vice President' of the Inland Waterways Association. He has also put Aickman's achievements and shortcomings into the context of the early years of the IWA.

Concrete boats & barges – Solutions for Wartime Steel Shortages David Long

Intuitively, concrete seems an unlikely material for the construction of boats, barges and tugs. David Long has spent many years researching such vessels, built when more conventional building materials were in short supply during wartime. His account not only looks at the concrete

craft built in two world wars, but also the reasons why they did not continue to be built in peace time.

Box Boat 337 – A rare survivor restored Di Skilbeck

Di Skilbeck's article on Box Boat 337 looks at the pedigree of such craft and their importance in the history of narrow boat carrying. No 337 arrived at Ellesmere Port in 1978 and she tells its story, culminating in its recent restoration in the Heritage Boatyard at the National Waterways Museum,

Richard Abel & Sons, of Runcorn and Liverpool Terry Kavanagh

Terry has meticulously researched the extensive fleet of flats, barges and tugs of Richard Abel and Sons Ltd. As most of their craft were acquired second hand and they generally renamed them soon after vessels came into the company's ownership, this has been no easy task.

WATERWAYS JOURNAL

STTV CHRISTLETON WORK PARTY The Small Tasks Team Volunteers (STTV) is a group of

about 50 friends with lots of experience working as volunteers on the canal network. Authorised and supported

by the Canal & River Trust (CRT), they have carried out over 50 tasks on the local waterways since they got together in

2012. Over this time, Chester Canal Heritage Trust (CCHT) has benefitted from their efforts helping with various

projects, such as the restoration of the Lenghtsman’s Hut at Tilstone Lock and the installation of our Information Boards

in Chester.

Recently, twelve STTV volunteers gathered at Christleton Bridge 122 and had an enjoyable day carrying out a range

of jobs. The water point here used to be right by the bridge and which made it very difficult for boats to moor and take

on water. In view of this, CRT relocated the water point to

a new spot east of the bridge but did not have the resources to sort out the infrastructure to support this new facility.

The job of the work party was therefore to install five

mooring rings and block paving was laid around it with all the necessary totem posts and signage. Block paving was

also laid from the towpath up to a notice board next to the

bridge. To finish off, all local canal side

artefacts were painted as were the mooring bollards at Christleton Lock and a considerable

amount of rubbish cleared in the environs - about 60 bags in all!

CCHT is very grateful to STTV for their help, a

view that is echoed by many other users of the canals, including walkers and local residents as

well as boaters. Keep up the good work!

Chester History & Heritage

Housed in the historic St Michael’s Church on Bridge Street, Chester History & Heritage is the first place to contact when you want to discover your Chester ancestors or find out about the history of Chester City and District.

Open Monday to Friday

10am - 12noon & 1pm - 4pm.

Chester History and Heritage St Michael's Church Bridge Street Row Chester CH1 1NW

Email:chh@cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk

Telephone: 01244 972210

REGISTERED OFFICE Chester Canal Heritage Trust

21 Whipcord Lane

Chester

CH1 4DH

June 2014 Number 21

www.chestercanalheritagetrust.co.uk

Chester Canal Heritage Trust (CCHT) initially formed in November 1997, and now registered with Companies House (company number 04360134) and with the Charities

Commission (charity number 1094394)

THE OBJECTS OF CCHT ARE:

To advance the public education by engendering and fostering an awareness of the Chester Canal, its activities, heritage and environs (including adjoining waterways), in local people and visitors through the following powers:

• the provision of training and education in the skills of the waterway environment; • the encouragement of exploration of the role of the waterways in the development of the surrounding area; • the support and preservation of the canal’s heritage, including the historic narrowboats and other craft that made use of it; • the development of recreational activities within the canal environment; • the dissemination of information about the canal; • the monitoring of developments and proposed developments affecting the canal; • and participation in schemes and initiatives designed to safeguard, promote and enhance the canal.

J O I N T O DA Y !

C H E S T E R C A N A L

H E R I T A G E T R U S T

I S O P E N T O A L L

Individual: £12 per year

Adult Family: £20 per year

Junior (under 16): £7 per year

Corporate: £35 per year

Application forms can be

downloaded from the website

WATER TOWER SWIMMING BATHS In 1848 a subscription baths committee

secured a grant of over £1,000 from the council

together with the lease of a plot of land near to

the Water Tower, where it opened a public baths

and wash-house, with water drawn from the

canal and access to the building through a new

opening in the city wall. They were intended to

improve the health, comfort and habits of

cleanliness for the poor and to “counteract the

prevalence of contagious disease” (although

until 1857 the water was only changed once a

fortnight!) and on the opening day 6,000 people

turned up.

In 1850 the council took it over and although

the wash-house closed in 1855, the slipper and

swimming baths proved popular and successful

with 700 people a week using them in the

summer. It was 1d to use the baths before 8am

and after 5pm but this rose to 6d during the

day. In 1856 historian Thomas Hughes

described it thus: “a capacious swimming bath,

where plebeians may indulge in a plunge for a

penny, and where hot and cold shower and

vapour baths are at the service of the public.”

In 1857 the Cheshire Militia were invited to use

the baths “in companies of 50 or 60” and the

water was heated for them at the cost of 1d per

man. According to the Observer, “the men

refreshed themselves with a cleaning and

invigorating bath once a week and the

advantages of bathing were apparent from their

appearance”.

The baths remained popular until the early

1870s when their growing shabbiness, the

quality of the water used and – more

importantly to the council perhaps – their

growing loss of income – became more and

more apparent. In 1874 the council considered

an idea to establish a Floating Baths on the Dee

at the cost of less than £1,000 but the idea

stalled, not least because of arguments over

where it would be sited. Under the Suspension

Bridge would prove a nuisance and the Bishop

of Chester, whose Palace overlooked the

Groves, did not want it under his gardens as he

didn’t want his children to see it! Lamenting the

delay, the Observer noted in 1876: “The present

public baths are a scandal. A more cheerless,

forbidding place could hardly be found, except

in some of the cellars underneath the Rows.

The water is supplied from the canal after it has

received an appreciable proportion of the city’s

sewage”

However, in 1877 the Chester Floating Baths

Company opened its pool on the Dee and

Professor Mitchell from St George’s baths at

Liverpool Pier Head was hired as a swimming

teacher, together with his daughter. The

structure was set on an incline so that the water

depth could range from 3ft to 6ft 6in and the

river circulated through the bath. Up on the

decked pontoons were the dressing rooms,

keeper and towel rooms and closets. These

were roofed in but the pool itself was open to

the sky.

It wasn’t fully satisfactory – there were no wash-

bath facilities and could only be used during the

summer as the water, although considered

clean enough because of the current, was cold.

It was a welcome addition to Chester’s

swimmers nevertheless and in 1884 a

swimming gala there attracted crowds of

spectators to watch a Professor Gill swim from

the Suspension Bridge, climb up a ladder

mounted on top of the Baths and dive 20ft into

the river, to tumultuous applause.

Meanwhile, the rumblings and dissent over

Chester’s lack of public bath facilities carried on

and in 1895 the council eventually decided to

build a new indoor baths which could

incorporate washing facilities. In 1899 the

Floating Baths came adrift from their mooring

and were badly damaged on the weir. They were

repaired but work had

commenced on the

site in Union Street in

1898 and the new City

Baths with two

swimming poo ls ,

slipper and vapour

baths, opened in

1901.

Elaine Pierce-Jones

Chester History & Heritage

This 1875 OS Map shows the Baths next to the

canal at the bottom of Northgate Locks

The Water Tower with

the Baths in the

background below

the City Walls