Foxton Locks
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Upper staircase of Foxton Locks |
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Panorama of the Upper Staircase |
Foxton Locks are ten
canal locks consisting of two "staircases" each of five locks, located on the Leicester line of the
Grand Union Canal about 5 km west of the
Leicestershire town of
Market Harborough and are named after the nearby village of
Foxton.
Staircase locks are used where a
canal needs to climb a steep hill, and consist of groups of locks which open directly into each other. Foxton Locks are the largest flight of such staircase locks on the English canal system.
The locks are a popular
tourist attraction and the county council has created a
country park at the top. At the bottom, where the junction with the arm to Market Harborough is located, there is a
public house, shop, trip boat and other facilities. The area is thus ideal for
gongoozlers.
In
1900 an
inclined plane was built to the side of the locks. The aim was partly to speed up the passage of boats, but also as part of an effort to allow the passage of wide-beam
barges instead of just
narrowboats: a plan to build a similar
inclined plane at the
Watford Locks at the other end of the canal's summit level was never carried through.
It was designed by
Gordon Cale Thomas and had 2 tanks or
caissons, each capable of holding 2
narrowboats or a
barge. The caissons were full of water, and so balanced each other. The lift was powered by a 25 horsepower (19 kW)
stationary engine.
The inclined plane had a journey time of 12 minutes for 2 boats up and 2 down and improved the speed of passage up the hill tremendously. Unlike the locks, where water flowed downhill every time a boat passed through, on the inclined plane the same amount of water went up and down the hill thus a saving of water was achieved, giving better control of this vital resource.
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The Inclined plane under construction |
Nonetheless, the Foxton inclined plane proved uneconomic and was abandoned in
1911 although remains can still be seen. There has been a donation of a £1.7 million grant from the national lottery fund re-build it and the £2.8 million project is currently being carried out. At a small
museum alongside the locks you can learn about the plane and other aspects of the local canal.
*
Foxton Locks and Partnership*
Foxton Inclined Plane Trust
