Clifton Lock is a lock on

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

in Oxfordshire,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. It is located south of the village of

Clifton Hampden Clifton Hampden is a village and civil parish on the north bank of the River Thames, just over east of Abingdon in Oxfordshire. Since 1932 the civil parish has included the village of Burcot, east of Clifton Hampden. The 2011 Census record ...

and north of

Long Wittenham Long Wittenham is a village and small civil parish about north of Didcot, and southeast of Abingdon. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it from Berkshire to Oxfordshire, and from the former Wallingford Rura ...

. It is at the start of the Clifton Cut, which bypasses the river to the north of Long Wittenham. The lock was completed in 1822 by the

Thames Navigation Commissioners The Thames Navigation Commission managed the River Thames in southern England from 1751 to 1866. In particular, they were responsible for installing or renovating many of the locks on the river in the 18th and early 19th centuries History The f ...

. The main weir, which was built thirteen years later than the lock, runs across the old navigation of the river. A smaller weir runs just above the lock.

History

Clifton is one of the few lock sites on the non-tidal river where there was not a pre-existing weir and flash lock, although there was an important ferry. Problems to navigation had long been recognised and the first suggestions for creating a lock "near Clifton Ferry" occurred in 1793, being raised again in 1811. Cliftonlock02

The construction of the lock cut was delayed because the owner of the land was "a lunatic", but it was eventually completed in 1822 together with the lock. No weir was built at the time, giving rise to complaints. In 1826, the Lord Mayor of London visited Oxford by boat, and the City Barge,

shallop Shallop is a name used for several types of boats and small ships (French ''chaloupe'') used for coastal navigation from the seventeenth century. Originally smaller boats based on the chalupa, the watercraft named this ranged from small boats a l ...

and attendant boats were "detained at Clifton a considerable length of time." The weir was eventually erected on the old navigation in 1835 so the towpath around the old navigation channel fell into disuse. It was enlarged by 1877 and a tumbling bay was created close to the lock. The lock cut bridges were rebuilt in 1884.Fred. S. Thacker ''The Thames Highway: Volume II Locks and Weirs'' 1920 - republished 1968 David & Charles

Access to the Lock

The lock is at the end of a long track which starts on the A415 road to Abingdon just opposite Fullamor Farm to the west of Clifton Hampden village. This is joined by another track running southwestwards from High Street in Clifton Hampden, then continues to the lock. These tracks are not public roads as local signs state "Farm access only".

Reach above the lock

The Clifton cut takes the navigation for nearly a mile before the reaching the weir to the river's natural course past

. The reach is alongside farmland, crossed about halfway along by the

Appleford Railway Bridge Appleford Railway Bridge carries the Cherwell Valley Line from Didcot to Oxford across the River Thames near the village of Appleford-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, England. It crosses the Thames on the reach between Clifton Lock and Culham Lock. ...

. Just before

Sutton Bridge Sutton Bridge is a village and civil parish in the South Holland district of Lincolnshire, England. It is situated on the A17 road, north from Wisbech and west from King's Lynn. The village includes a commercial dock on the west bank of th ...

the river again divides between an old course, now a weir stream, past the old mill at Sutton Courtenay and

Sutton Pools Sutton Pools are a picturesque backwater formed by a number of weirs, islands, footbridges and barriers on the course of the River Thames at Sutton Courtenay, Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the nor ...

; with the navigation following the Culham Cut. The river meander has some public footpath access, although the

Thames Path The Thames Path is a National Trail following the River Thames from its source near Kemble in Gloucestershire to the Woolwich foot tunnel, south east London. It is about long. A path was first proposed in 1948 but it only opened in 1996. The ...

follows the navigation cutting, and the northern bank all the way to Culham Lock.

External links

View from Clifton Lock
from geograph.org.uk

References

{{Reflist 1822 establishments in England Locks of Oxfordshire Locks on the River Thames

History

Access to the Lock

Reach above the lock

See also

External links

References