Bugsworth Basin is a canal basin at the terminus of the Peak Forest Canal at Buxworth (formerly Bugsworth) in the valley of the Black Brook, close to

Whaley Bridge Whaley Bridge () is a town and civil parish in the High Peak district of Derbyshire, England. It is situated on the River Goyt, south-east of Manchester, north of Buxton, north-east of Macclesfield and west of Sheffield. It had a population ...

. It was once a busy interchange with the

Peak Forest Tramway The Peak Forest Tramway was an early horse- and gravity-powered industrial railway (or tramway (industrial), tramway) system in Derbyshire, England. Opened for trade on 31 August 1796, it remained in operation until the 1920s. Much of the rout ...

, for the transport of

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms w ...

and burnt lime. Work on the restoration of the derelict Bugsworth Basin, a

Scheduled Ancient Monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

since 1977, commenced in 1968. Volunteers of the Inland Waterways Protection Society (IWPS) helped by the Waterway Recovery Group (WRG) and many locals restored parts of this important site over three decades. The IWPS obtained a 50-year lease in 1992, which allowed them to restore, manage and operate the basin. Funding for the improvements came from

British Waterways British Waterways, often shortened to BW, was a statutory corporation wholly owned by the government of the United Kingdom. It served as the navigation authority for the majority of canals and a number of rivers and docks in England, Scotlan ...

, the European Regional Development Fund and a Derelict Land Grant from Derbyshire County Council. The basin was reopened to boats at Easter 1999, and a significant increase in the use of the canal occurred. However, this was the first time that powered boats had used the basin, and the dry-stone walling with clay puddling deteriorated rapidly. Walls collapsed, there were several near breaches, and a breach resulted in the basin closing again in October 1999. British Waterways restored pedestrian access to the basin by carrying out emergency repairs. In 2005 the basin reopened to boat traffic after a £1.2 million restoration, undertaken by

working with the IWPS. Work included sealing the bottom of the basin to stop leakage, stonework repair and environmental measures to conserve the site's protected water vole population. Although restoration and reopening of the basin has been achieved, waterways enthusiasts want to make future improvements and developments. These include an interpretative exhibition about Bugsworth's history and reopening part of the tramway. Bugsworth Basin was officially reopened on 26 March 2005 when 94 narrowboats attended the opening ceremony. The opening was performed by

Tom Levitt Tom Levitt (born 10 April 1954) was a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for High Peak from the 1997 to 2010 general elections. Early life Born in Crewe in 1954, Levitt was raised in Leek, Staffordshire. He w ...

, the then member of parliament for High Peak.North Cheshire Cruising Club, Bugsworth Rally
Retrieved 2 January 2010 The basin is on the fringe of the

Peak District National Park Peak or The Peak may refer to: Basic meanings Geology * Mountain peak ** Pyramidal peak, a mountaintop that has been sculpted by erosion to form a point Mathematics * Peak hour or rush hour, in traffic congestion * Peak (geometry), an (''n''-3)-d ...

and the purpose of the restoration was to develop this industrial heritage site as a tourist centre.

References

External links

Information On Bugsworth BasinImages of England listingInland Waterways Protection Society - More informationGoogle Earth air view of Bugsworth Basin

Google Earth ground view (looking upstream)
{{Coord, 53.33490, N, 1.96843, W, region:GB_source:enwiki-osgb36(SK022820), display=title Canals in England Canal basins in England and Wales Scheduled monuments in Derbyshire Canals in Derbyshire

See also

References

External links