Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

The Thames and Medway Canal. Originally intended as a means of avoiding coastal attacks on shipping. It was a particularly expensive undertaking and never successful, the original motivation having passed by the time of completion and all budgets being exceeded in the process. Eventually, a railway was built utilising the tunnel and the canal was effectively and subsequently actually cut into two sections. The northern half remained in use for some time whilst the southern length quickly fell out of use.

Monument Types

• CANAL (Post Medieval to Modern - 1800 AD to 1934 AD)

Full description

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The idea for building the canal sprang from fears that enemy ships might attack the naval dockyards of Deptford, Woolwich and Chatham via the Thames Estuary. A canal linking the Thames and the Medway would provide a supply route in an emergancy between the dockyards. The original scheme was abandoned, but was revived in 1799 when an engineer Ralph Dodd suggested a plan to build a canal 48 ft wide by 7ft deep. He estimated that it would take two years to build and cost £40,000. Many locals subscribed to the venture and in 1804, 1810 and 1818 bills were passed by Parliament to raise further money.

In 1809 work on the lock to the canal basin at Gravesend began. The lock was 109 ft by 23 ft and enabled craft of up to 200 tons to enter the basin to offload cargoes into barges working the canal. The canal included a tunnel 26.5 ft wide incluidng a towpath and 2.5 miles long. The final cost of the canal was £300,000.

The commercial success of the canal was affected by the fact that the lock could not be extended into the river to enable the entrance to be used at tidal state. Inaddition the canal lost 4ft of water between tides and a steam pump was required at Gravesend to top up the water level. Toll were also high to try and re-coup some of the money invested. In 1825 it cost 2s 6d per ton to transport hops or coal and 1s 2d for hay, oats, straw etc.

By 1840 the shareholders decided that it would be more profitable to build a railway. The canal basin continued to be used as it was just outsde the limit of the Port of London and so it was not necessary to pay the high London coal dues. Several coal wharves were built and an electrisity station and gasworks nearby. The canal was abandoned in 1934 but bought by Gravesham Borough Council in 1970 for restoration(1-3 & 12), For site photographs see (4-11).

In 2009 efforts were undertaken to locate the walls of the lock at the current terminus of the canal and also on a stretch of the still water-filled section. A watching brief on the works recorded the presence of timber revetments. (14)

In 2008 a full assessment of the canal route and all surviving features along its length was undertaken by Museum of London Archaeology Service. (15)

This feature is recorded in the English Heritage Historic Area Assessment for Cliffe Parish. The report states:
"One factor in this rise in populace was the construction of the Thames and Medway canal between Gravesend and Strood in 1800-1824 (Ralph Dodd and Ralph Walker, engineers), 'providing work for able-bodied villagers and other labourers who came to the area." (16)

<1> "Canals of England" 1955 98-101, 275-6 (C.Hadfield) (OS Card Reference). SKE32598.

<2> F1 CFW 28-OCT-64 (OS Card Reference). SKE42801.

<3> Field report for monument TQ 67 SE 20 - October, 1964 (Bibliographic reference). SKE3609.

<4> 1946, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX9417.

<5> 1946, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX9469.

<6> 1944, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX10037.

<7> 1944, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX10048.

<8> 1944, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX10071.

<9> 1941, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX10116.

<10> 1941, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX10117.

<11> 1940, Photograph (Photograph (Print)). SWX10127.

<12> Gravesham Borough Council, 2001, Discover Facts on Gravesend: The Thames and Medway Canal (Monograph). SKE8389.

<13> Soder S. Smith L. & Smith V., 2000, Canal Basin Gravesend: An Archaeological Desk Study of the Canal Basin and Wider Canal Area Proposed for Redevelopment (Unpublished document). SKE11946.

<14> Alan Ward, 2010, An archaeological watching brief along the Thames and Medway Canal, Gravesend (Unpublished document). SKE16979.

<15> Museum of London Archaeology Service, 2008, Thames and Medway Canal, Kent: Archaeological and built heritage assessment (Unpublished document). SKE17830.

<16> historic england, 2014, Hoo Peninsula Outline Historic Area Assessment: Cliffe and Cliffe Woods Parish. Research Report 2014-54 (Bibliographic reference). SKE31591.

Sources and further reading

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