Monument record 666/1 - Anderton Boat Lift, basins and associated features

<1> Ashmore, O, 1982, The Industrial Archaeology of North West England, p.28 (Book). SCH3181.

Anderton Boat Lift. Constructed to lift canal boats 50ft from the Weaver Navigation to the Trent & Mersey Canal, as an alternative to a series of locks. Designed by Edwin Clark of Clark Stansfield & Clark, Westminster. Built 1872-75 by Weaver Trustees. Operated hydraulically with two wrought iron caissons working side by side in an iron framework. Caissons, weighing 240 tons with water, supported by iron rams moving vertically in hydraulic presses, connected by pipe. Lift worked by removing water from lower caisson. Converted to electric drive 1903-08, rams removed, new framework, pulleys and counterweights. Before building of lift two navigations were connected by tramroad and by chutes. Connected to main line of Trent & Mersey Canal by wrought iron aqueduct l62ft long supported on 30 iron piers. Still in operation

<2> Bracegirdle B, 1974, Archaeology of the Industrial Revolution, p.21 & plate l6b (Book). SCH369.

<3> Capstick B, 1981-1987, Field Monument Warden Report, Capstick B, Ches 93 (Unpublished Report). SCH1222.

Lift not in operation awaiting major repair.

<4> Collens J and Penney S, 1989, Photo Catalogue - Boat Museum, Ellesmere Port (Monograph). SCH2631.

Various photographs held by Ellesmere Port Boat Museum - 19th & 20th C in date.

<5> Cheshire County Council, 1989, Anderton Basin: An Archaeological Survey, R2001 (Client Report). SCH4204.

Project undertaken in June 1989 consisting of the survey and recording of structural remains around the Anderton Boat Lift and Basin, as well as selective trial excavations. This work was undertaken in advance of the restoration of the boat lift and the development of a visitor centre. The archaeological work focused on two main areas: firstly, the slope between the north side of Anderton Basin and the Trent and Mersey Canal; secondly, the dockside of the original (pre-1800) basin.
Features recorded include salt chute footings, stone-built loading platform, engine house (bedstone for horizontal steam engine), trackway and the original basin wall and steps. The investigations showed that although the site has been subject to much back-filling and landscaping over the years many original features still exist in situ.

<6> British Waterways, 1999, Archaeological Desk Based Assessment of Land Adjacent to the Anderton Boat Lift, Cheshire, R2352 (Client Report). SCH3901.

Desk based assessment of land adjacent to the Anderton Boat Lift to highlight areas of potential archaeological or historical interest to inform landscape enhancement and construction of an ‘operations centre’. Produced in support of the Anderton Boat Lift Restoration Project. Fieldwork was also undertaken consisting of an inspection of the area of interest as defined on a plan by Buttress, Fuller, Alsop and Williams. A photographic record was also made. Includes plans of the development of the Anderton Basin from 1876 to 1900.

<7> British Waterways, 1999, Report on Archaeological Survey and Evaluation on Land Adjacent to the Anderton Boat Lift, Cheshire, R2353 (Client Report). SCH3900.

An Archaeological survey and evaluation were undertaken in January 1999, on behalf of British Waterways, as the second phase of a series of archaeological investigations related to the renovation of the Anderton Boat Lift, the construction of an operations centre and general landscaping work. Prior to excavation a photographic survey of the site was undertaken including upstanding elements and topographical features. Five trenches were excavated in the area of proposed development; trenches 1, 2, 3 and 4 were positioned to locate the basin to the east of the boat lift; trench 5 was positioned to investigate deposits within the eastern warehouse complex.

Within Trench 5, features of individual warehouses were identified, including floor surfaces and walls in brick and red sandstone blocks, also the remains of a chimney and associated flue. The pattern of the warehouse complex corresponds in general with the OS 1st edition map. The northern wall of the basin was recorded in two places - at the junction with the Weaver, and east of the aqueduct where it was flanked by a flight of steps. The basin wall followed the general alignment as depicted on all three editions of OS mapping.

<8> Cook M, 2000, Building Recording at the Meter Building Anderton Boat Lift, Northwich, Cheshire, R2354 (Client Report). SCH3899.

Level II building survey of the surviving upstanding elements of the Meter Building which lies beneath the boat lift.

<9> British Waterways, 2000, Evaluation on the Footprint of the Proposed Extension to the Meter Building Anderton Boat Lift, Northwich, Cheshire, R2355 (Client Report). SCH3898.

Further archaeological evaluation was undertaken in 2000 as part of a wider series of archaeological investigations related to the renovation of the Anderton Boat Lift. Five trenches (Trenches 1-5) had been previously excavated in 1999 (see source 7), a further three were invesitgated in 2000 (Trenches 6-8). Trenches 6 and 7 formed part of an ongoing watching brief, whilst Trench 8 investigated land adjacent to the Meter Building, to the north of the lift pit, beneath the aqueduct of the boat lift. No available map shows the arrangement of buildings under the aqueduct, although a paper in the 'Engineer' of 1908 shows detailed drawings of the Boat Lift prior to conversion to electricity in 1908. One plan details a hipped building protruding from beneath the eastern side of the aqueduct; this is thought to be the original Engine House. The same building is depicted on the first, second and third editions of 1:2500 OS maps. A further plan dating to 1903 and titled 'Arrangement of pipes at Anderton Lift' appears to depict the Meter Building and part of the Engine House, it also shows the layout of steam engines and electrical machinery. Both the Meter Building and Engine House also appear on historic photographs.

The evaluation recorded the remains of a red-brick building in Trench 8 which is believed to be the Engine House which housed the steam boilers and engines which ran the hydraulics to operate the Boat Lift. The internal features correlate to the those depicted on the plan of 1903 'Arrangement of pipes at Anderton Lift'. Two rows of red sandstone blocks were the beds for the steam engines. The junction of the southern walls of the Engine House and the Meter Building shows that the Meter Building was a later addition, having been built onto the Engine House.

<10> English Heritage, Various, Schedule Entry (Scheduled Ancient Monuments Amendment), 24/11/2004, SAM 34991 (Scheduling Record). SCH2950.

Scheduled area for Anderton Boat Lift revised in 2004 to include the Boat Lift also its associated basins and aqueduct, the meter building, two toll houses, the buried remains of the original engine house together with an assortment of features used to transport and store salt and other goods between the River Weaver Navigation and the Trent and Mersey Canal. It also includes the buried remains of the east basin and various associated dockside features and the buried remains of part of a graving slip.

Limited excavations (see sources 5, 7 and 9) in the vicinity of the boat lift have found an assortment of salt chute footings, remains of a loading platform, a steam engine bedstone, part of a retaining wall, the well-preserved surface of a trackway thought to have connected the canal towpath with a stable block, part of the aith century basin wall, part of the wharf area, part of the east basin warehouse complex, a culvert, a flue and chimney, and the remains of the engine house which housed the steam boilers and engines which ran the hydraulics to operate the boat lift prior to the early 20th century.

During their relatively brief lifespan of construction and heavy usage canals became the most important method of industrial transportation and provided a major contribution to the rise of the Industrial Revolution in England. The surviving remnants of the early industrial waterways transport network are particularly important both by virtue of their rarity and representivity. The Anderton Boat Lift is the world's first commercially successful boat lift and it displays a rare and unusual mix of Victorian and Edwardian engineering innovation and expertise.

<11> Higham N J, 1984-9, Professor Nick Higham's Aerial Photographs, 1986/1/7, 01/08/1986 (Aerial Photograph). SCH7659.

<12> Pegasus Group Ltd, 2021, Winnington Works, Northwich. Technical Appendix D: Cultural Heritage, R4561, p.45-7 (Client Report). SCH9155.

The River Weaver had been made navigable in 1734 to connect the salt towns of Cheshire to the River Mersey but in the second half of the 18th century canals were transforming the transportation of goods with their greater speed and cheaper cost and, in 1777, the Trent and Mersey Canal was opened. Although this canal was very close to the River Weaver at Anderton and Winnington, it was 15.24m above the River Weaver and, as such, goods could not simply travel from one to the other. In an attempt to solve this problem, dock basins on the north bank of the river had been constructed by 1793, and by 1800, two salt chutes and an inclined plane connected the canal tow path to the dock basins allowing goods to be moved between the river and canal.

The success of the connection led, in 1831, to the river basin being extended to create a second downstream entrance forming a loop in the river and creating an island connected by two bridges, along with a third salt chute and a second incline plane. This incline plane was steam-powered rather than the simply counter-balance weight system of the first. The demand for transporting goods between the two waterways continued and, by 1870, a fourth salt chute had been built and another two incline planes. The need to store goods precipitated the building of extensive warehousing around the river basin.

Limited excavations in the vicinity of the lift have revealed evidence of the chutes and basins, trackways and platforms. In order to develop the trade between the waterways, a further hydraulic lift opened in 1875 to the designs of Edwin Clark. It consisted of two wrought iron caissons that are counter-balanced. Each weighed 252 tonnes when flooded and took two narrow boats or one barge. The lift was initially powered by steam engines located in engine houses beneath the aqueduct, but these were replaced in 1908 with electric motors. The hydraulic rams were removed, and the caissons were lifted by a system of pulleys and cables.

The lift gradually fell out of use during the 20th century and by 1984 the discovery of severe corrosion of the main support piers resulted in its closure. However, after £7m of restoration, including returning it back to hydraulic operation, the lift reopened in 2002. The 1908 alterations have been retained for their historic interest.

<13> Jonathan GA Lageard & Ian B Drew, 2011, Salt in Cheshire (UK): Heritage, Recreation & Education (Graphic Material). SCH9656.

Poster produced for Innsbruck conference, 2011. Outlines the longevity and importance of the salt-working industry in Cheshire and features the Anderton Boat Lift which provided an essential infrastructure link for the salt and chemical industry and ended the economic rivalry between the Trent and Mersey Canal and the River Weaver Navigation.

<14> Canal & River Trust, 2024, Heritage Impact Assessment and Justification Statement: Anderton Boat Lift Visitor Centre, R4817 (Client Report). SCH9712.

Heritage assessment produced in support of a programme of further maintenance of the boat lift. In December 2022, The Trust was awarded a grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to support the development phase of the project, and work is currently underway with the detailed design, of which the extension to the Visitor Centre and relocation of the operational control cabin is part.

<15> Canal & River Trust, 2024, Archaeological desk-based assessment of land adjacent to the Anderton Boat Lift, Cheshire, R4828 (Client Report). SCH9763.

Desk-based assessment produced in support of proposed development at the Anderton Boat Lift to improve the visitor experience, including the construction of four single-storey cabins providing an 'education zone', WC facilities, storage and landscaping. Presents a summary of documentary evidence and past archaeological interventions.