On the Canal
Our Heritage Manager Andrew has written a blog to promote the release of our new book 'A Pennine Canal - Rise and Renewal'.
It didn’t take me long to notice the canal. I’ve been at Pennine Heritage for eighteen months now, but one of the first things that struck me as I drove along Burnley Road (apart from the endless roadworks) was the way in which the road follows the canal from Luddendenfoot to the right-hand turn that takes me up to the Birchcliffe Centre. As a former university lecturer, I had taught plenty of students about the importance of canals to industrial growth, how they, for the first time, facilitated the mass transport of goods that really enabled the Industrial Revolution to take place. What I was less aware of was the importance of the Rochdale Canal to places like Hebden Bridge, Mytholmroyd and Todmorden, not just in its nineteenth-century heyday but much more recently.
It also didn’t take me long to notice our incredible digital archive, which now hosts over 70,000 images. Working with trustees and our digital archivist Ann Kilbey, we decided that we need to celebrate our archive more. And what better place to start than with the canal.
The book charts the rise, fall, and renewal of the canal through the wonderful images that we hold. Some show the incredible physical impact that the canal had. Others show how the canal became a feature of everyday life. The decline of the canal and the state of disrepair is also captured. What is clear is that the subsequent restoration of the canal was a key factor in the regeneration of towns like Hebden Bridge, providing a desirable place to live and work that also encouraged the growth of leisure, further drawing people to the area.
The role that Pennine Heritage played in the restoration of the canal had also been somewhat lost, as people who were involved with the organisation in the 1980s have slowly moved away. At one point we employed over 150 people to help with restoration projects funded by the Manpower Services Commission. This programme was developed to upskill the unemployed and provided the labour needed to restore other key sites of heritage in the area such as Nutclough Mill and Queen Street Mill in Burnley.
The canal weaves its way through the area in some unexpected ways. It continues to draw people to the valley and provides a tranquil space for exercise, reflection and relaxation. Through our incredible photograph archive, you can see not just how transformative the canal was, and but how transformative it continues to be.
‘A Pennine Canal – Rise and Renewal’ is available from the Birchcliffe Centre for £9.99. All funds generated are put back into the charity to help fund other projects that bring our history and heritage to the people of Calderdale.