Remains of Monkland Canal

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Remains of Monkland Canal

Postby Ronnie » Sun Feb 22, 2004 10:44 pm

Has anyone been to see (and photograph) the abandoned sections of the Monkland Canal at Port Dundas? They are on the south side of North Canal Bank Street, just east of Speirs Wharf. I've been there once briefly, and they have a very eerie look. Not stagnant, so there must be some movement of water, and the odd heron standing sentinel over the rotten timber and oil-slicked waters.
Best, Ronnie
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Postby DVF » Mon Feb 23, 2004 10:32 am

Hi,

I pass it quite often. I always wondered what the point of it was when I was little, before I knew what it was. Beside Mickey Oates Motorcycles the canal loops round on itself, leaving an island, there used to be a garage on it. Not far from there is the old rotating railway bridge, looks as though it would still work given a liberal dose of WD40.

I've been told conflicting stories about there being locks there, where Craighall Road starts to go down the hill at the end of Spiers Wharf, where the Monklands joined the Forth and Clyde, anyone know for sure?

Also at the junction of Castle St and Baird St/ Royston Rd, just a couple of feet into Castle St, you go over a small bridge with the pedestrian walkway underneath. That bridge is, apparently, the original Monklands Canal bridge from a hundred or so years ago.

David.
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Postby james73 » Mon Feb 23, 2004 12:33 pm

DVF wrote:I've been told conflicting stories about there being locks there, where Craighall Road starts to go down the hill at the end of Spiers Wharf, where the Monklands joined the Forth and Clyde, anyone know for sure?


I've got old streetmaps and O/S maps, and none of them show any locks
there. I think there was a small lift bridge of some kind where Craighall Road
passed over the canal. The current isolated section at the basins is connected
to the part at Spiers Wharf via some form of pipe. I read in the Evening
Times a while back that they are planning to restore the 'lost' section and
build some sort of "Marina" at the area of the Basins. A good idea AFAIC,
and if you've been to the Falkirk Wheel and clocked the amount of people
who visit something that's in the middle of nowhere, it could be a winner. :)



DVF wrote:Also at the junction of Castle St and Baird St/ Royston Rd, just a couple of feet into Castle St, you go over a small bridge with the pedestrian walkway underneath. That bridge is, apparently, the original Monklands Canal bridge from a hundred or so years ago.



Yes, that bridge carried the road over the canal. It went out of use in the early
1960's when the Monkland Canal was all but abandoned.

There are remaining sections near Easterhouse and in Coatbridge. At the
Canal Basins at Port Dundas, there's a small brick building - it's a pumping
station - at the south east corner of the Basin. This was where the Monkland
Canal came in and is easily noticable. You can hear the water pouring in
through the pumping station and you can see it entering the basin at that point.

There was talk in the early 1990's of re-opening the entire canal. Cant
see that happening though - the M8 was built on it's entire length between
Easterhouse and Port Dundas. Would be nice though. unlike the restoration
of the Forth & Clyde canal, they'd need to build a lot of new infrastructure.
The Blackhill Locks for example are totally gone.



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Found these at the VM...

Postby james73 » Mon Feb 23, 2004 9:15 pm

Castle St bridge
Image

This area is now where Baird Street crosses the 'Townhead Interchange' - note the pipes - I'm sure I read somewhere
before that the canal as shown in this picture was in the process of being 'piped' and drained.
Image

Blackhill Locks
Image

Interesting, this one - Cumbernauld Road crossing the Canal - site now obliterated by the M8
Image

This is the railway swing bridge which is still in situ at the Port Dundas basins
Image

Could this be the Craighall Road bridge?
Image

Canal under Provan Road - note the bridge abutments - that was the Possil to Rutherglen freight rail line.
Image



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Re: Remains of Monkland Canal

Postby Captain Brittles » Thu Mar 03, 2005 10:43 pm

Ronnie wrote: Not stagnant, so there must be some movement of water


The Monkland canal still functions as an aqueduct for the Forth & Clyde as it has done so since the two canals were joined together in 1794 (the 'Cut of Junction' as it was called) at Port Dundas. The water supply for the Monkland comes from the North Calder Water via a sluice at Woodhall near Calderbank, south of Airdrie. This water supply kept the level of the Monkland when it was working canal and also the F & C.
When most of the Monkland was filled in in the 70's the water was diverted into two 36" underground pipes in order that the Pinkston power station and the F &C continued to receive supplies.
Canals are not stagnant water as they appear but in fact have a slight current.
Its all about maintaining the desired level and countering seepage and evapouration apparently.

Here are some pics I took a couple of years ago.

Hillend Resvoir dam at Caldercruix - the main supply. the north Calder escapes at the bottom R/H side.

Image

The sluice that takes water from the North Calder at Woodhall

Image

The start of the (or the eastern terminus) Monkland canal coming through the sluice.

Image

The wee canal flowing away in quite a swift current

Image
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Postby possilonian » Wed Jun 15, 2005 9:49 pm

Hi James73 / Captain Brittles Terrific photos of the Monkland/Forth and Clyde Canal. I used to be Reservoir Attendant on Hillend Loch/Lilly and Black loch which fed the Canal with a daily intake of water which came out the Water Monitoring Hut round at Pinkston Basin..The old black and white photo looks like the Evening Times van crossing the Bascule Bridge at Ann St / Craighall Road ? as it came from Patersons which was next to Buchanans Sweetie Works Cheers Flim
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Re:

Postby fullfatmilk » Fri Mar 13, 2009 9:29 pm

DVF wrote:Hi,

... Also at the junction of Castle St and Baird St/ Royston Rd, just a couple of feet into Castle St, you go over a small bridge with the pedestrian walkway underneath. That bridge is, apparently, the original Monklands Canal bridge from a hundred or so years ago.

David.


http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&F ... &encType=1
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Re: Remains of Monkland Canal

Postby fullfatmilk » Sun May 03, 2009 4:40 pm

Picture of the bridge as described in the previous posts:

Image

Image
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Re: Remains of Monkland Canal

Postby Sydney Rosewater » Mon May 04, 2009 1:35 pm

If you walk under that bridge you can see channels worn into the stonework on the corners where the ropes of horse drawn bages have worn it away as they went round the corner.
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Re: Remains of Monkland Canal

Postby Milesy » Wed Jun 03, 2009 12:18 pm

There is a similar bridge about a mile from my house at Locks Street in Coatbridge, where there were locks.

Image

The entrance to the tunnel is actually in the back of a now disused retail outlet, in a retail park from the 90s, which has almost all but fell away. Also the home of the old Universe night club.

There is a large section of running canal near me, down the back of the Cairnhill area of Airdrie, on the border with Coatbridge, with Calderbank on the other side as previously mentioned, and at the end of the section the water flows off down through a large underground drain.

I seen some really nice pictures of the large section of the old canal path which runs parallel to the time capsule in coatbridge when it was still filled. I believe this section was drained completely to look for the possible body of missing Coatbridge girl Moira Anderson.
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Re: Remains of Monkland Canal

Postby Alycidon » Wed Jun 03, 2009 1:54 pm

Milesy wrote:There is a similar bridge about a mile from my house at Locks Street in Coatbridge, where there were locks.

Image

The entrance to the tunnel is actually in the back of a now disused retail outlet, in a retail park from the 90s, which has almost all but fell away. Also the home of the old Universe night club.

There is a large section of running canal near me, down the back of the Cairnhill area of Airdrie, on the border with Coatbridge, with Calderbank on the other side as previously mentioned, and at the end of the section the water flows off down through a large underground drain.

I seen some really nice pictures of the large section of the old canal path which runs parallel to the time capsule in coatbridge when it was still filled. I believe this section was drained completely to look for the possible body of missing Coatbridge girl Moira Anderson.


As the person who took that photograph I can tell you that the bridge had nothing to do with the canal, it carried Locks Street over a railway line into Rochsolloch Iron Works, The canal was a few yards to the south, locks Street having been realigned following the closure of the canal.

Locks Street cuts directly across the centre of this photograph with the railway bridge nearer the middle of the photograph than the canal, which can be seen nearer the right,
Image
[img]http://www.jhowie.force9.co.uk/emu314carcream.gif[/img]

We must perform a Quirkafleeg!!!!
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Re: Remains of Monkland Canal

Postby purplepantman » Mon Jun 29, 2009 12:04 am

Been looking at Monkland Canal stuff recently and collected a few aerial pics.
Noticed this thread and it seemed like a good place for them.

Working west to east....

I won't insult anyone by saying where this is;
Image

Parade, past the gasworks out to Riddrie
Image

Gasworks, past Barlinnie out to Queenslie
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Where The Fort would be now and out to just before the Baillieston Interchange, Bishop Loch to the north
Image

Compare the section of the canal on the bottom right of the last picture (directly above 1950), to this;

http://www.bing.com/maps/default.aspx?v ... &encType=1

Check it out in Birds Eye View!!

Obviously a lengthy section which is not now part of the M8.

Anyway, just thought I'd share for anyone whose interested.
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Re: Remains of Monkland Canal

Postby Icecube » Mon Jun 29, 2009 10:40 pm

Purplepantman, you'll need to walk a few hundred yards further east [off the 1950 aerial pic] - through the cattle tunnel under the M73 and across the A752 to find the canal.

Image
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Re: Remains of Monkland Canal

Postby purplepantman » Mon Jun 29, 2009 11:26 pm

Icecube wrote:Purplepantman, you'll need to walk a few hundred yards further east [off the 1950 aerial pic] - through the cattle tunnel under the M73 and across the A752 to find the canal.


Yes, I see what you mean!
I wasn't really meaning "the canal" (with water) but meant "remains of what was the canal".
They say the M8 was built mostly on the site of the canal, which seems to be mostly true - up until that point.
Wonder what that section looks like at ground level? Might put it on my 10,000 Things To Do Before I Die list.
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Re: Remains of Monkland Canal

Postby Sharon » Tue Jun 30, 2009 8:54 am

Beware of yawning dogs.
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