Victorian: Ingenuity and Engineering

Views from The Weaver Navigation

This behemoth of a structure, the Anderton Boat Lift, is classed as one of the "Seven Wonders of the Waterways" and nicknamed the "Cathedral of the Canals"

Built in 1875, it is a double lift lock in Cheshire. UK, to provide a 50ft vertical link to transfer boats between between the Trent and Mersey Canal and the lower River Weaver.

Due to the abundance of salt mines in the area, and the need after mining to transport it quickly and cheaply to the nearest port; being Liverpool, the River Weaver was, through civil engineering projects in the 18th century, converted in to a Navigation, providing passage from these Cheshire towns along its length until it flowed into the River Mersey at a place called Frodsham.

Also in the late 18th century the far reaching Trent and Mersey canal, close to and some 50ft above the Weaver Navigation opened as a secondary route. This canal stretched from the coal mining and pottery industries of the Midlands to the Port of Liverpool.

Now with two waterways running through the same small area the independent owners of the two waterways got together and concluded it would be more profitable to work in harmony, and so it happened. On the North bank of the weaver a basin was constructed and goods were transhipped between the two using cranes salt chutes and an inclined plane. It took 30 months to construct at a total cost of £48,428 (£5,763,000 at today's prices).

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With the construction of the lift there was now no longer need for chutes and cranes

By the end of the 19th century the volume of traffic through the lift had grown steadily, there were issues though with the water driven hydraulic system causing rust and pitting of the pistons in an attempt to repair the system, the repairs to the pistons, by using copper created more problems than ever. Think electrolytic reaction. Slower and reduced transfer times led to innovation and between 1906 to 1908 conversion to electric power.

Views from the Basin

After this conversion the boat lift was operated successfully for 75 years, though with the advent of quicker road transport through the 1950's and 60's commercial and industrial traffic declined to a point that come the mid 70's the traffic using the lift was mainly recreational boats.

In 1983, during it's eight year repaint with tar and rubber based coatings extensive corrosion was found in the superstructure and it was declared structurally unsound, unsafe and closed to all traffic.

Restoration started in 2001, with a decision to revert back to hydraulic power, using hydraulic oil. A charitable fund was set up to raise the initial £7 million required to complete the work. To fully restore the lift to current safety standards has now been calculated at £15million.

The boat lift was re-opened in 2002, but in 2025 has now closed again and will be so for upto 18 months for further restoration.

The upper section including the supportive A frame structures were the addition made in the early 20th century, massive sets of electrically powered cogwheels to lift and lower the chain hanging counterweights of the boat lifts

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Reach for the skies

The large buildings in the background in some snaps was the former ICI plant, where Polymer was accidentally "discovered/invented."

"It's a long way to the top if ya ........"