Ufton Lock
Ufton Lock is a degated lock on the Kennet and Avon Canal, between Padworth and Sulhamstead, Berkshire, England.
 The degated lock | |
| Waterway | Kennet and Avon Canal |
|---|---|
| Country | England |
| County | Berkshire |
| Maintained by | Canal & River Trust |
| First built | c. 1834 |
| Length | 80 feet (24 m) |
| Width | 14 feet (4.3 m) |
| Fall | 0 feet 0 inches (0 m) |
| Coordinates | 51°24′48″N 1°06′48″W |
History
Ufton Lock was built in c. 1834, making it the last lock on the waterway to be built.[nb 1] It was engineered by John Blackwell, who had dug a new 600-yard (550 m) cut to avoid the meandering River Kennet between Padworth and Sulhamstead.[1] The lock's depth was just 1 foot 9 inches (0.53 m),[2] which was to improve the head of water at Towney Lock, 0.6 miles (0.97 km) upstream.[1] When the waterway was restored in the 1960s, restoring the shallow lock was deemed unpractical and instead the rebuilt Towney Lock was deepened to cater for the difference in level.[3] The lock gates were removed, although the chamber masonry and bollards have been retained as a landing stage for the adjacent swing bridge.[4]
The canal is now administered by the Canal & River Trust.[5]
Footnotes
- Many locks were rebuilt during the canal's restoration (some of which, such as Towney and Burghfield, were restored directly up- or downstream of their original chamber). County Lock was moved to the opposite riverbank in the 1880s.
References
- Clew, Kenneth (1968). The Kennet & Avon Canal : an illustrated history (2nd ed.). David & Charles. p. 89.
- Allsop, Niall (1987). The Kennet & Avon Canal. Bath: Millstream Book. ISBN 0-948975-15-6.
- "Ufton". Mike Stevens UK Inland Waterways pages. Archived from the original on 9 October 2006. Retrieved 23 September 2006.
- "Heritage Gateway - Results". heritagegateway.org.uk. Heritage Gateway. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
- Pearson, Michael (2003). Kennet & Avon Middle Thames:Pearson's Canal Companion. Rugby: Central Waterways Supplies. ISBN 0-907864-97-X.
See also
- Locks on the Kennet and Avon Canal
| Next lock upstream | River Kennet / Kennet and Avon Canal | Next lock downstream |
| Towney Lock | Ufton Lock Grid reference: SU 6177 6863 |
Tyle Mill Lock |