Heritage Appeal
Handle with care
Help conserve the history of our waterways
The Waterways Archive holds the largest collection of waterways material in the UK, making it the record of Britain's unique waterway heritage.
These nationally important records are in urgent need of attention and we need your help to ensure they are available for many years to come.
Around 78,000 records, which include 50,000 images, chart the amazing construction of the world's first national water-based transport system.
Alongside details of astounding feats of engineering and construction, this wonderful resource provides an insight into the lives of thousands of people who lived and worked on our canals and rivers.
We need your help
An invaluable resource for historians, researchers and genealogists, the Waterways Archives are also a vital source of information for the restoration, maintenance and interpretation of canals today. However, many of these important documents and images are in desperate need of preservation.
We must act now to preserve these important historical records, and your help is needed.
Waterways Archives
Examples of the wealth and diversity of information contained within the archives include:
- An original Thomas Telford plan of an aqueduct for the proposed feeder at Smethwick Top Lock on Birmingham Canal Navigations, signed by the great engineer (date 1828)
- A survey of the Lancaster Canal by John Rennie (date 1792)
- A field plan of the Chester Canal from Chester to Waverton Common, which includes references to landowners, tenants and images of buildings, gates and fields (circa 1772)
A highly decorated Roll of Honour listing the names of those in the employ of Grand Union Canal Company who joined HM Forces during the Great War and those who died (date 1918)
The extensive image collection includes photographs of:
- Foxton Plane caissons under construction (date 1899)
- FMC butty 'Urmston' and boat women at Buckley Stoppage (date 1922)
- Narrowboats 'Hereford' and 'Alder' at Weston Point Docks on the River Weaver
There are many, many more precious records that need urgent attention. Please help us preserve them by making a gift today.
Donate today
With your donation, The Waterways Trust will be able to provide materials and equipment so that the Trust's archive staff are able to carry out essential conservation work, including:
- Cleaning precious records to remove dust and dirt
- Wrapping and packing fragile or vulnerable documents and records to prevent further decay
- Indexing of images and volumes so document details, for example names of canal employees and locations, are available for searching
- Scanning key documents and extracts so information can be made available online.
£18 will buy two dusting brushes to carefully clean dirt and dust from precious documents and plans
£25 will pay for a large rare volume to be securely wrapped and packaged
£50 will pay for eight documents to be scanned so that images can be made available on Virtual Waterways, the Waterways Archive website www.virtualwaterways.co.uk
£100 will help train a volunteer to index photographs and volumes
Sponsorship
You can also sponsor a rare volume, set of documents or images that hold particular interest to you.
A gift of £500 will support the care of your chosen records for one year.
As well as ensuring this important chronicle receives the necessary attention, your name and donation will be acknowledged on Virtual Waterways and in a book of sponsors held within the Waterways Archives.
Please help us to care for these fragile and precious records, click here to make a donation today or call 0845 0700 710 (9am-5pm, Monday-Friday).
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