The River Trent

Supplemented by the waters of the Soar, the Trent widens out to flow down a wide valley, through Nottingham, past Country Parks and Nature Reserves to become a commercial waterway.

Improved: 1772, 1783, 1926
Engineers: Smeaton, Jessop, Whitworth, Rayner

Like all ancient navigations the Trent was a ‘free’ river with no organisation taking overall control. Apart from improvements from Trent Falls up to Burton on Trent (1699) and small improvements above Newark (1773), Acts for improvement only became urgent after the Trent and Mersey Canal was opened. An act to improve the whole to Gainsborough was passed (1783). Dredging and a horsepath (1787) were followed by locks at Sawley and a 2½ mile cut to bypass Trent Bridge in Nottingham (Beeston Cut). Other cuts were made at Snoball (1795) Cranfleet (1797) and Holme (1800).

In this century, deep draughted boats were catered for by raising water levels with weirs and new locks at Cromwell Tidal (1911), Holme, Stoke Bardolph, Gunthorpe and Hazelford (1926-7). The Trent can take large commercial barges and is maintained to a high standard.

The wide Beeston and Nottingham Canals provided the alternative to the shoals and bridges that make the Trent un-navigable through Nottingham. This wide cut was always closed to navigation on Sundays to ensure boatmen’ s religious well being. A heavy chain (the Lenton Chain) was stretched across the water.

Torksey Lock marks the entrance to the Roman Fossdyke Navigation set in a wide landscape. 72 hour pontoon moorings bring possible relief to boats unused to tidal waters. Just upstream are gravel pits that dispatch their entire product by water.

The Chesterfield Canal was originally 46 miles in length but was cut by the collapse of Norwood Tunnel. Restoration of the eastern section has now reached Kiverton Park and full restoration to Chesterfield is planned.