WALKING THE BLUE LOOP PART TWO: THE SHEFFIELD AND TINSLEY CANAL

 An introduction to the history and sights found on Sheffield’s waterways.

  It was June and I was continuing my exploration of the Blue Loop. An informal walking route, roughly 13Km or 8-miles in length. It begins at Victoria Quays, following the Sheffield and Tinsley Canal to Meadowhall, and then returning to the city centre along The Five Weirs Walk, beside the River Don.

  Once again, I found myself making my way to Victoria Quays. However, a full year had passed since the last posting on this blog, where I began my introduction to the Blue Loop and outlined some of the history to be found along Sheffield’s waterways. In that previous instalment, I ended on an optimistic note; I was anticipating a refreshing and ice-cold soda, as I made my way along the canal towards Meadowhall, pausing in the shadow of the Sheffield Energy from Waste Plant. Optimistic too, in the sense that the long, dark shadow, cast by the coronavirus pandemic was finally beginning to lift. Well, unfortunately, that optimism was a little premature. During that summer of 2020, the coronavirus pandemic found fresh impetus, and that new momentum drove cases here in the UK to almost unimaginable heights, culminating in winter 2020 and throughout the spring of 2021. It is only now, in the early summer of 2021, that optimism is returning, driven by the reduction of hospital admissions and corresponding deaths. 

  Although I did indeed, complete my first circuit of the Blue Loop back in June 2020, it became more and more difficult to sit down and write up an account; against the backdrop of the pandemic, it became harder to look back at those fleeting moments of hopefulness, unaware as we were, of how events would soon take a turn for the worse. 

  It was early June 2021, and suddenly summer was upon us. May had seemed particularly wet and dreary but now the weather was scorching hot, and not taking for granted that it would last, I was determined to return to the Blue Loop and continue from where I left off. The morning began clear and fine, with the promise of it being a wonderful summer’s day. And so, to make the most of the day before the sun and heat made it too uncomfortable to be outside, I set off. After a brief walk, I arrived at Victoria Quays just after 9 o’clock.

  Heavy exports and imports were being transported on the River Don from distant coastal ports, completing the final stretch along the Don Navigation from 1751, reaching as far as Tinsley, where a wharf was constructed. Goods could then be loaded on to carts and conveyed to Sheffield by road. The River Don could only be made navigable by boat up to Tinsley because of the industries in the Lower Don Valley depended on the river, preventing any further progress. The practical benefits of having a viable waterway linking the city with the wharf at Tinsley and the Don Navigation, resulted in the construction of a canal, (today including 12 lock-gates), completed in 1819. Victoria Quays, formerly the Sheffield Basin, was the cargo terminal for the canal. The fortunes of the canal declined from 1830, when the railway lines finally reached Sheffield. Plans were drawn-up to enlarge the waterway but came to nothing as ownership changed hands, and the canal became incorporated into the larger waterway network.

  A small number of cafes and bistros were reopening after the lockdown, and they were busy setting up for the day’s trade. My pace was brisk in my eagerness to pick up from where I left off previously, and I soon found myself beside the Energy from Waste Plant once again.

  There were a few small groups of people pottering about on the canal in boats and rafts, but apart from them, I had the towpath to myself. It was still relatively early in the morning, and it was noticeable how few runners and cyclists were out; almost every cyclist and jogger I’ve encountered along the canal has been considerate, however the towpath is very narrow in places. Even walkers must proceed in single file occasionally and it soon becomes somewhat of a chore to keep checking over your shoulder. For the moment, the atmosphere was peaceful and serene, while in the shade of the trees, the pathway was lovely and cool. Fluffy, cotton-wool clouds drifted lazily in the deep blue of the summer sky. I drew in a lungful of the clean, fresh air and savoured the sound of birdsong. Perfection! 

 

  I soon arrived at a somewhat derelict looking building, made of red bricks. A large doorway, now sealed up, once opened directly onto the canal at water-level. Bricked up windows peered sightlessly, obscured by overgrown vegetation. From its dilapidated state, it would be difficult to guess the building’s Grade II listed status. Built in the mid-19th Century on behalf of the Firth family and used for the storage of imported Swedish iron bars, unloaded directly from barges into the warehouse. The iron would then be processed in Sheffield’s distinctive conical-shaped cementation furnaces, into blister steel, the raw material for crucible steel. This forlorn building is thought to be the sole surviving example of its type. Cementation furnaces were once numerous in Sheffield, but now there is just one surviving complete example, with only a few other scattered fragments.

  Walking along the towpath, you pass through scenes of idyllic nature. The trees on either bank of the canal are reflected in the waters, enveloping you in green. This is then contrasted, as relics and remnants of the industrial past, break through the vegetation. Warehouses, workshops and breaker’s yards, back onto the waterway. Some are derelict and some remain occupied and in sound repair, while others lay somewhere in between.

  My attention was caught by the remains of a building on the other side of the canal. Shattered, roofless walls with glassless windows, stood against the water’s edge. Beyond lay a barren stretch of ground, weather-worn concrete now reclaimed by scrubby undergrowth. The empty windows framing distant views on the far horizon. Whatever the ruins had previously been, little evidence remained. But it must have been an impressive size.

  The towpath carried on a little way where it turned in direction, passing under bridges and a skeletal gantry, connecting a large building on the other side to a structure, now long gone. The sound of birdsong, and the occasional leaping fish, was interrupted periodically by the harsh sounds of industry. Shrill shrieks of metalworking rang out. Sheffield’s great industrial past, echoes in those sounds, still found along its waterways.

  The Blue Loop continued, and the towpath once again became enveloped in the lush greenery of trees and dense undergrowth. The canal is spanned by numerous bridges in a variety of forms, from broad, heavy and monolithic concrete structures to light, delicate wrought-iron footbridges. Their reflections mirrored in the stillness of the water.

    The canal runs in a straight line. A tall iron bridge carries trams high above and out of sight, swallowed by the tops of the surrounding trees. It’s here, that the canal soon broadens into a small basin, enclosed on the far side by a wall which supports the tram lines. A lone fisherman’s peace and quiet was interrupted at regular intervals by the low rumble of a tram, shuttling people to and from the heart of the city and Meadowhall Shopping Centre, as well as points in between.

  I turned and looked back at the way I had come. The canal stretched back as far as my eye could see, the water a reflective ribbon framed by numerous bridges, cutting through the corridor of dense green foliage. 

  I made my way further down the towpath, the canal narrowing again as it passed beneath a substantial and solid looking bridge. A trainline now runs directly parallel with the canal, joining the tram-tracks on the other side; both will be constant companions all the way to Tinsley, sometimes briefly breaking away before returning, occasionally hidden out of view but almost always within earshot.

  Another basin now opened up, larger than the previous one. A number of unoccupied mooring berths were on the opposite side, where a boisterous but good-natured group of people were having fun, fishing and enjoying the good weather. Leaving the basin behind, an elegant iron footbridge connects the neighbouring region of Greenland to the extensive leisure facilities on the other side of the canal, such as the Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park and Don Valley Bowl.

  The route of the canal now changes from its relatively straight course into a series of long, serpentine curves. It was now past 11 o’clock and more runners and cyclists were out in the sunshine. I knew that soon I would have to cross the canal to continue my way towards Meadowhall, and it catches me out when the towpath abruptly ends, and I must backtrack to the foot bridge. Over the treeline, glimpses of Sheffield Arena could be seen as I approached the footbridge that carried me across the canal. This area is particularly popular with fishermen, perhaps because they can park their cars a few yards away.

  A narrow footpath takes you from the waterside, and suddenly you find yourself in a dusty industrial backstreet next to Broughton Lane; a mere stones-throw away from Valley Centertainment, with its cinema complex, bowling alley, fast-food restaurants and other diversions.

  Taking the footbridge, I resumed my way. Following the canal as it forms a long curve, suddenly a lock was revealed, the first of 12 in total. I had reached Tinsley Flight, (a series of locks) home to Tinsley Marina.

  Britain’s inland waterway network is home to over 2,700 listed structures, 50 scheduled ancient monuments, and 5 UNESCO world heritage sites, [Canal & Rivers Trust, April 2021]. Prior to the year 1700, the majority of inland waterways had been built in Southern England to transport agricultural produce. However, that changed with the completion of the Aire and Calder Navigation that linked Leeds to the sea. Built by businessmen keen to increase trade through the improvement of transport infrastructure, by the 1770s many of the scheme’s financial backers had become very wealthy.

  The way had been paved for other northern merchants to build waterway of their own, improving the economic prospects of towns like Manchester, Liverpool and Sheffield. Britain had constructed approximately 4,800 miles (7,729 Km) of inland waterway by 1850. Their decline in fortunes accelerated after the Second World War, and it became increasingly difficult to remain financially viable.

  The fine weather had become over-cast but remained very warm, and the sun made periodic, brief appearances from behind the clouds. Tinsley Marina looked very tranquil and picturesque, despite being dominated by an electricity pylon, looming overhead. There was the continuous pleasing sound of roaring water as it passed through the many lock-gates. The canal was broad in this section, a series of basins, bottle-necked at regular intervals by the locks.

  The towpath leaves the marina behind, passing under a strikingly massive bridge that spans the water. Through the trees, I could make out an enormous blue building, housing the Ikea furniture store. I paused to read a simple memorial dedicated to the workers of the Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation Company, who worked tirelessly throughout the war-time period to keep the waterway open. The plaque informed me that the locks had been severely damaged during an air-raid in 1940. Nearby, lay a pile of broken stone blocks and I wondered if they were evidence of the damage done by the air-raid.

  I was starting what I considered to be the final section before reaching Meadowhall, where the Sheffield and Tinsley Canal intersects with the Don Navigation, near the site of the old Tinsley wharf, located in the shadow of Junction 34 of the M1 motorway.

  Passing under two more bridges, the canal narrows, and the towpath comes out from under the shade of trees. A small bank runs alongside the path, mercifully blocking views of hotels and fast-food restaurants, located at the dusty and industrial periphery of Meadowhall Shopping Centre. I wouldn’t go so far as to say seedy, but all those businesses dedicated to conspicuous consumption and commercialism, located where at one time, great industry forged the fortunes of the city.

  One of the last few locks came into view, almost directly alongside a bridge, underneath which the towpath squeezes its way. Ducking my head, I followed the path and emerged within sight of Meadowhall and the vast viaduct of the motorway.

  The pathway became broad and well surfaced, taking me past a derelict building, perhaps a small workshop or work’s office. The tumbled-down walls covered in graffiti. I spent a moment investigating but by now my thoughts were turning to refreshments. I had planned on catching a tram back to the city centre but with Meadowhall Shopping Centre so close, the idea to buy a sandwich and continue on, to complete the Blue Loop, began to form in my mind. But first I felt the need to finish this section by reaching the site of the old Tinsley wharf. I was hoping there would be some evidence remaining, but there was nothing, at least none that I could see. I walked on a little further beneath the viaduct to the final lock, where the canal opens onto the River Don. 

  I made my way back under the viaduct, where a footbridge takes you to the Meadowhall South/Tinsley tram stop. An information board provides some history of the area and pinpoints the site of the old wharf, but I felt that justice had been done to the Sheffield and Tinsley Canal. And now it was time to enter Meadowhall and find some refreshments. Leaving the peaceful tranquillity of the canal behind, I crossed the broad carriageway and returned to the carelessness and convenience of the modern world. But it would only be a momentary respite. The Five Weirs Walk was beckoning, further adventure and discovery called…

  To be continued in Part Three…

References.

1. River Stewardship Company, Friends of the Blue Loop, viewed July 2021, https://the-rsc.co.uk/riverlution/friends-of-the-blue-loop

2. Canal and River Trust, Sheffield and Tinsley Canal, viewed July 2021, https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/enjoy-the-waterways/canal-and-river-network/sheffield-and-tinsley-canal

3. Canal and River Trust, Canal Heritage, viewed July 2021, https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/enjoy-the-waterways/canal-history/canal-heritage

4. Canal & River Trust, The First Canal Age, viewed July 2021, https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/enjoy-the-waterways/canal-history/the-canal-age

5. Historic England, Canalside Warehouse of GS Dilley and Sons, viewed July 2021, https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1270724

6. Historic England, Cementation Furnace, viewed July 2021, https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1247524 

7. Hey, D. (2010) A History Of Sheffield, 3rd Edition, Lancaster, Carnegie Publishing Ltd

8. Harman, R. and Minnis, J. (2004) Sheffield, Pevsner Architectural Guides, New Haven & London, Yale University Press