The Knottingley & Goole Canal

Historical Profiles: NarrowBoat, Autumn 2024

Christopher M Jones

Chris M. Jones looks at some of the traffic on the eastern section of the Aire & Calder Navigation

 

The first section of the Aire & Calder Navigation from the east is artificial and was formerly known as the Knottingley & Goole Canal. This 18-mile stretch actually terminated at its most westerly point a little further on from Knottingley at Ferrybridge Flood Lock where it joined the navigable River Aire. Previously a small fishing village on the bank of the River Ouse, Goole expanded into a town and inland port after the Knottingley & Goole Canal opened to the public on 20th July 1826. The following year it was constituted a seaport for foreign trade with its own customs facilities, which came into effect in April 1828. It continued to grow over the decades and with the arrival of the railways it became the terminus of the Wakefield, Pontefract and Goole branch of the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway, which connected it to the manufacturing districts of Lancashire and Yorkshire. Further connections were made with the Hull and Doncaster branch of the North Eastern Rail…