The Aire and Calder Navigation is a river and canal system of the River Aire and the River Calder in the metropolitan county of West Yorkshire, England.
In 1699 an Act of Parliament was passed to improve the navigability of the River Aire (from the River Ouse at Airmyn via Castleford to Leeds) and River Calder (from Castleford to Wakefield). This involved the creation of weirs bypassed by very short "cuts" equipped with locks. John Hadley was eng...
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The Aire and Calder Navigation is a river and canal system of the River Aire and the River Calder in the metropolitan county of West Yorkshire, England.
In 1699 an Act of Parliament was passed to improve the navigability of the River Aire (from the River Ouse at Airmyn via Castleford to Leeds) and River Calder (from Castleford to Wakefield). This involved the creation of weirs bypassed by very short "cuts" equipped with locks. John Hadley was engaged as an engineer and by 1704 the original work was completed, including 12 locks on the Aire between Haddesley and Leeds and 4 on the Calder. The locks were 58-60' long by 14'6" to 15' wide with 3'6" depths over the sills. The early trade consisted mainly of woollen goods from Leeds, Wakefield, Halifax and Bradford and wool and corn inwards from Lincolnshire and East Anglia.
During the 18th century the navigation was improved by longer cuts to bypass difficult or circuitous stretches of river. The major improvements were made in the last...
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