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The canal is maintained by The Chichester
Ship Canal Trust, whose aims are the preservation,
maintenance and improvement of canals, navigable rivers, and
inland waterways for the public benefit, in particular the
navigation between Chichester and the harbour, the
Chichester Ship Canal, and the Portsmouth and Arundel Canal. |
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History
What is
known today as the
Chichester
Canal
is in fact part of the former
Portsmouth & Arundel
Canal
. This was opened in 1823 and consisted of a 12-mile canal
from Ford on the River Arun to Salterns and a shorter cut
from Langstone Harbour to Portsmouth Harbour, connected
together by a 13-mile dredged ‘bargeway’ through the
natural harbours and channels between them. Intended as a
key link in a through route to
London
via the River Arun Navigation,
Wey & Arun
Junction
Canal
, River Wey and River Thames, it was not a success. By the
time it was built, there was no real need for an inland
route as larger and better ships, coupled with an end to
hostilities with
France
, meant that the coastal route was an easier and cheaper
option. One of the few regular through cargoes carried was
gold bullion from
Portsmouth
to the Bank of England, with armed guards on the barges.
A 1.5
mile branch led from Hunston on the main line of the canal
to a basin in
Chichester
. This and the short connecting length of the main line from
Salterns to Hunston were built to a larger gauge and
equipped with iron swingbridges to enable coastal ships of
over 100 tons to reach Chichester. This was the only part of
the canal that enjoyed even a modest success, bringing in
building materials and coal, and taking away manure. It
carried trade until 1906, while the rest of the canal had
been unused since the 1840s and fallen derelict soon after.
Transferred
to the City Council in 1892 (who in turn sold it to West
Sussex County Council in 1957), the surviving four miles
were abandoned in 1928. The entrance lock and a short length
at Salterns were retained as yacht moorings prior to the
building of Chichester Marina alongside; the lock is still
capable of operation and a number of houseboats are moored
on this length. The remainder of the route to
Chichester
was leased to the local angling club and gradually silted up
over the following half-century. Two main road bridges were
replaced by unnavigable culverts.
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