When I was a kid...
...we used to hire this little rowing boat and we used to go up and down sections of the Kenneth
canal and I always used to remember wondering what was around the next corner I really got to
find out other than just a bit more Canal but as a kid who cared I wonder what's around that
next corner so today it brings me quite a bit of pleasure to be able to tell you the story
of what is around that corner just up ahead on the last five miles of the Basingstoke canal
the story of the Basinstoke Canal is one we've told before we've been to the Greywell tunnel
the reason why the last five miles of the Basingstoke Canal failed because the tunnel
collapsed and they just abandoned this last five miles I think the rest of it you can navigate
pretty successfully as you'll see ahead of us there's quite a uh let's look a bit more abandoned
than normal at the moment it is there's a good reason for that you've segmented us into the
next section really well sorry that's perfectly acceptable you've done a better job than I did
so I got a message yesterday from our friend Matt who you may have well seen if you've watched our
two previous videos on the basis that canal and Matt said Paul Rebecca you need to get down to
the old Basingstoke Canal they've abandoned a bit of the canal and go to the brickwork
oh because there's something quite special that's happened Owen to the lack of rain in
this country in the last six months or so so for further geographical context let's flip to
"rail map online" because they also do canals this is the last five miles of the Basingstoke
canal and here is the brickwork arm now this arm was dreamed up by Sir Frederick Seagal hunt who
a few years prior to opening this brickwork arm purchased the entire canal in 1895 from
the receivers he formed the Hampshire brick and tile company and started producing well
Bricks by the boatload opened in 1898 lasted about three years now apparently the bricks
that were made here we're faulty and despite the fact they made nearly 8 million of them
transported a lot by Canal obviously meant I guess there was a um the right word as lawsuit
or two thereafter because in 1901 it was closed three years on so obviously um quite some defect
walking up the arm 50 yards up now it's completely dried out which is the key to
today's video still September the 12th today and it's 25 degrees and why I'm
wearing a jumper today we're like I don't I'm not entirely sure be honest with all the bricks
that are obviously yeah as the cow's not here anymore well it's interesting because last time
we came here that was completely overgrown with vegetation so they've obviously pulled
out all the vegetation and of course a lot of the bricks have come tumbling into the canal
but bear in mind last time when we came here was also tough retro yeah exactly
hidden by the depths of the water in normal times but because we've had this huge drought exposed
ahead of us now is an old vessel an old barge it's beautiful tell you all about it when we
go and have a look this is quite amazing when we came with Matt last time we had an inkling that
he said they found an old boat in here in the 1980s no one really knew if it was still here I
guess I think is the um the line so this was a steam powered vessel uh built between 1835 and
1850 and it remains this is staggering it Remains the only surviving example in the world of one
of these types of vessels where the planks went longitudinal the length of the Bard or that way
and it would be great if something could be done the engine I understand is now in a museum it's in
the National Water Museum in Gloucestershire it would be amazing such is the importance of this
a bit of Heritage here this could be saved but the fact that it's uh now exposed from
water Up and Under maybe a few times that's last time it's been in Out of Water clearly that is
the case that's probably not going to do it any favours we guess so it really needs doing sooner
rather than later but again money volunteers all sorts and it's a probably 70 foot long
thank you but let's have a quick look around here as well because I have a
funny feeling there are remnants of another old building here which is
the old uh works for the brickworks the clay Milling machines and stuff
the pathway so we've gone back past the boat past the arm I'm just gonna try the other
side of those Posh new houses see I think the location of the main Works were where those new
houses are we'll just go the other side of those because you can get there see what we can find um
back across the junction back across the Bridge worth noting as well we have done a couple of
videos on the basingstoke Canal before we may have mentioned it earlier we've done the grow
World tunnel it's history one of them may be here somewhere one of them will be here
somewhere we've also done another one which was the Old Mill thing we found again back on
that side one day we'll make a video about the old Basingstoke canal in its entirety
for the meantime you're stuck with the third video from the five miles abandoned stretch one
why not yes I'm just going to I think it's called Slade's Bridge
a bit ropey so I guess there was an old stop block here under slades bridge because there's
Cuts in the uh in the bridge so it would have slotted something here maybe to keep
the water in whichever side probably this side and also something else completely
fascinating is that there an old rope mark on the bridge now considering we've just seen a
steam-powered boat in there uh probably used oh there it is 1850s onwards maybe
does that mean that the Rope Marks here in the bridge were caused the very early part of the
canal and therefore that bridge hasn't been replaced all touched up in any way
um since the early 1800s maybe remember mass is wrong but first name
sometimes when our friend Matt messages us he teases me and he says Railway just to be a bit
um you know to get me to go to that place to see me there's a railway we've just walked 100 yards
north of slades bridge where the clay Works were and oh my goodness me do you know what this is no
what is it this isn't a bridge look how low that one is and look how high that one is yeah so that
one's really low what does that tell you that's an incline huh compared to that as an incline
this is like an old either like a ropeway railway or overhead Railway or something maybe just
for the brickworks and they are or even like a conveyor system or something yeah like an increase
I wasn't expecting this I genuinely thought Matt was just having a giggle
with us and said oh there's a railway but is this what actually what you meant look at that
we struggled to find any great source of information for the works here largely
everything seems to be focused on the canal and the short period of works here but the extent of
this structures here but we'd love to know a bit more perhaps you good people will have better luck
than me so we've not been able to find anything from the clay work from the back at home well
there's obviously a lot more questions to be answered there looks quite interesting though
I wouldn't leave back now at the arm the brickwork arm and the joyous boat there the steam boat that
would have supplied the bricks from the brickwork nately brickworks and we're now heading back to
the end of the Basingstoke Canal quick thank you for your continued subscribership and uh love of
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be joyous uh we will see you this time next Sunday at 5 p.m thanks for watching thank you