History of the Union Canal

Union Canal

As with many canals, the carriage of coal provided the impetus in the late 18th century for the Edinburgh & Glasgow Union Canal - nowadays widely referred to more simply as the Union Canal.

War with France delayed the canal's construction until well into the 19th century, and it was eventually opened in 1822. Elegantly constructed and crossing no fewer than three major aqueducts in little over 30 miles, it included a tunnel built to avoid an estate whose owner did not wish to view the waterway. An eleven-lock flight connected the canal with the Forth & Clyde line at Falkirk, thereby offering a direct inland connection between the cities of Glasgow and Edinburgh that included a regular passenger service.

The canal's profitability was greatly affected by the opening of the Edinburgh & Glasgow Railway in 1842. Following a period of steady decline, the Union Canal was abandoned in the 1960s. In truth, its fate had been obvious since the lock flight linking it to the Forth & Clyde was demolished in the 1930s.

But the canal has been rejuvenated by an extensive restoration programme for the Millennium - and, most dramatically, by the construction of the Falkirk Wheel. Sitting adjacent to the Roman Antonine Wall, and described in various terms including a 'Ferris wheel for boats' and 'one of the wonders of the new waterways age', the unique structure comprises two balanced caissons which are turned through 180 degrees to raise and lower the boats between the differing levels of the two canals formerly served by the locks.

Boats enter from the higher Union Canal via an aqueduct into the wheel, and are lowered to a basin before locking through the Jubilee Locks into the Forth & Clyde - and vice versa. The water route from west to east coast, and the link from city to city, can now flow once again.

Edinburgh Quays is a major regeneration project centred on the site of Lochrin Basin, in the heart of Scotland's capital. It provides around 90 waterfront apartments, 150,000 square feet of offices and 55,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space.

A 200 year old narrowboat has been discovered at the bottom of the canal between Leamington Lift Bridge and Viewforth Bridge. A £10,000 project will begin in Autumn 2004 to discover the boat's history and secrets. Find out more