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Heritage Trail: Destination Wigan - Route 1
Discover Wigan’s industrial past and present beauty.
Running through the heart of Wigan is the Leeds-Liverpool Canal, the longest canal in the country. Upon completion in 1816, the canal connected the River Aire in Yorkshire to the Mersey Basin; some 127 miles; reached via 92 locks that allow the canal to rise to a height 487’ above sea level.
The canal was responsible for bringing prosperity to the towns of Wigan and Leigh, and promoted the key industries of coal and cotton. These traditional industries may now have gone, but evidence of them can still be found, as well as many other features of interest along the canal.
For more information, visit www.industrialpowerhouse.co.uk
Waypoints
Start point, walking route: Heritage Trail: Destination Wigan - Route 1
Easting: 365585, Northing: 399825
Commence your walk from Leigh Bridge (c1820) in the centre of Leigh Town. The name Leigh means meadow, and reveals the town's rural origins. Up and until the late 1800s, Leigh was noted for its dairy produce, especially local cheeses. As you start your journey look to your right. There you will see Mansley's Rope Works on Twist Lane. The company manufactured rope by hand using an outdoor rope run. The company retailed the finished rope and twist from nearby King Street along with beer! The original factory burnt down in 1912. The next significant building on that side of the canal is Welch Hill Mill (1893). Once home to Gamble and Smith, manufactures and exporters of fine cotton.
Easting: 365575, Northing: 399830
Pennington Flash Country Park is the next main attraction to be reached. The Flash is on the left of the canal. A Flash is a lake created by mining subsidence and in Pennington Flash we have one of the largest in the region and one of the North West’s premier sites for birdwatching, with over 230 species recorded. The canal is much higher than the surrounding land here, showing the extent of the mining subsidence in the area.
Easting: 363707, Northing: 399575
Opposite Pennington is the site of Bickershaw Colliery. This area possesses a strong mining tradition going back some 155 years. The site was huge. 7 miles of underground shafts linked Bickershaw to neighbouring Parsonage and Golborne Collieries. In its heyday the pit employed over 1500 staff and produced 600.000 tonnes per year. Bickershaw closed on the 27th March 1992.
Easting: 363430, Northing: 399600
Further down the canal on the left is Lightshaw Hall Flash. One of the many small flashes along this stretch of the canal and another important area for birds, especially wildfowl and waders. The canal now passes through the middle of a series of Flashes, simply known as the Wigan Flashes. They comprise Scotmans (the larger of the flashes), Bryn Marsh and Pearson's Flashes. Much of this large complex of wetlands has been designated as sites of special scientific interest and areas of biological importance, due to their value to the wildlife, particularly birds and some locally and regionally rare plant species.
Easting: 361935, Northing: 399895
As the canal approaches Wigan Town, you will see opposite the towpath new office complexes. These are built on the site of the original Westwood Power Station (1940). The Flash beside Westwood provided water for its cooling towers. As well as commerce, today the land is rich in wildflowers. Including several species of orchid. Turning left at the canal junction bridge enter the area known world wide as Wigan Pier.
Easting: 357270, Northing: 405480
