Southampton's abandoned canal

[@AussieSaintJohn]

Ex-Pat Sotonian living in Ausrralia...I grew up in Southampton in the 50s 60s and 70s, always good to read about and see the old town, thanks David 🙂 liked and subscribed 👋👍

[@southerneruk]

Was it your dad that came over a number of decades ago, and force the council to remove the no fishing signs and the anti fish rail from the causeway bridges, because it was illegal, if it was i do need to speak to him if he is still around

[@AussieSaintJohn]

@@southerneruk No mate, my Dad lived his whole life in Southampton and passed on in the mid 80s... and he wasn't interested in fishing, and I haven't been home since my last visit in 2006 sorry I can't help you... 🙂🙃👍

[@southerneruk]

@@AussieSaintJohn Shame, I have been trying to find the guy who came back to Redbridge, who got no fishing signs removed, just on one visit, He knows information that needs to be pass on to others

[@gmanthegrouch]

My old home city too

[@simonbondsfield4249]

Fascinating stuff. All those years walking along these streets and not knowing what was underneath !! Many thanks for sharing 👍

[@MavisFilms]

There is writing on the pavement just next to the BBC saying that the tunnel is underneath, but having walked it a few times I didn't see it either! I'm really fascinated by this stuff.

[@southerneruk]

Error on your map around Redbridge Roundabout, it did not skirt around the Roundabout it went thought it, the popular trees mark out the side of the canal, I can remember where the canal was, before they turned the Mono Redbridge road into dual carriageway, and put in the roundabout which came before the flyovers, There was a dip in the ground were the canal ran, between Millbrook Roundabout and Town a lot of the canal never got built only sections of it did, The canal never ran under Gover Rd, but between the footpath you walk and the front gardens of the bungalows ant the bottom of Gover Rd near Nine Elms Rail gate, it branched off and went behind the Anchor Pub to a canal dock. The flat subsidence was more likely cause by the number of Marsh Creeks and streams and not the canal, the whole of that area 400 to 500 years ago was reeds and marshes, the oldest building in that part of Redbridge is the Ship Hotel/Inn, originally built in the 1600s when there was a mud dry dock close by and used for the ship builders. This was not the first canal, the original canal was for sailing barges, that sailed up the River Blackwater up to the cooling ponds where they made gunpowder at this point of time, there were 3 rivers Totton side was the Blackwaters and on Redbridge side was the Test and the one in the middle was the Grayling stream, then they built the 5 arch pack and pass bridge followed by the causeway out of Totton, the Blackwaters were diverted to the Grayling and a single arch regency bridge was built to allow for the barges to sail up to the cooling ponds and a link between Black waters and Test dug out to allow Blackwater barges to connect to the Andover Canal

[@grahamcrighton8113]

David, well done! I have travelled this are for years and never realised there was a canal there! Thank you, I shall now explore with knowledge!

[@PerryMcMillan-y1m]

Fantastic, really enjoyed watching this. Makes Paul Whitewick video look second rate !

[@pwhitewick]

Ahh ha. At last, we have found a channel covering stuff we love to explore too!! Subscribed.

[@MavisFilms]

Hi guys and welcome! Lovely to have you here. I watch your films of course, and have to say I really admire Paul's skill in talking to the camera. I feel it's a skill I've yet to master as the out-takes show!

[@pwhitewick]

@@MavisFilms you've not seen my outtakes!!

[@mavisfilms7797]

@Paul and Rebecca Whitewick but you do make it look effortless! Even with autocue I forget words, and without it I'm hopeless. Hence using cutaway shots a lot! A guy at work recently mentioned your vids, and asked if I've seen them. Durr.....

[@gazzwazz]

Very interesting video, i have lived in southampton all my life and was unaware of all this canals routes, seen canal walk many times and now can imagine the path it had taken, Great video.

[@jsmith498]

Very enjoyable documentary. I have a photo of a map from 1791 that shows the original planned route of the canal. The tunnel was supposed to go under the current day Boots and Primark. But in the end they built it 500m to the north.

[@MavisFilms]

I guess they had their reasons, but at the time it was somewhat of a blank canvas. They could have picked all sorts of routes!

[@adcockerell]

I find this sort of thing very interesting anyway, but particularly love the unique, droll, unassuming presentation of this and associated civil engineering history. Very watchable; even for those who would otherwise be dis-interested in these topics. Keep up the good work!

[@MavisFilms]

Thank you:) Glad you enjoyed it! One of the things I'm trying to do with these projects is to appeal to people that wouldn't normally be interested. The presentation style is largely down to my son's direction, and my wife's nagging that I'm "Boring".

[@johneastman39]

Excellent! Well done.

[@louis1952]

Well done, I can see a lot of hard work went into that!

[@MavisFilms]

Thank you - glad you enjoyed it!

[@comeonengland5312]

Brilliant and very informative video for Southampton mate 😊 I was intrigued and love my home city, we’ve got loads of history. Keep up the content mush because it’s incredible 🤝🏻

[@MavisFilms]

Thank you :) At the moment I'm working on the Cyprus ghost town that I shot on my phone. It's horribly unstable and being a right pain! If I'd have known we would go I'd have taken some decent gear. Anyhow.... I'm planning on doing more of Southampton. I'm working on the docks expansion as well as Cyprus, but I think I might do more Southampton topics. Possibly concentrate on just one small bit of it at a time.

[@martinjazzwebster]

Very enjoyable video. Look forward to your next KZbin production.

[@MavisFilms]

Thank you very much!

[@lionelmarytravels6003]

Highly interesting film. I had no Idea that a canal existed across Southampton , or of the many associated problems that were connected with it. I've always known about the Redbridge to Andover canal, but that was the extent of my knowledge.

[@katestgermier4455]

All very interesting! Keep exploring!

[@MavisFilms]

Thanks, will do!

[@capn_chris]

Excellent, thank you. Showing the canal route over current computer generated images explains so much more than just trying to line up old paper maps. If you haven't already, any chance of a similar video regarding the Didcot, Newbury & Southampton railway in Southampton? There are a couple of extant clues if you know where to look!

[@MavisFilms]

Thanks, and glad you enjoyed it! I'll have to look int this, as it's not one I've heard of. Mind you, there are probably thousands!

[@alanmatlock9332]

Excellent film.

[@joeweston3252]

very interesting david l was walking round southampton today with friends and wondered where the canal went thank you for your great video explaining this.

[@MavisFilms]

Thank you :) Glad you enjoyed it.

[@mathmetool]

I love how you can still see the top of the canal arch at God House. Also, I wonder if they’ll find anything when they start work at the old gas works in Northam. Great video

[@southerneruk]

That was part of the old city moat, back of the walls Canal street was part of the moat that was use for barges

[@jimherbert007]

Outside “The Anchor” at Redbridge there’s some sort of narrow lock entrance. Have always wondered what it is. As you follow the railway north you can find abandoned sections of the canal off the Test Way by the way - some with water near Nursling in Winter and alongside Lee Lane (this has been my Totton to Winchester cycling route for 30+ years 🤣)

[@MavisFilms]

Hi Jim, and thanks for the comment. I think I can answer what the wall opposite the pub is. I'm doing the Andover to Redbridge canal next - just waiting for a day off when it's good weather, my son is available and my wife hasn't other plans to do some filming. Anyway, I've been doing loads of research in advance, and at that point the line of the canal was exactly where the railway is now. I've got a list of where the locks are with OS grid references, and Redbridge lock was at the exact OS reference for the pub. It also states that Redbridge lock was tidal. I'm probably going to film Andover to Romsey on a road bike, and Romsey south on my mountain bike. Cheers :)

[@jimherbert007]

@@MavisFilms Do the whole thing on a mountain bike. You can pick up the Spratt and Winkle at Wherwell and cycle it all the way to Nursling in a (long) day, and as I'm sure you know the Andover to Stockbridge road is horrible (unless you divert through the Clatfords). Enjoyed this film - it had vibes of Paul and Rebecca (also Andover ;-))

[@southerneruk]

You will find that it was not a lock but put in to allow for small boats to land, when the Rail line went through, the rail line cut people off from the tidal waters of the River, which is a public right of way, The canal use to run to the back of the Anchor Pub where there was canal dock, just north of the 5 arch bridge on the corner of Nine Elms used to be a public boatyard and the beach that ran from there down to Redbridge Coal Wharf was the public hard used for the salmon and sea trout netters, between the boatyard and the 5 arch is a set of steps dropping from the rail embankment, this also had to be put in when the rail line ran though

[@jimherbert007]

@@southerneruk top knowledge thank you!

[@anticat900]

Hello a great video, not sure if anyone has asked the scrap yard or boat repairers in Northam if someone could have a look at the only remains left of the canal as it joins the Itchen?

[@MavisFilms]

I think the trouble is that there would be nothing remotely recognisable today. I was basing part of the research on an article written in the 1960's about what the route it took (for surveying purposes) and what remains there were at the time. Even back then the article said there was nothing to see.

[@anticat900]

@@MavisFilms If you look at gmaps between the boat yard and scrap yard it is quite visible, though admittedly now a ramp into the water ☹️

[@edfrancis712]

fascinating ty

[@Thunderer0872]

A correction on the 2009 railway tunnel alterations was not due to freight trains hitting the walls but the size of the containers on the trains from Maritime terminal trains, as the size of shipping containers were now a standard 9 foot 6 inches they were to large for normal wagons so Freightliner had what were known as Pocket wagons on smaller wheels with the 9'6 containers slung in a pocket just off the rail height since the mid 1990's, So to allow the now larger containers to be placed on any container wagons all bridges and tunnels were raised from Southampton to Reading both via Winchester and Laverstock in Salisbury to Basingstoke via Andover to allow freightliner trains to travel with any container on any container wagons via both routes but the tunnel floor was lowered to allow the new clearances. this was done over 2 weeks that Christmas. Great video otherwise, I worked for SWT when they had the franchise for passenger trains in Southampton.

[@MavisFilms]

Thank you for watching and taking the time to comment :) And thanks for the correction.

[@southerneruk]

They also added another rail to change the gauge of the rail