Sunday 10 May 2020

Bromford Iron Works Basin

Bromford Iron Works Basin



I wouldn't usually devote a whole blog post to one privately owned basin, but when they include a lock they represent the Holy Grail of the BCN and I therefore feel compelled to include them!

The Bromford Iron Works sat to the immediate south of Bromford Bridge at a point close to where the new Telford canal rejoined the earlier canal track laid down by Brindley.

This basin was accessed by a single lock which was just visible in a Britain from Above image. The lock was built by Dawes and Son in 1852 and Darlington Rolling Mills added the basin bridge in 1946.





Lock into Bromford Ironworks site


Bromford Junction 

Spon Lane bottom Lock 1950 - Source Sandwell Archive RPS

Bromford Junction bridge 1950 - Source Sandwell Archive RPS

Bromford Road Bridge 1950 - Source Sandwell Archive RPS


The above photos have been assembled from various sources, including those freely found on the internet. My thanks go to the many photographers alive and dead who have contributed to this collection and in so doing, are keeping the memory of these lost canals alive. These images are reproduced for ease of research are are not necessarily the property of this blog, and as such should not be used for commercial gain without the explicit permission of the owner (whoever that may be).

2 comments:

Anna said...

Hi Andy, thanks for sharing this. I came across your post whilst looking for information about Bromford Dockyard, West Bromwich - which is listed as my 2xgreat grandfather's birthplace back in 1868. His father was a boat builder. Do you suppose the basin might have been used for boat building as well as serving the ironworks? If you have any ideas about how I could find out more, I'd appreciate suggestions!

Andy Tidy said...

Anna
I dont think there was any boat building in the ironworks basin but the old maps do show a couple of unnamed boat building yards at either end on the now lost Izon Old Turn - opposite the entrance to the Wednesbury Old Canal. There are some images of it in the 1930's here: http://captainahabswaterytales.blogspot.com/2019/10/union-arm-bcn.html