Nicola Lisle continues her museum series with a visit to the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and the local heritage centre
IT WAS Sir Walter Scott who described the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct as ‘the most impressive work of art I have ever seen’, a tribute both to its structural magnificence and its harmonious relationship with the surrounding landscape.
This engineering masterpiece, brainchild of Thomas Telford and William Jessop, opened in 1805 after 10 years in construction and carries the Llangollen Canal across the River Dee at a height of 126ft 8in, making it the longest navigable aqueduct in the UK and the tallest in the world. Little wonder that it soon became known as the ‘canal in the sky’.
Perhaps more importantly, it helped place this Welsh valley at the heart of the Industrial Revolution, enabling slate, ironstone, limestone, clay, coal and other local products to be transported to the Midlands and beyond.
Trevor Basin was transformed from a peaceful backwater into a bustling wharf with warehouses, a boatyard and a dry dock, the latter used for building and repairing boats for the Shropshire Union Railway & Canal Carrying Company.
World Heritage Site
Today Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Trevor Basin are part of an 11-mile UNESCO World Heritage Site, inscribed in 2009 in recognition of its outstanding contribution to the Industrial Revolution. Hailed by UNESCO as ‘a masterpiece of creative genius’, the site stretches from Gledrid Bridge to Horseshoe Falls at Llantysilio, with the Llangollen Canal snaking its way through a treasure trove of industrial and engineering heritage.
Among its delights are the town of Llangollen and the Chirk aqueduct, which dates from 1801 and was the highest aqueduct in the world until Pontcysyllte stole its thunder four years later.
The site has also been designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument of National Importance and an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and it teems with spectacular scenery, ancient woodlands and a huge variety of wildlife.
You can find out more about the history of Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Trevor Basin in the Trevor Basin Visitor Centre, which is housed in a former 19th-century brick workshop and store.
A series of display boards tell the story of the building and opening of the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. This incredible structure consists of 18 piers made from local stone, with the canal running through an iron trough measuring 1007ft long, 11ft 10in wide and 5ft 3in deep. The water comes from the River Dee at Horseshoe Falls, a couple of miles north-west of Llangollen.
There are also displays of tools, equipment and other canal relics, as well as a film, Stories From the Aqueduct, and an animation showing how Telford and Jessop overcame the natural obstacles presented by the landscape to build the ‘canal in the sky’. Youngsters can have a go at building the aqueduct themselves using the wooden model in the visitor centre.
On leaving the visitor centre, there are more information boards to discover around the canal basin, including a focus on the key figures responsible for this pioneering work – engineers Thomas Telford and William Jessop, and ironmaster William Hazledine, who supplied the iron for the aqueduct and other iron structures around the area from his foundries in Shrewsbury and Cefn Mawr.
A former warehouse on the western side of the canal now serves as a gift shop, selling a range of souvenirs as well as food and drink. Nearby is the early 19th-century Telford Inn, a distinctive white building designed by Thomas Telford and built for supervising engineer Matthew Davidson. Telford himself also often stayed there.
For the full Pontcysyllte experience, take a boat trip across the aqueduct to Froncysyllte and back, taking in the stunning views across the Dee Valley. It would be very easy to spend a whole day at Trevor Basin. If you want to explore the entire World Heritage Site, you’d better make that a week!
Visitor information:
Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Trevor Basin Visitor Centre
Trevor Basin, off Station Road, Wrexham, LL20 7TY
• The visitor centre is open daily from 10am-4pm until the end of October
• Admission free • Pay and display car park nearby – sat nav LL14 3SG
• Getting there: Follow M54 then A5 towards Llangollen; from A539 follow brown signs to Pontcysyllte.
Recommended reading:
Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal: World Heritage Site by Peter Wakelin.
A comprehensive history of the designing and construction of the canal, aqueduct and the rest of the World Heritage Site, as well as some general canal history and a detailed guide to the area.
Available from Trevor Basin Visitor Centre or online.
