What's left of The Sankey - England's Oldest Industrial Canal

The first in a two part-series looking at the Sankey (or St Helens) Canal, England's oldest artificial waterway from the industrial era. Opened in 1757 as a method for getting coal and other goods from the town of St Helens to the port of Liverpool, its brief was to make the little Sankey Brook more navigable for larger boats to use. But instead the engineers decided to build a completely separate channel next to the brook, thereby creating the first true canal in mainland Britain. In later years it was extended to Fiddler's Ferry and Widnes but closed in the mid 20th century and infilled along much of its length. In this video we'll follow the line of the canal from St Helens town centre, all the way to Warrington, taking in a number of historical highlights along the route: the two oldest lock staircases in Britain, the old Winwick Quay, and the famous Sankey railway viaduct, built by George Stephenson to carry the historic Liverpool-Manchester Railway across the Sankey Valley. Support me on Patreon for added extras and exclusive content:   / beeherenow   If you like the video and want to show some support, how about buying me a brew. Thanks! https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Beeherenow