Inland Waterways Facilities at the Port of Liverpool (1957/58)

As promised, here is an extract from the fascinating handbook of the Port of Liverpool, compiled and edited by the Public Relations Dept. of the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board for 1957/58.

INLAND WATERWAYS FACILITIES

The Port of Liverpool, comprising the docks, wharves and warehouses situated on the Estate of the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board, both at Liverpool and at Birkenhead, is well served by the Inland Waterways in the North Western Waterways Division of the Inland Waterways Board of Management, British Transport Commission, at Liverpool.

The Leeds and Liverpool Canal, navigable for barges of 50 to 60 tons capacity has direct connection to the Liverpool Docks through the Canal Locks at Stanley Dock.

A British Waterways fleet of 50 ton capacity diesel engined barges afford quick and regular movement of traffic between the Port and the towns of Wigan, Leigh, Blackburn, Church, Burnley, Nelson, Skipton, Keighley, Shipley (for Bradford) and Leeds, where British Waterways warehouses provide local storage and distribution or collection services.

Through traffic can be routed through Leeds to and from East Yorkshire and the ports of Goole and Hull over the North Eastern Waterways Division and to and from Manchester or Salford Docks through Leigh over the Bridgewater navigation.

The St. Helens Canal, with locks at Widnes, is navigable by barges of 100 tons capacity serving the Warrington area and the sugar refineries at Earlestown.

The Weaver Navigation provides a waterway through the locks at Weston Point for coasters or barges up to 400 tons capacity serving the salt and chemical producing areas of Mid-Cheshire at Winsford and Northwich.

At Weston Point the Commission's well-equipped Docks with modern electric cranes comprise a storage area and transhipment port with extensive wharves and warehouses where temporary accommodation is offered at low rates for materials being collected preparatory to shipment at Liverpool or Birkenhead or awaiting distribution inland; large consignments can be handled in vessels up to 1,500 tons in capacity. There is direct communication at Weston Point with the Bridgewater Navigation for traffic to or from Manchester and Salford Docks and at Anderton with the Trent and Mersey Canal for traffic to and from the North Staffordshire Potteries and the Midlands.

(That's half of it - the rest will follow.)

It should be remembered that these were the days before containerisation, where cargoes had to be handled by the barrel, case, bundle etc.

It's an indication of how much canal transport was withering at the the expense of railways, that there are nine pages devoted to railway facilities, and only one and a bit to inland waterways facilities.

The photo is from the handbook, and shows the Tobacco Warehouse. Is that a boat about to go under the bridge?