100-year-old plate's ties with the past

There are many reminders of the past on our canal system. Of course, the entire network is a product of a former age, but there are lots of small pointers to how things used to be.

This bridge over what is now the Grand Union Canal in Milton Keynes* has a tie plate marked G J C Co - telling us that this was part of the Grand Junction Canal Company - and dated 1912. The canal itself was built long before this, as was, probably, the bridge. The tie rod and plates were presumably added as a preventative measure later.

Happy 100th Birthday!

*between Fenny Stratford and Peartree Bridge