BW164/2
Bishops Stortford to Cambridge Canal
Date
1780
Reference code
BW164/2
Administrative / Biographical history
Increased trade on the Stort Navigation at the end of the 19th century led to the proposal to link the Stort at Bishop's Stortford to the Cam at Cambridge, establishing a direct waterway system between London and the Wash. In November 1779, the City of London's Thames and Canal Committee ordered a survey to be undertaken by Robert Whitworth, whose report was produced in December 1780. The route he proposed passed straight through the lands of Lord Howard de Walden who, along with his neighbours, violently opposed the scheme. Following a meeting in November 1781, the project was dropped.
For more details, see 'The Canals of Eastern England' by Charles Hadfield.