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JAMES BRINDLEY - 'FATHER OF THE WATERWAYS' CHANGED BRITISH LANDSCAPE

Among the many interesting personalities in our 'Famous Residents' section are some for whom Derbyshire was 'home' only in their childhood. One such is the celebrated canal engineer James Brindley - here Peter Seddon presents a potted history of the Derbyshire-born man whose pioneering work in designing the canal system changed the face of the British landscape.

James Brindley (1716-1772) - celebrated Civil Engineer born at Tunstead, Derbyshire

Although James Brindley is a Derbyshire man by birth, his link with the county is often overlooked. He is generally more closely associated with Staffordshire, which became his long-term home after he moved there at the age of ten.

However, his Derbyshire roots are undisputed. He was born in 1716 in the Derbyshire hamlet of Tunstead in the parish of Wormhill, some four miles north-east of Buxton, in the High Peak.

He first saw the light at a humble farm cottage there, the eldest of 7 children of James Brindley senior and Susanna Brindley, formerly Bradbury.

His background was not a privileged one, for his father was a simple yeoman farmer said to be averse to work. It was as well, therefore, that James's mother took a particular interest in her eldest son's welfare - she taught him to read and write, his only education.

In 1726 when James was ten years old the family left Derbyshire for Staffordshire, where three years later in 1729 his father bought Low Hill Farm near Leek.

Even as a youngster helping out on the farm in Derbyshire, James had taken an interest in all things mechanical. When visiting local mill buildings in the course of his duties, he showed more than the usual curiosity about how everything worked.

He was therefore well-suited to his first job away from farming. In 1733 at the age of 17 he began a seven year apprenticeship with the millwright Abraham Bennett near Macclesfield.

During his time there James Brindley proved an eager and speedy learner and garnered a particular reputation for repairing broken mill machinery.

In 1742 - aged only 26 - James Brindley established his own business in Leek, and a few years later opened a second workshop at Burslem. He worked on numerous mill projects and hydraulic systems, learning 'engineering' by practical experience rather than tuition.

In 1758 his work at Trentham Mill placed him in contact with John Gilbert, agent to the Duke of Bridgwater. When the Duke decided he would like to construct a canal to transport coal from his estate in Worsley, near Manchester, his agent suggested Brindley might be the man to design and build it. In such a fashion Brindley first became linked to the canal systems for which he became famous - and in 1759 he duly began work on what would become the Bridgwater Canal.

Brindley showed great ingenuity in providing the solutions which enabled a continuously navigable waterway to traverse all manner of landscapes. One of his great legacies was the Barton Aqueduct which allowed the Bridgwater Canal to cross the River Irwell - completed in 1761, it was heralded as one of the wonders of the age, and became a tourist attraction in its own right.

After the successful completion of the Bridgwater Canal project, James Brindley worked on dozens of other schemes across the country, and became acclaimed as the greatest of all canal engineers.

He was married only later in life - on 8 December 1765 at the age of 49 he wed his 19-year-old bride Anne Henshall. The couple settled at Turnhurst Hall, New Chapel, Staffordshire, and had two daughters.

James Brindley enjoyed only a few years of family life before his untimely death. While surveying a new branch of the Trent and Mersey Canal between Froghall and Leek he was drenched by a heavy storm and developed a chill.

This turned into a more serious illness, and on 30 September 1772, aged 56, he passed away at his Turnhurst home.

He was buried at St. James's Church, in New Chapel, Staffordshire, but his Derbyshire roots are acknowledged by two memorials in the county of his birth.

A stone plinth with a bronze plaque marks the site of his Tunstead birthplace - this was erected in 1958 by the Derbyshire Archaeological Society. And on the green at Wormhill is an elaborate drinking fountain named in his honour.

The canal system, once such a vital adjunct to the workings of British industry, in time fell into relative disuse as it was rendered largely obsolete by other forms of transport. But of late a revival has gathered pace, as the waterways have been increasingly used for leisure purposes.

Certainly the canals remain a remarkable and enduring feature of the British landscape three centuries after the system was begun in earnest - and 365 miles of them were designed and constructed by James Brindley, 'Father of the Waterways' and 'son of Derbyshire'.

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County:  Derbyshire

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