Industrial History Online
Locks, staunch
Key Words :- staunch
Address :- Mildenhall, Suffolk
Grid Ref :- TL 70824 74253
Co-ordinates :- Lat 52.339753 , Long 0.506043
Local Authority :- West Suffolk Council
Pre 1974 County :- Suffolk
Description and History of Site:-
Information panel nearby reads:
'Barges were pulled by horses which walked along the towpath beside the river and then, at the end of the 19th century, by tugs. From this board, the towpath continued along the south bank of the river to the Barton Hall Staunch (behind Middlefield Manor) where horses, using their barge as a bridge, crossed the river to continue along the north bank. There was a direct path to the staunch from The Street in Barton Mills and this was a favourite spot for swimming in the river. When the Norah Hanbury-Kelk Meadows Nature Reserve was created, the opportunity was taken to rationalise the path network and pedestrian bridges were built leading to the creation of a new direct footpath link between Barton Mills and Mildenhall. The towpath was moved to the north bank of the river east of the new bridges. This is now the route of the Lark Valley Path from here to Bury St Edmunds.
'A staunch, or stanch, was like a lock and was used to maintain the depth of the water in the river upstream. However, it only had a single gate which was normally kept closed but which could be opened to allow for the passage of vessels.
'The pool adjacent to this board is known as The Gas Pool (The Mildenhall Gas Works were formerly on the south bank) and the lock upstream which has now been replaced by sluices was known as Gas Works Lock.'
Further Reading and References:-
Bracegirdle, Brian et al. 'The Archaeology of the Industrial Revolution'. Heinemann Educational Books Ltd, 1973
Falconer, Keith. 'Guide to England's Industrial Heritage'. Batsford, 1980
Alderton, David and Booker, John. 'The Batsford Guide to the Industrial Archaeology of East Anglia'. Batsford, 1980
Alderton, David. 'Industrial Archaeology in and around Norfolk'. 1981
A guide to flash locks and their remains appears in Industrial Archaeology, Vol 6, No 3, August 1969 (David & Charles)
Help us improve this entry
Grid Ref :- TL 70824 74253
Co-ordinates :- Lat 52.339753 , Long 0.506043
Local Authority :- West Suffolk Council
Pre 1974 County :- Suffolk
Information panel nearby reads:
'Barges were pulled by horses which walked along the towpath beside the river and then, at the end of the 19th century, by tugs. From this board, the towpath continued along the south bank of the river to the Barton Hall Staunch (behind Middlefield Manor) where horses, using their barge as a bridge, crossed the river to continue along the north bank. There was a direct path to the staunch from The Street in Barton Mills and this was a favourite spot for swimming in the river. When the Norah Hanbury-Kelk Meadows Nature Reserve was created, the opportunity was taken to rationalise the path network and pedestrian bridges were built leading to the creation of a new direct footpath link between Barton Mills and Mildenhall. The towpath was moved to the north bank of the river east of the new bridges. This is now the route of the Lark Valley Path from here to Bury St Edmunds.
'A staunch, or stanch, was like a lock and was used to maintain the depth of the water in the river upstream. However, it only had a single gate which was normally kept closed but which could be opened to allow for the passage of vessels.
'The pool adjacent to this board is known as The Gas Pool (The Mildenhall Gas Works were formerly on the south bank) and the lock upstream which has now been replaced by sluices was known as Gas Works Lock.'
Bracegirdle, Brian et al. 'The Archaeology of the Industrial Revolution'. Heinemann Educational Books Ltd, 1973
Falconer, Keith. 'Guide to England's Industrial Heritage'. Batsford, 1980
Alderton, David and Booker, John. 'The Batsford Guide to the Industrial Archaeology of East Anglia'. Batsford, 1980
Alderton, David. 'Industrial Archaeology in and around Norfolk'. 1981
A guide to flash locks and their remains appears in Industrial Archaeology, Vol 6, No 3, August 1969 (David & Charles)
The compilers welcome corrections or additional information on all sites.
Any information provided will be verified before appearing on the web site.
Email comments
Contributor :- Suffolk IA - 23 August 2022
Copyright :- cc-by-nc-sa 4.0 © Suffolk IA
Copyright :- cc-by-nc-sa 4.0 © Suffolk IA