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Stort Navigation Route Map

legend Bishop's Stortford End of Navigation A1250 52 B1252 Station Road Bridge 51 Station Footbridge 50 B1383 London Road 49B Railway Bridge South Mill Lock No.1 Twyford Lock No.2 48 Pig Lane Bridge 47 Matchstick Foorbridge 44 Hallingbury Footbridge Spellbrook Lock No.3 43 Spellbrook Lane Bridge Little Hallingbury Mill Junction Hallingbury Mill Marina Tednambury Lock No.4 Little Hallingbury Mill 37 Kecksys Railway Bridge Keckys Farm Footbridge Keckys Farm Sawbridgeworth Lock No.5 35 Station Road Bridge Sawbridgeworth Station Arm Sheering Mill Lock No.6 33 Sheering Mill Bridge 28 Footbridge Feakes Lock No.7 A1184 Harlow Road Bridge Harlow Mill Lock No.8 21 Harlow Footbridge Latton Lock No.9 18 Bailey Bridge Moorhen Marina, Harlow Burnt Mill Lock No.10 16 A414 Burnt Mill Bridge 15 Footbridge Parndon Mill Parndon Mill Lock No.11 11 Cinders Bridge Hunsdon Mill Lock No.12 Roydon Lock No.13 7 Roydon Railway Bridge B181 Roydon High Street Roydon Mill Brick Lock No.14 Lower Lock No.15 Fields Weir Rye House Junction (Lee Navigation)

The Stort Navigation is the canalised section of the River Stort running 22 km from the town of Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire downstream to its confluence with the River Lee Navigation at Feildes Weir near Rye House, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire.

History

The first act of parliament relating to this river is entitled An Act for making the River Stort navigable, in the counties of Hertford and Essex, from the New Bridge, in the town of Bishop Stortford, into the River Lea, near a Place called the Rye, in the county of Hertford, and appointed certain persons commissioners for carrying into effect the provisions of the act.

However, there was difficulty in raising sufficient money for construction, and a second act was passed in 1766 entitled An Act for making and continuing navigable the River Stort, in the counties of Hertford and Essex. The second act empowered Charles Dingley, George Jackson and William Masterson to build the Navigation and to collect tolls.

In 1812 and 1814 Acts were passed in Parliament to connect the River Stort to the River Cam, the new waterway was to have been called The London and Cambridge Junction Canal.^[1] However the canal was never started.

Table of tolls

And so in proportion for any less Quantity.

Boats returning with a back lading of Oil-cake, Malt-dust, Pigeon Dung or any other Kind of Manure, which have passed up or down the River immediately before, and paid the Tolls or Rates on their Cargoes, shall be exempted from Tonnage Rate on such Manure.

Thomas Yeoman was appointed engineer for the Navigation in 1766, and it was opened to boats in the autumn of 1769. The 15 locks are built to take boats 85 feet (25.9 m) by 13 feet 3 inches (4.0 m). A survey was made in 1788 by Samuel Weston for a branch to Saffron Walden, but this was not built.

Present day

The Navigation is now managed by British Waterways.

It is walkable in its entire length, and the trail is part of the bigger Papposs 1 trail linking London with Bishop's Stortford, Cambridge and The Wash.

Photo gallery

Hallingbury Mill	Sawbridgeworth Lock	Sheering Mill Lock	Harlow Mill Lock
Roydon Railway Bridge - usually the lowest on the Navigation	Approaching Roydon

Further reading

• Paget-Tomlinson E, Illustrated History of Canal & River Navigations p180-181, 2006 Landmark Publishing Ltd ISBN 1843062070

See also

UK Waterways portal

• Canals of the United Kingdom
• History of the British canal system

References

External links

• Stortford history site
• History of locks on the Stort Navigation

Coordinates: 51°46′57.23″N 0°5′47.88″E / 51.7825639°N 0.0966333°E / 51.7825639; 0.0966333