The junction of the Nottingham Canal with the Cromford Canal at Langley Bridge. The
houses on the left are long gone, but the canal toll-office on the right and the
house on the right still remain. Although the Nottingham and Cromford Canals are
no longer in use, the Langley Mill basin still attracts many visitors along the Erewash
Canal. The public house at the side of the basin, the Great Northern, was, before
the coming of the railways, called the Junction Navigation.
Almost 12 miles away from Langley Mill, Trent Lock, near Long Eaton, is the start
of the Erewash Canal. This postcard is dated 1906, but many of the buildings appear
the same today. The Erewash Canal, completed in 1779, was joined along its length
by several other canals: not only the Cromford (1794), and the Nottingham (1796),
but also the Nutbrook (1795) and the Derby (1796). The Erewash Canal was bought up
by the Midland Railway Company fairly early on (as was common practice for the early
railways, so that they controlled their opposition), but it remained in use for longer
than any of the others in our area - it was bought by the Grand Union in 1932 and
was still in use after the war. The last commercial narrow boat unloaded for the
final time in 1952, and the northern part of the canal was formally closed in 1962.
That, however, was not the end of the story.... In 1973, following the tireless efforts
of the Erewash Canal Preservation Association, the canal re-opened, and it gained
full "cruising waterway" standard in 1983.
Just as the Erewash Canal was re-opened and preserved, so now too there is a major
campaign to re-open the 14 miles of canal between Langley Mill and Cromford. This
will be a mammoth task, as part of the old canal route has been opencast, the Butterley
tunnel has been out of use for a century, and there are now demolished aqueducts
to be rebuilt. The campaign goes on, though, and the Friends of the Cromford Canal
are fighting hard for this route to be developed.