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Restoration work on Chesterfield Canal began way back in 1989. The canal was built in the late 1770s but started to decline with the arrival of modern railways in the 1800s, when cargo could be transported on trains rather than boats. Large parts of the canal crumbled in the following decades and in 1978, workers accidentally drained an entire section by pulling out a 200-year-old plug. Suffice to say, the Chesterfield has been in need of a lot of TLC.
Like we said, work to restore the canal to its former glory has been going on for nearly 40 years. So far more than 19km of the canal – including 37 locks and 11 bridges – have been restored, and there’s still lots to do. Now, a plan to restore a nine-mile section of the waterway has taken a significant leap forwards. And it could lead to a new marina being built in Rotherham.
At the end of July, Rotherham Council gave the green light to a contribution of £10,000 to go towards a feasibility study to restore the stretch of waterway between Staveley and Kiveton Park.
The proposals, which are part of the Chesterfield Canal Partnership, include a marina at Kiveton Waters, which at the moment is used for fishing. It’s yet not clear what that marina would include. If the project goes ahead, there are also plans to create new towpaths that would link communities along the Trans Pennine Trail, restore the historic Norwood Flight of 13 locks (described as one of the country's most significant surviving examples of early canal engineering) and bring the Norwood Tunnel back into use.
The Chesterfield Canal Trust hopes to have the sections at Staveley, Killamarch and Renishaw filled with water in time for the waterway’s 250th anniversary in 2027.
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