Starting in the East
When work began on the Forth & Clyde Canal in 1768, the plan
was for the waterway to progress steadily westwards from the Forth
via the River Carron to Stockingfield (Maryhill), in Glasgow.
Funding crisis
9 years later, work stopped due to lack of funds and 8 years
went by before money forfeited from the Jacobite Estates became
available, allowing the canal to continue its journey to the River
Clyde.
Working life
In 1790, at 35 miles long, and wide enough to accommodate
sea-going vessels, the Forth & Clyde opened. The canal was
bought by Caledonian Railway in 1867 (as a condition of buying the
Port of Grangemouth and remained under railway management until
1948 when it was taken over by the British Transport
Commission.
A canal reborn
Rights of navigation were extinguished by Parliament in 1963,
however, the canal was triumphantly reopened in 2001 as part of the
£78m Millennium Link - the largest canal restoration ever in
Britain. The project incorporated the construction of the iconic
Falkirk Wheel which, when opened in June 2002, reconnected the
Forth & Clyde and Union Canals for the first time in over 70
years.