a walk along the Caldon Canal

Etruria Basin and Wharf

 


next: Bedford Street Staircase Locks
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Etruria Wharf 

  • Etruria canal basin and wharf was a busy place - canal boats brought raw materials to the pottery factories and took finished goods to the ports for export. Each week 100's of boats passed through the canal junction.

  • A boatman's church and the Wedgwood factory were only a few hundred yards away from Etruria wharf.

  • North Staffordshire's first hospital, the Dispensary and House of recovery, was built on the site in 1804. 

  • The British Gas and Light Company built their gas works on the land between the two canals. 

     

 

Etruria Locks
Etruria Locks
the archway to Etruria Wharf and Locks

 

 

the route of the Caldon Canal from Etruria to Froghall
the route of the Caldon Canal from Etruria to Froghall

 

Etruria Wharf on the Caldon Canal
Etruria Wharf on the Caldon Canal

Google Maps

 

Etruria Wharf and Basin on the Caldon Canal
Etruria Wharf and Basin on the Caldon Canal - on the left is the Trent & Mersey Canal
in the centre on the Trent & Mersey Canal is the Etruscian Flint Mill

Bing Maps

 

 

Warehouse at Etruria Wharf
Warehouse at Etruria Wharf

 

Etruria Wharf

Etruria Wharf is situated at the junction of the Trent and Mersey and Caldon Canals. In the nineteenth century the wharf was the 'headquaters; of the canal and its centrality made it the perfect location for a boatman's church, opened in 1844.

Wedgwood was closely associated with both canals and built his famous factory next to the canal at Etruria.

the boatman's church and the Wedgwood factory were only a few hundred yards away from Etruria wharf. 

 

 

 

Beth Johnson housing on Etruria Basin and Wharf
Beth Johnson housing on Etruria Basin and Wharf 
the statue is of James Brindley the canal builder

 

James Brindley Canal Engineer 1716 - 1772
James Brindley 
Canal Engineer 1716 - 1772

 

 

 

 

location of the 1804 'Dispensary and House of Recovery'
location of the 1804 'Dispensary and House of Recovery' - by 1819 a new infirmary had been built nearby
to the left is the Caldon Canal

"North Staffordshire's first hospital, the Dispensary and House of recovery, was built on the site facing you in 1804. 
Poor access and polution made expansion at this site undesirable. A new site was found when it was decided to extend the hospital's work to include industrial accidents.

The building was later bought by the British Gas and Light Company."

 

 

map showing the Dispensary and House of Recovery and the gasworks of the British Gas Light Company
map showing the Dispensary and House of Recovery and the gasworks of the British Gas Light Company 
the Caldon Canal is at the top of the map

After it closed in 1819 as a dispensary the buildings were used to house canal workers
from 1820 to 1870 the building was used to house nine families many of whom worked on the canal.

 

 

 

location of the Dispensary and House of Recovery is shown in red and the gasworks of the British Gas Light Company shown in blue
location of the Dispensary and House of Recovery is shown in red 
and the gasworks of the British Gas Light Company shown in blue 

 

 


next: Bedford Street Staircase Locks
Previous: Etruria Junction 

 

related pages 

James Brindley Statue

Wedgwood's Etruria Works

Etruscan Bone & Flint Mill

Etruria Inn - the site of the Boatman's mission church