Avoncliff Aqueduct
Handsome structure by John Rennie carrying the Kennet & Avon Canal over the river Avon.
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Avoncliff Halt, Avoncliff, Bradford-on-Avon, Wilts BA15 2HD
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Work began on the Kennet and Avon Canal in 1790 (when Rennie was 29 years old) and it was completed in 1810; Rennie, who was both engineer and architect, received £350 for his efforts. The canal links the River Avon at Bath with the River Kennet at Reading and provides a navigable link between London and Bristol.
Work commenced on the Avoncliff site in March 1796 and was completed in 1798. The aqueduct carries the canal over the River Avon and dominates the hamlet. Unfortunately, its central arch sagged immediately after construction and John Rennie is said to have regretted using stone. The aqueduct consists of three arches and is 110 yards long.
The aqueduct has a central elliptical arch of 60ft span with two side arches each semicircular and 34ft across, all with V-jointed arch stones. The spandrel and wing walls are built in alternate courses of ashlar masonry, and rock-faced blocks. The cutwaters are continued up as graceful splay-sided buttresses, and across the top is drawn a Corinthian entablature,
By road: Off A363.
By train: Avoncliff Station is situated adjacent to the aqueduct.
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Gladwin, D.D. A Pictorial History of Canals. ISBN 0 7134 0554 6 (1977)
Pratt, D. Waterways Past and Present: A Unique Record of Britain’s Waterways Heritage. ISBN 978-07136 76341. (2006)
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Rolt, L.T.C. Inland Waterways of England. (1950) Ware, M.E. Britain’s Lost Commercial Waterways. ISBN 978-18430 61816. (2005)
Avoncliff History - Avoncliff Aqueduct
Canal Junction - Kennet & Avon Canal
Views of the Kennet & Avon Canal
Forgotten Relics - Listed Bridges and Viaducts
British Waterways
The Waterways Trust