About the Hillmorton Locks
Work began on the Oxford Canal in 1769 but engineer James Brindley died in 1772 before the locks could be completed in 1774, the canal eventually reaching Oxford in 1789.
It became one of the most important and profitable transport links in Britain with a principal traffic in coal from Coventry and surrounding mines to London. The completion of the Grand Junction Canal in 1805 providing a more direct route from the Midlands to London, reduced Oxford Canal traffic south of Napton. However, the short section between Braunston and Napton became the link between the Warwick and Napton Canal and the Grand Junction Canal, making it part of the busy direct route between Birmingham and London.
With the advent of the railways and the need to compete, the contourhugging section of the Oxford from Hawkesbury to Braunston was straightened in the 1820s, reducing the distance by nearly 15 miles. This immediately challenged the capacity of the flight of three locks at Hillmorton, the first on the canal after the stop lock at Hawkesbury Junction.
The solution to the congestion was to duplicate or twin the existing locks at Hillmorton, creating three pairs of two parallel narrow locks, which allowed for twice the traffic to pass the lock at any time. The work to double the locks was completed in August 1840.
The locks were designed to act as mutual side ponds, with a paddle between the locks enabling water to be transferred from one chamber to that adjacent, thereby saving water. Although no longer operational the winding gear can still be seen between the locks today. The improvements allowed a large increase in traffic, with 20,859 vessels recorded passing through the Hillmorton Locks in 1842. Each lock was supplied with large, cast-iron gates, as opposed to the more usual timber gates. Lock 2 retains the now rare cast-iron gates which imbue it with special interest and is therefore designated as a Grade II Listed. Today the Hillmorton Locks are the busiest on the network.
Information taken from the Hillmorton Locks website.