Foss Dyke
Brayford Pool in Lincoln, where the Foss Dyke meets the River Witham
Maximum boat length	74 ft 6 in (22.71 m)
Maximum boat beam	15 ft 2 in (4.62 m)
Start point	Lincoln
End point	Torksey
Connects to	River Trent, River Witham
Locks	1
Status	Operational
Navigation authority	British Waterways

[ v t e ] Foss Dyke
Legend River Trent Torksey Junction A156 road bridge Torksey Lock Sheffield-Lincoln Railway A57 bridge, Saxilby River Till Burton Waters marina A46 Newark Road bridge Catchwater drain Nottingham to Lincoln Line B1009/B1273 bridges Brayford Pool, Lincoln River Witham A57 bridge Lincoln High Bridge or Glory Hole Lincoln railway station Sincil Dyke Witham Navigation

Torksey Lock, looking towards the River Trent. Four sets of gates are visible, and a further two sets are situated beyond the bridge.

The Foss Dyke, or Fossdyke, connects the River Trent at Torksey to Lincoln, the county town of Lincolnshire, and may be the oldest canal in England that is still in use. It is usually thought to have been built around 120 AD by the Romans, but there is no consensus among authors. It was refurbished in 1121, during the reign of King Henry I, and responsibility for its maintenance was transferred to the city of Lincoln by King James I. Improvements made in 1671 included a navigable sluice or lock at Torksey, and warehousing and wharves were built at Brayford Pool in the centre of Lincoln.

Connection to the River Witham at Brayford was hampered by the small bore and depth of High Bridge, a medieval structure just below the pool. The channel through it was made deeper in 1795, but John Rennie's plans to demolish it in 1803 were not adopted. The canal was leased to several generations of the Ellison family, who profited from the tolls but failed to maintain it. Although cargos of coal and wool moved to the railway, the carriage of grain continued, and the last commercial operation was in 1972. The Brayford Mere Trust have turned Brayford Pool from a rubbish-filled eyesore into an attractive marina, and the Lincolnshire Waterways Partnership are opening a footpath and cycleway from Lincoln to Torksey; the section to Saxilby was officially opened on 26 July 2011.

Route[link]

The Fossdyke joins the River Trent at Torksey. A branch leaves the main channel, passes under the A156 bridge, and immediately enters Torksey lock, which is the only lock on the canal. It has six sets of gates, three sets facing Lincoln, and three facing the river, which is tidal at this point, and so its level can be higher than the level of the canal. The gates allow the lock to be used at most states of the tide. A steel footbridge crosses the lock near the road, and both the footbridge and the lock are grade II listed structures.^[1] The canal runs to the east, and then turns south, passing to the east of Fenton and Kettlethorpe. Soon it is joined by the A57 road, and turns east again. The road runs along the south bank, until Saxilby is reached.^[2]

At Saxilby, the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway crosses the waterway, to run along the south bank all the way to Lincoln. The A57 crosses to the north bank immediately after the railway bridge. The River Till flows south and under the road to join the Fossdyke, after which a new marina has been built at Burton Meadows. The canal crosses under the A46 road on the outskirts of Lincoln, and then over a drainage ditch, to run alongside the Carholme golf club. The final bridge carries the B1273 Brayford Way over the canal as it enters Brayford Pool, once a busy commercial wharf in the centre of Lincoln, but now a marina with the University on the southern bank.^[2] The unnavigable River Witham flows into the bottom end of the pool, and becomes the Witham Navigation when it flows out on its way to Boston.^[3]

History[link]

The Foss Dyke was long thought to have been constructed by the Romans around 120 AD.^[4] Pointers include an inscribed statuette of the god Mars found in it at Torksey, which is now in the British Museum,^[5] but there is a lack of consensus among authors writing on the subject. Thus Kevin Leahy writes:

"The first record we have of it is that of Simeon of Durham who records its construction by Henry I in around 1121 (Historia Regium ii 260). Even if the Fossdyke had been built by the Romans it needs a high level of maintenance and after a few hundred years of neglect it would have been difficult to find, let alone navigate."^[6]

whereas Mark Bennett, writing for the East Midlands Archaeological Research Framework says:

"The Foss Dyke is almost certainly Roman. No quay has been identified at Lincoln as yet although a length of wall suggestive of a quay was uncovered in the 1950s at the site of the Telephone Exchange east of the walled city and north of the Witham."^[7]

The canal is about 11 miles (18 km) long. It possibly follows an earlier line of the Trent, which emptied into the Wash in prehistoric times. Together with the 56 miles (90 km) of Car Dyke it formed part an important transport route from Peterborough to York.

It was reputedly used by the Danes when they invaded England^[8] and by the Normans to carry stone to build Lincoln Cathedral in the 11th century.^[4] During the reign of King Henry I the canal is recorded as having been scoured out to increase its depth in 1121,^[9] but it deteriorated until by the 17th century it was virtually impassable. Katherine Swynford, who lived in the area, is credited with having organized a protest to repair it, in 1375.^[10] King James I transferred ownership to the Corporation of Lincoln.^[8]

In 1671, during the reign of Charles II, Lincoln obtained an Act which authorised improvements from Boston to the Trent. Work was carried out on the Fossdyke, but only the first 100 yards (91 m) of the Witham, from Brayford Pool to High Bridge, received attention.^[11] The work was carried out by Samuel Fortrey, a man with previous experience of draining the fens. He was required to bear some of the cost himself, in exchange for some of the profits. The work was completed in 1672, and included a navigable sluice or lock at Torksey, which had first been proposed by Simon Hill in 1632.^[12] Warehouses and wharves were built at Brayford Pool, but by 1717, passage from Torksey was again difficult. Coal traffic averaged 1,357 tons per year, bound for Lincoln, but tolls were insufficient to finance repairs. The city of Lincoln did not have the expertise to manage the waterway, and so leased it to Richard Ellison in 1741, who had experience with the River Don Navigation. He paid £75 per year for a navigation which generated around £100 in toll receipts. He dredged it to provide 3.5 feet (1.1 m) of depth, and re-opened it in 1744. Two years later, the tolls were £595, and continued to increase. Under his son, the tolls were £2,367 in 1789, while his grandson collected £5,159 in 1811.^[11]

Navigation through Lincoln and on to Boston was hampered by the shallow draught available under the medieval High Bridge, just below Brayford Pool. Sir Joseph Banks, when proposing the construction of the Horncastle Canal knew that the problem needed addressing, and William Jessop was commissioned to survey the Witham and the Fossdyke in 1791, with particular reference to the junction between the two. He proposed a bypass to the south of the city, using the Sincil Dyke, or excavating the channel beneath the bridge, although he recognized that this solution was not ideal, due to the narrow width of the bridge hole, and the lack of a towing path through it. However, the city was keen to keep trade within its limits, and improvements to High Bridge, which were completed by 1795,^[13] were authorised as part of the Horncastle Canal act of 1792.^[14]

The Witham Navigation was soon needing repairs, and the commissioners asked John Rennie for advice in 1802. His report, published in 1803, included recommendations to demolish High Bridge so that a waterway 34 feet (10 m) wide could be built under a new bridge, and improvements to the Fossdyke costing £12,260. Neither action was followed. The Fossdyke was difficult to maintain, because much of it ran through sand and quicksand. The situation was more complex, because it had been leased to the Ellisons for three generations, and Richard Ellison III was not keen to spend any money on it. Income from tolls would have more than covered repairs, but there was little that could be done. A challenge to the legality of his lease was considered in th 1820s, but was not thought likely to succeed. He died in 1827, and Humphrey Sibthorp, his niece's husband, who was a proprietor on the River Witham, took over responsibility for it. He asked Isambard Brunel to survey it, and although he did so in 1833, no improvements were made.^[15]

Railways arrived in Lincoln in 1848. The Wakefield, Lincoln and Boston Railway had negotiated with the proprietors of the Witham and Fossdyke in 1846, to guarantee them an income by leasing the waterways. Richard Ellison IV had agreed a lease for 894 years, at £9,570 per year.^{[citation needed]} The line was built by the Great Northern Railway, who took over the leases already agreed. The Witham was affected more than the Fossdyke, as the line followed its bank from Lincoln to Boston. The Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway passed through Saxilby to Lincoln a little later. Combined figures for the two waterways showed a drop in goods carried of two-thirds between 1848 and 1868. Cargos of coal and wool were the first to transfer to the railways. However, the MSLR, by then part of the Great Central Railway, built a dock and transhipment warehouse at Brayford in 1897. The Fossdyke carried 75,881 tons in 1905, and an average of 69,611 between 1913 and 1917, most of it general goods and agricultural produce. A series of takeovers and mergers resulted in its ownership changing several times, before it was nationalised, and became the responsibility of the British Waterways Board in 1948.^[16]

Although its date of construction is unknown, the London and North Eastern Railway Company built a small pumping station to the west of Torksey lock. It contained a steam-powered beam engine, which was probably made by Davy Brothers of Sheffield, and drove a double-acting bucket pump. It was situated close to the land drainage pumping station, which pumps into the tidal part of the Fossdyke, draining some 13,000 acres (5,300 ha) of low-lying land to the south of Torksey. Its job was to maintain the water levels in the navigation, but it was demolished in 1936, and no traces of it remain.^[17]

Restoration[link]

Unlike many waterways, the Fossdyke never closed, and continued to carry grain traffic until 1972.^[4] However, the demise of general commercial traffic had left Brayford Pool in the centre of Lincoln as a derelict eyesore, full of rubbish and sunken boats. The local Chamber of Commerce sought to address the issue in 1965, and formed Brayford Improvement Committee. Advice was sought from the Inland Waterways Association, and eventually the Brayford Mere Trust was constituted. They removed the wrecks from the pool, and have rebuilt the site, so that it offers facilities for visiting pleasure craft,^[18] now the major users of the waterway.^[8] A former lift bridge, which crossed the western entrance to the pool, was replaced in August 1996 by a new concrete flyover, as part of the redevelopment of the south bank, which included the opening of the University in the same year.^[19] 2 miles (3.2 km) to the west of Lincoln, a new 15-acre (6.1 ha) marina has been constructed at Burton Waters, as part of a 140-acre (57 ha) housing development.^[20]

Construction of a footpath and cycleway beside the canal from Lincoln to Saxilby has been carried out by the Lincolnshire Waterways Partnership, a joint initiative by Lincolnshire County Council, the Environment Agency and British Waterways. For much of its route it runs along the top of the northern floodbank, but drops down to a new crossing of the A57 road and a new bridge across the River Till near Saxilby. The route was officially opened on 26 July 2011. Extending the path to Torksey is a longer term aim.^[21]

Points of interest[link]

See also[link]

UK Waterways portal

• List of Roman canals
• Canals of the United Kingdom
• History of the British canal system

Bibliography[link]

References[link]

Coordinates: 53°18′N 0°45′W / 53.3°N 0.75°W / 53.3; -0.75

Besses o' th' Barn Band in New Zealand, 1907

Besses o' th' Barn Band are an English brass band that has been in existence in the Besses o' th' Barn area of Whitefield, Greater Manchester since at least 1818. A junior section, Besses Boys' Band, was established in 1943.

Origins[link]

Besses o' th' Barn Band was in existence by 1818 and was probably originally called Clegg's Reed Band, after a local cotton manufacturer and keyed bugle player, John Clegg. It may have been called Stand Band for a period soon after. Stand is an area of Whitefield close to Besses o' th' Barn.^[1]

The instruments used by the band in its early years were more varied than later became the case. Describing the Besses assemblage of 1818 as "extraordinarily haphazard", J. H. Elliot lists among its instruments the bass horn, clarinet, drums, French horn, keyed bugle, piccolo, trombone, and trumpet.^[2] In 1853, Besses became an all-brass band.^[3]

A census of 1896 indicated that there were 40,000 brass bands in the United Kingdom,^[4] and Trevor Herbert describes Besses as "The most remarkably forward-looking and entrepreneurial band of the nineteenth century".^[1] In the 1880s,^[3] the band bought a building at Moss Lane, Whitefield, from which to operate. Having enjoyed considerable success by 1887, it was decided to establish the band as a limited company called the Besses o' th' Barn Old Band Union Limited.^[1]

Contests[link]

The costs associated with operating a brass band in the nineteenth century included those of providing and maintaining the instruments, uniforms and rehearsal facilities, as well as purchasing sheet music and paying conductors for their services. While a few bands were able to obtain patronage from wealthy sponsors, most relied on membership subscriptions, public appeals and concerts for their income. The latter was particularly significant but noteworthy institutions such as Besses and the Black Dyke Band also earned large sums from their participation in contests.^[5] Although there had been a few such contests prior to 1850, they came to the fore after that time and owe much to the enterprise of Enderby Jackson, a man who promoted the contests and also liaised with railway companies to provide excursion arrangements for those who were participating either as contestants or spectators. Entrants to such contests were expected not to be professional musicians, but those participating for bands such as Besses did supplement their income with payments received for their playing.^[6]

The two major contests were the British Open and the National Championships, but there were many other more localised events.^{[citation needed]} By the 1870s, the roster of instruments permitted for use in contests had been codified and the number of members in a competing band was generally set at 24.^[2][7]

Recordings[link]

Public interest in contests was in decline from the 1950s but Besses were among the bands that had previously diversified into recording their output. Sales of those recordings continued to be significant for another decade.^[8] Among the earliest of their recordings was that of Edward German's Henry VIII Morris Dance in May 1904. Although the instrumentation remains the same today as it was then, Arnold Myers notes that the instruments have "evolved" in the interim and that, "In general, the modern band is louder and thicker, the late Victorian band brighter, lighter, and crisper". The quality of the earliest recordings tends to obscure this.^[7]

Tours[link]

Besses Band ca. 1906

The band made two "world tours" in the early 1900s, one running between 1906 and 1908^[9] and the other also lasting for over a year. With Alexander Owen as their conductor, they visited Australia, Canada, Fiji, Hawaii, New Zealand, South Africa and the USA. A tour of Canada between August and October 1932 saw them play 112 concerts.^[10]

Besses Boys' Band[link]

Besses Boys' Band was formed in October 1943, having been preceded from 1940 by a series of classes that taught musical theory and practice. There had been a trend for the creation of junior bands since around the early 1930s. J. C. Wright was the first bandmaster and various senior members assisted in teaching the newcomers, who numbered around 60 boys within a year.^[11] Besses Band faced "massive problems" during the Second World War and this new section ensured its survival.^[10]

The Boys' Band won the National Youth Band Championships in five of the six years between inauguration of the competition in 1945 and its demise in 1950. They were ineligible to compete in 1948 because the rules stipulated that should be the case for a band that had won on three consecutive occasions.^[12]

Peter Skellern was a notable member. He went on to have success as a singer-pianist and entertainer, sometimes collaborating with the Grimethorpe Colliery Band in recordings, on television and on stage.^[13]

See also[link]

• Brass band sections in the United Kingdom

References[link]

Citations

Bibliography

• Besses o' th' Barn Band — History, Besses o' th' Barn Band, http://www.besses.co.uk/about/history?showall=1, retrieved 12 July 2012 
• Elliot, J. H. (January 1931), "The All-Brass Ensemble" ((subscription required)), Music & Letters 12 (1): 30–34, http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/726890?uid=2&uid=4&sid=56299197153, retrieved 9 July 2012 
• Herbert, Trevor (2002) [2000], "Nineteenth-Century Bands: Making a Movement", in Herbert, Trevor, The British Brass Band: A Musical and Social History (Second ed.), Oxford: Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-816698-6, http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=oolPwnvevRUC, retrieved 9 July 2012 
• Myers, Arnold (2002) [2000], "Instruments and Instrumentation", in Herbert, Trevor, The British Brass Band: A Musical and Social History (Second ed.), Oxford: Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-816698-6, http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=oolPwnvevRUC, retrieved 9 July 2012 
• Newsome, Roy (2006), The Modern Brass Band: From The 1930s To The New Millennium (Reprinted ed.), Ashgate Publishing, ISBN 978-0-7546-0717-5, http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=O6-iHNQwga8C, retrieved 9 July 2012 
• Russell, Dave (2002) [2000], "Cultural Change and the Band Movement", in Herbert, Trevor, The British Brass Band: A Musical and Social History (Second ed.), Oxford: Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-816698-6, http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=oolPwnvevRUC, retrieved 9 July 2012 

Further reading[link]

• Hampson, Joseph N. (c. 1893), Besses o' th' Barn Band: Its Origin, History and Achievements, Northampton: Jos. Rodgers 

External links[link]

• Official website - Besses Band
• Official website - Besses Boys' Band