The Widnes end of the St Helens Canal, the first modern canal in England, the first section, near St Helens, opened in 1757. Which is 6 years before the first section of the Bridgewater Canal, across the river in Runcorn, opened, this is often wrongly quoted to be the first modern canal.
This Widnes end opened in 1762. Behind me, is a double lock, still in use today, which allows these boats direct access to the River Mersey.
The local name for the canal is "The Cut ", maybe because it cut off an area of land to the right of the shot, called Spike Island.
