Wilts and Berks Canal

Wilts & Berks Canal
A section of the Canal near Rushey Platt, Swindon.
Specifications
Maximum boat length	72 ft 0 in (21.95 m)
Maximum boat beam	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)
Status	Under restoration
History
Date of act	1795
Construction began	1796
Date completed	1810
Date closed	1914
Geography
Start point	River Thames
End point	Kennet and Avon Canal

The Wilts & Berks Canal is a canal in the historic counties of Wiltshire and Berkshire, England, linking the Kennet and Avon Canal at Semington, near Melksham, to the River Thames at Abingdon. The North Wilts Canal merged with it to become a branch to the Thames and Severn Canal at Latton near Cricklade. Among professional trades boatmen, the canal was nicknamed the Ippey Cut, possibly short for Chippenham.

The 52-mile (84 km) canal was opened in 1810, but abandoned in 1914 – a fate hastened by the collapse of Stanley aqueduct in 1901. Much of the canal subsequently became unnavigable: many of the structures were deliberately damaged by army demolition exercises; parts of the route were filled in and in some cases built over. In 1977 the Wilts & Berks Canal Amenity Group was formed with a view to full restoration of the canal. Several locks and bridges have since been restored, and over 8 miles (13 km) of the canal have been rewatered.

A plan for the canal was published by Robert Whitworth Snr. along with William Whitworth, in 1793. The Bill empowering construction of the canal received Royal Assent in 1795. It allowed the company to raise £111,900 through 1,119 shares at a cost of £100 each for the construction of the canal. Another Act of Parliament was passed in 1801 that allowed the company to raise a further £200,000 to complete the canal.