Llangollen Canal Guide, Meaning , Facts, Information and Description
The Llangollen Canal was initially known as the 'Ellesmere Canal' and later as part of the 'Shropshire Union Canal'. The canal links Llangollen in north Wales with Nantwich in south Cheshire, via the town of Ellesmere in north-west Shropshire. It is regarded as the first major civil engineering work undertaken by civil engineer Thomas Telford (though his designs were subject to approval by the more experienced canal engineer William Jessop).The canal was intended to provide a route from coalfields and ironworks near Wrexham to the sea. From Nantwich, canal traffic took the Chester Canal (now part of the Shropshire Union Canal) to Chester where - at least, initially - sea access via the River Dee was possible. However, a northern canal extension was added later, linking Chester with the River Mersey at a place now known as Ellesmere Port. It also linked to the Montgomery Canal at "Frankton Junction" in Shropshire.
The canal's most notable features include the spectacular Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, an aqueduct engineered by Telford to carry the canal over the valley of the River Dee east of Llangollen (the Dee also supplies the canal with water, taken from the weir at the Horseshoe Falls, about three miles west of Llangollen). Another aqueduct carries the canal over the River Ceiriog at Chirk; there are tunnels nearby at Whitehouses and Chirk, and another south-east of Ellesmere.