Anderton Boat Lift
The Anderton Boat Lift provides a link between two navigable waterways: the River Weaver and the Trent and Mersey Canal, and is situated near the village of Anderton, near Northwich, in north Cheshire, north-west England.
As the river is approximately 50ft (16m) lower than the canal, the boat lift provided an alternative to a prolonged series of locks, and was constructed in 1875 to a design by Edward Leader Williams, chief engineer of the Weaver Navigation, and Edwin Clarke. The lift comprises two large watertight tanks, each capable of holding two full length narrowboats, with watertight doors at either end. Hydraulic rams are used to raise the tanks (which acted as counter-balances to each other) and any vessels in them from river-level to the level of the canal.
After 25 years, the hydraulic mechanism was replaced by electric motors and a system of weights and pulleys, allowing the two tanks to operate independently of each other. However, the original hydraulic system was reinstated after restoration work in 2002 – the lift having been out of operation due to corrosion problems since 1983.
The only other boat lift in the United Kingdom is the Falkirk Wheel in Scotland.