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Nottingham Canal

The Nottingham Canal originally extended from a junction with the Cromford Canal just above its junction with the Erewash Canal at Langley Mill to the river Trent at Nottingham.

Map showing the Nottingham Canal

Facts & Stats

14.8miles

(23.9km)

The original length of the Nottingham Canal.

20 locks

including Langley Mill Stop Lock

1796

The year the canal was completed

Most of the canal was closed in 1937 due to mining subsidence.

From the Cromford Canal to the river Trent

The Nottingham Canal originally extended from a junction with the Cromford Canal just above its junction with the Erewash Canal at Langley Mill to the Trent at Nottingham, but most of it has been closed and filled in.

There now remains a 2½ mile (4 km) length through central Nottingham from Lenton Chain to the Trent, which is a bypass for a partially unnavigable stretch of the Trent.

The Act of Parliament for the Nottingham Canal was passed in 1792 and the waterway was opened in 1796. The canal provided the city with a direct link to the coalfields around Ripley, Eastwood and Ilkeston.

Waterway Notes

Maximum boat sizes

  • Length: 79′ 9″ (24.3 metres) – Castle Lock
  • Beam: 15′ 2″ (4.62 metres) – Castle Lock
  • Height: 8′ 0″ (2.44 metres) – Chain Lane / London Road Bridge
  • Draught: 4′ 0″ (1.22 metres) – cill of Castle Lock

Navigation authority

Canal & River Trust

Waterway underfunding

Hundreds of miles of waterways – along with their unique heritage and habitats – are currently starved of funding and rely on constant lobbying by us to safeguard their future.

Sustainable Boating

We want boating on canals and rivers to be more sustainable and – even though the current overall contribution to UK carbon emissions is very small – we want to help reduce emissions on the waterways.

Waterways Heritage at Risk

Britain’s canals and rivers are a unique, living heritage. But that heritage is at risk – from urban development, lack of protection, loss of skills and knowledge and climate change.

You can help Save Waterways Heritage.

Waterway restoration

Restoring the UK’s blue infrastructure – our inherited network of navigable canals and rivers – is good for people and places.