Inclined elevator from Foxton
The Foxton Inclined Elevator was a boat lift in the Grand Union Canal in the English county of Leicestershire , about 3 miles from the town of Market Harborough , named after the nearby village of Foxton .
By 1897, the Grand Junction Canal Company had acquired various canals in England and tried to meet the demand from transport companies to use larger boats in place of traditional narrowboats . However, since the locks could only accommodate the narrowboats, the solution was to build an inclined elevator next to the locks. Originally, the company wanted to completely replace the locks instead of leaving them as an alternative. Construction began in 1898 and was completed by July 10, 1900.
The inclined elevator was designed by Gordon Cale Thomas on the principle of wet conveyance and consisted of two troughs connected to one another, each of which could accommodate two narrowboats or a barque . It was driven by a 19 kW steam engine .
There was a plan to build a similar inclined elevator at Watford Locks at the southern end of the canal. However, this was never done (likely due to the low level of traffic in the first two years of the elevator) and the Watford locks were never expanded so the economic benefits of the Foxton inclined elevator could not be fully realized. The need to keep the nacelle continuously under steam - in anticipation of the traffic - also proved to be a financial drain. The inclined elevator - despite its obvious effectiveness - was shut down in 1911 to save money. After that time, it was only used occasionally when the locks were being serviced.
Dismantling of the facility began in 1926 and in 1928 the remains were sold for a scrap price of just £ 250. In the same year the engine house chimney was torn down and the stones were sold for various sewer repairs.
Coordinates: 52 ° 30 ′ 0 ″ N , 0 ° 58 ′ 54 ″ W.