TheUnion Canal, full name theEdinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal, is a canal in Scotland, running fromFalkirk toEdinburgh, constructed to bring minerals, especially coal, to the capital. It was opened in 1822 and was initially successful, but the construction of railways, particularly theEdinburgh and Glasgow Railway, which opened in 1842, diminished its value as a transport medium. It fell into slow commercial decline and was closed to commercial traffic in 1933. It was officially closed in 1965. The canal is listed as three individualscheduled monuments byHistoric Scotland according to the three former counties,Midlothian,West Lothian andStirlingshire, through which it flows.

It has benefited from a general revival of interest in canals and, as a result of theMillennium Link, was reopened in 2001 and reconnected to theForth and Clyde Canal in 2002 by theFalkirk Wheel. It is now in popular use for leisure purposes.

v t e Union Canal
Legend
Forth and Clyde Canal 3 Golden Jubilee Lock Falkirk Wheel boatlift Rough Castle Tunnel (197 yd or 180 m) 1,2 Locks (2) Greenbank aqueduct Falkirk Tunnel (696 yd or 636 m) 60 Glen Low Bridge 55  B805  Blairlodge Bridge 55  B810  Brightons Bridge Bethankie aqueduct 52a  A801  Lathallan Bridge 49  B825  Causewayend Bridge Avon aqueduct 48  A706  Woodcockdale Bridge aqueduct aqueduct  B9080  Pilgrim's Hill aqueduct Philpstoun aqueduct 38  B8046  Fawnspark Bridge 32  B9080  Winchburgh Bridge 26  A899  Broxburn Bridge 24a  A89  Broxburn Road Bridge 21a  M8  Bridge 20a Bathgate Railway Bridge Almond aqueduct  B7030  Bonnington aqueduct  A720 Scott Russell Aqueduct 7b  A71  Road Bridge 4d Kingsknowe Rail Bridge Slateford aqueduct  A70  Prince Charlie aqueduct Myreside Aqueduct (ESSJR) Edinburgh Quay Lochrin Basin

The canal was conceived with the purpose of moving minerals from the mines and quarries inLanarkshire toEdinburgh.

Edinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal Company Act 1817
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act for making and maintaining a Navigable Canal from the Lothian Road, near the City of Edinburgh, to join the Forth and Clyde Navigation near Falkirk, in the County of Stirling.
Citation	57 Geo. 3. c. lvi
Dates
Royal assent	27 June 1817
Text of statute as originally enacted

In 1817, the Edinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal Company obtained alocal act of Parliament, theEdinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal Company Act 1817 (57 Geo. 3. c. lvi) to start construction. Joseph Priestley described the purpose of the canal in his 1831 bookHistorical Account of the Navigable Rivers, Canals and Railways of Great Britain:

The primary object of this navigation was to effect an inland communication between the cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow; to the former of which it must be essentially serviceable, in consequence of the increased facilities afforded to the transit of lime, coal, stone, &c. which abound in its course.This undertaking was designed by Mr.Thomas Telford and Mr. Baird, who estimated the cost at £240,468, 17s. 2d.; of which sum £198,650 was subscribed before going to parliament. The firstact of parliament ... is entitled, 'An Act for making and maintaining a navigable Canal from theLothian Road, near the city of Edinburgh, to join theForth and Clyde Navigation near Falkirk, in thecounty of Stirling.' The company of proprietors consisted, at the time the first act was obtained, of three hundred and eighty-four persons, amongst whom were theLord Provost of Edinburgh, Sir William Forbes, Sir John Hay, and Sir John Marjoribanks, who were incorporated by the name of "The Edinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal Company," with power to raise £240,500, in four thousand eight hundred and ten shares, of £50 each, and a further sum of £50,000, either among themselves, by the admission of new subscribers, or on mortgage of the undertaking.^[1]

Edinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal Act 1819
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act for altering and amending an Act for making and maintaining a Navigable Canal from the Lothian Road near the City of Edinburgh, to join the Forth and Clyde Navigation near Falkirk, in the County of Stirling.
Citation	59 Geo. 3. c. xxix
Dates
Royal assent	19 May 1819
Text of statute as originally enacted

Edinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal Act 1821
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Citation	1 & 2 Geo. 4. c. cxxii
Dates
Royal assent	23 June 1821

Edinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal Company Act 1823
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act to enable the Edinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal Company to borrow a further Sum of Money.
Citation	4 Geo. 4. c. xviii
Dates
Royal assent	12 May 1823
Text of statute as originally enacted

Edinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal Act 1826
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act to alter and amend the Edinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal Acts, and to enable the Company to borrow a further Sum of Money.
Citation	7 Geo. 4. c. xlv
Dates
Royal assent	5 May 1826

The estimate of cost was evidently inadequate because a second act of Parliament was obtained, theEdinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal Act 1819 (59 Geo. 3. c. xxix), which authorised the borrowing of £48,100, a third, theEdinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal Act 1821 (1 & 2 Geo. 4. c. cxxii) authorised an increase in share capital of a further £50,000 and a fourth, theEdinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal Company Act 1823 (4 Geo. 4. c. xviii) authorised a further £60,000.^[1]

However, when the Union Canal got its act of Parliament, the town ofLinlithgow, along with Edinburgh, mounted a legal petition for compensation for any losses they would incur from theturnpike that ran between Glasgow and Edinburgh. Their writ read:

The Company are directed to indemnify the Magistrates and Town Council of the Royal Burgh of Linlithgow for any Diminution of the Customs upon Cattle, Carriages, or Goods carried over theAvon atTorphichan Mill; also to secure to the Magistrates and Town Council of the City of Edinburgh the Rate of One Penny per Ton on all Goods, Wares, or other Things (except Manure,) shipped or unloaded at any of the Wharfs and Basins, in lieu of certain Rates, Dues, Causeway, Mail, and Petty Customs, which they are now entitled to; as it appears that, by a Charter or Gift of Charles the First, dated 17 May 1636, the Ministers of Edinburgh are entitled to a Duty or Custom of Thirteen Shillings and Four-penceScots, upon each Ton or Pack of Goods imported to Edinburgh,Leith, orNewhaven. The Company are therefore directed to pay the same on all Goods which may be imported by this Navigation. They are also bound to indemnify the Edinburgh Road Trustees, the Bathgate, and another Trust, in any Diminution of Tolls arising from these Turnpike Roads, which may be affected by their Canal.^[1]

The Union Canal, which has a length of 31 miles (50 km) today, was built as acontour canal. This avoided building costs and future operational delays caused by the provision of locks but necessitated large aqueducts to cross river valleys. The canal operated between a junction with the Forth and Clyde Canal at Falkirk and Port Hopetoun basin in the centre of Edinburgh. The waterway, which was originally 32 miles (51 km), follows a contour of 73 m (240 feet) above sea level throughout its entire length. Port Hopetoun was a basin between Semple Street andLothian Road, and Morrison Street andFountainbridge. However, the final mile has been filled in and the Edinburgh terminal is now atLochrin Basin inTollcross, adjacent to Fountainbridge.

The canal has severalnavigable aqueducts, including theSlateford Aqueduct that takes the canal over theWater of Leith in Edinburgh, theAlmond Aqueduct nearRatho and the 810-foot-long (250 m)Avon Aqueduct nearLinlithgow, the second-longest in the United Kingdom. Priestley describes the route and structures in some detail:

[The] Canal commences from the sixteenth lock of the Forth and Clyde Navigation, about two miles west of Falkirk, in the county of Sterling [sic], whence it takes an eastwardly course on the south side of the above-mentioned town, by some collieries; thence, through Black Hill Tunnel, and across the Glen Water, on which stream, at a short distance to the southward, is constructed a considerable reservoir. Its line hence is by Brighton Freestone Quarries, and about a mile [1.6 km] north from Park Hill Colliery, to theAvon River, over which there is an aqueduct conveying the canal at an elevation of 80 feet [24 m] above the surface of the river. The canal here enters thecounty of Linlithgow, and passes within a mile and a half [2.4 km] on the south side of its capital, to Craighton House, where its course is more southerly and circuitous, to theRiver Almond, near Clifton House, where it crosses intoEdinburghshire, by means of an aqueduct. Its course hence is byRatho House, and acrossLeith River, to the city of Edinburgh, where it terminates by a basin at theLothian Road, about half a mile [0.8 km] south-west ofthe castle. The length of the canal is thirty miles [48 km], the depth of water 5 feet [1.5 m], and is on one level from Edinburgh to its western extremity, where it falls 110 feet [34 m], in one series of locks, into the Forth and Clyde Canal.^[1]

Many of the stone bridges havekeystones on which is engraved the number of the bridge: the keystones of Viewforth bridge, the second bridge from the start of the canal atEdinburgh Quay, are emblazoned with the coats of arms of Glasgow and Edinburgh, facing west and east respectively.

The income from the project was derived from tolls, and charges forwharfage and so on. Maximum prices for these were laid down in the act of Parliament. The tolls were based on tonnage of the merchandise being conveyed; there was a toll for empty vessels, and this was to be remitted if the vessel returned laden within fourteen days.

Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway and Edinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal Amalgamation Act 1849
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act for vesting the Edinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal in the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway Company.
Citation	12 & 13 Vict. c. xxxix
Dates
Royal assent	26 June 1849
Text of statute as originally enacted

In 1842 theEdinburgh and Glasgow Railway opened taking much of the traffic away from the canal with passenger traffic effectively disappearing. Although the waterway was still used to transport industrial minerals to Edinburgh, goods requiring more haste were put on to trains. The canal was acquired by the E&GR in 1849 under theEdinburgh and Glasgow Railway and Edinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal Amalgamation Act 1849 (12 & 13 Vict. c. xxxix). Industrial traffic continued to use the waterway until after theFirst World War. However, with the closure of Port Hamilton and Port Hopetoun (the main basins in Edinburgh) in 1921, commercial traffic steadily declined with the western terminal closing in 1933. The canal continued to decline across the next three decades, with the abandoned flight of 11 locks at Falkirk, which connected the Union to the Forth and Clyde, being filled in. The canal was culverted for theWester Hailes housing development in the western outskirts of Edinburgh and for theM8 motorway nearBroxburn. Formal closure to navigation came in 1965^[2] and throughout the 1970s and 1980s the remaining parts of the canal were left in a deteriorated state.

However, after a campaign was started by groups and local communities to improve the canal, work was carried out to restore the network during the 1990s. This culminated with the millennium project to reinstate the link between the Union Canal to the Forth and Clyde Canal with aboat lift called theFalkirk Wheel.

In 2004, an archaeological investigation by a team fromHeadland Archaeology uncovered the stern of a 21-metre-long (69 ft) woodenbarge.^[3] The vessel was discovered on the south bank of the canal between theLeamington Lift Bridge and Viewforth Bridge in Edinburgh. The remains represent the final berth of an early- to mid-19th-century canal barge orscow, a type of horse-drawn vessel that was the main freight carrier of the time. Typical cargoes includedcoal andlime fromLanarkshire, although there were a number of passenger carriers too; the actual function of this vessel is unknown. The vessel was dismantled and removed from the canal in order to record the techniques used in its construction. Additional work will seek to identify the species, age and provenance of the timbers.

The Millennium Link was a project to restore a link between the Union and Forth and Clyde Canals at the Falkirk end. In 2002 theFalkirk Wheel opened reestablishing this historic connection. The scheme involved building a new stretch of canal, single and double locks and a short tunnel under theEdinburgh–Glasgow railway line and theAntonine Wall. Several new bridges were also built on the Millennium Link. As noCAD information was available on narrowboats, the motion ofarticulated lorries were used to design the bends of the bridge approaches.

The canal is now used recreationally bycanoeists at theForth Canoe Club androwers from schools anduniversities, such asSt Andrew Boat Club,George Heriots School Rowing Club andGeorge Watsons College Rowing Club. TheEdinburgh Canal Society, theBridge 19-40 Canal Society andLinlithgow Union Canal Society promote general use of the canal. They hire rowing boats andnarrowboats, and they provide regular boat trips on the canal for the general public. Re-Union Canal Boats operate a social enterprise building and maintaining trip boats.

Scottish Canals (as successor to theBritish Waterways Board in Scotland) have redeveloped the area at the Edinburgh terminal; their publicity states:

Edinburgh Quay is a major regeneration project centred on the site of Lochrin Basin, in the heart of Scotland's capital. It provides around 90 waterfront apartments, 150,000 square feet (14,000 m²) of offices and 55,000 square feet (5,100 m²) of retail and restaurant space.^[4]

Raft races have become an annual event, having been held in Edinburgh from 2007 to 2011, and using found "junk" material for therafts. The Linlithgow Union Canal Society has been hosting its cardboard boat race for many years at Linlithgow Basin.

In the early morning of Wednesday the 12th of August 2020, slow-moving thunderstorms caused torrential rain over much of eastern Scotland, including in the Falkirk area. This heavy rainfall caused the Union Canal to overtop its embankment east of Polmont, producing a 30 metre wide breach in the canal.^[5] The floodwaters released from the breach caused significant damage to the main railway line from Glasgow to Edinburgh via Falkirk High, Scotland's busiest railway line.^[6]

• Canals of the United Kingdom
• Falkirk Helix
• Falkirk Wheel
• Forth to Firth Canal Pathway
• History of the British canal system
• John Muir Way
• St Kentigern's Church, Edinburgh (Union Canal)
• History of the Union Canal, archived fromwww.scottishcanals.co.uk

Media related toUnion Canal, Scotland at Wikimedia Commons

• Video footage of Slateford Viaduct
• The Soliton Wave and the Union Canal

55°56′33.24″N3°12′29.29″W / 55.9425667°N 3.2081361°W /55.9425667; -3.2081361

• Scheduled monuments in West Lothian
• Scheduled monuments in Falkirk
• Scheduled monuments in Edinburgh
• Canals in Scotland
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• Transport in West Lothian
• Transport in Falkirk (council area)
• 1818 establishments in Scotland
• Canals opened in 1822
• Scottish Canals
• 1822 establishments in Scotland
• Falkirk
• Linlithgow
• Fountainbridge

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