Introduction

The end of the seventeenth century saw a massive development of the linen industry in the Lagan Valley. The industry depended on speed of movement of supplies and produce. Transport by road was frequently slow and inefficient. Rivers, lakes and seas were faster and more efficient, where they were navigable, as one horse could pull a sixty foot long barge, or “lighter”, thereby transporting much more produce.

In 1742 Newry Canal opened to transport coal from Coalisland to Dublin. Newry almost rivalled Belfast as a port so after the Newry Canal had opened in 1742, connecting with Lough Neagh, Belfast had to compete! The lighters needed straight stretches of river with enough depth and adequate water level. Most of the River Lagan was navigable between Belfast and Lisburn but where the river had bends or was not deep enough a new “cut” would be made to avoid the bend in the river and locks and weirs would keep the water at the correct level.

There are twenty-seven locks between Stranmillis and Lough Neagh and seventeen on the stretch between Belfast and Lisburn.

The Lagan Valley, was the industrial heartland of Ulster and was full of sites associated with the linen industry, including mills and bleach greens where the untreated brown linen would have been laid out to bleach in the sun.

Most of the large businesses along the line of the Lagan had their own quays mainly for loading and unloading coal for fuelling.

Locks and Landings – What to look for and locations

All had lock keepers' houses apart from Lock No 5.

At least five of the lock houses were designed by Thomas Omer who was the first engineer-in-charge. These houses had a unique design which allowed the lock to be seen from any window in the house.

Features to look out for:

Lock chambers – where there are indents into the walls where the gates were – image

Weirs were used for diverting the river into the canal and controlling water levels. These were usually upstream of the locks. The weir at Lock no 3 also controlled water levels for locks 1 and 2. Image of weir of Lock no 3 from Belfast Telegraph.

Bollards – some of them still have grooves which were worn by the ropes and chains of the horses.

The lock keepers’ wages were generally very low so the Lagan Navigation Company had a policy that each lock keeper had a certain amount of land at the house which they could use for growing their own food.
Original houses designed by Thomas Omer who was the first engineer to work on the canal. These are at locks 6 and 8 and one in ruins at lock no 7.
There are three houses still intact – these are at Newforge, Ballyskeagh and Drum Bridge and they are a listed buildings.

Lock No 1 “Molly Ward’s”

Lock No 1 is currently filled in but visitors can see the outline of the lock quite clearly in the car park in Lockview car park at Stranmillis. There was a stable where the boat club is now. There were several families, the Wards being one of them, that are strongly linked with the Lagan Navigation.

There was a tavern dating back to the 18th century which was frequented by the United Irishmen in the 1790s. There is a story that Molly Ward was storing a keg of gunpowder for the United Irishmen when the house was raided. In order to hide it she threw a blanket over it and made her mother sit on it with her grandchild!

Lock No 2 Moreland’s Meadow/ Mickey Taylor’s

Moreland’s meadow was created by the construction of the canal and the lock keepers house was on the island. Mickey Taylor was the lock keeper here between 1860 and 1897. He had a little hut at the lock gates. Robert Mc Curley was also a lock keeper there and he lived in the house with his wife Elisabeth McCurley and they had a family of two girls and two boys. He opened and closed the locks. The cottage was quite large with one big room downstairs and two or three rooms upstairs. There was also an outhouse that was kept as a wash house. They had the land at the house as a garden. They also grew their own vegetables and fruit. They also kept chickens.

There was a little hut where the lock keeper sat and watched for the barges coming up.

Belvoir Landing Stage

During World War II Belvoir House was taken over by the Admiralty andused as a munitions store. The landing stage was for loading and unloading munitions which were transported between there and Belfast Lough.

Lock no 3

The present house dates back to the late eighteenth or early nineteenth century. It was not in fact built as a lock keeper’s cottage but was probably connected to Ferguson’s who were a linen bleaching company just across the Lagan. The original lock keeper’s house was up the lane opposite the bridge. All the lock keeper’s houses had to have a certain amount of land with them for the lock keeper to grow food to supplement his income. In the 1880s Lord Deramore wanted to build boundary around the Belvoir Estate which meant taking away the land attached to that cottage. Sir Thomas Bateson then rented the present house from Sir Richard Ferguson and eventually it was taken over by the Lagan Navigation Company.

The McLeave family were the first lock keepers to live in the cottage and they stayed there until the early 20th century.

In 1922 George Kilpatrick took over as lock keeper. He married his wife Sara in Lisburn Cathedral and they raised a family of ten children in the cottage. He worked as lock keeper until the canal closed in 1958. He had also built a lean-to on the gable end of the cottage from which he sold sweets and lemonade to passers-by!

The original lock house remained until the 1950s when it was demolished and the site is now marked by a settling tank.

Lock No 4 Edenderry/Rosie Ward’s Lock

This was named after Rosie Ward who was the lock keeper there in 1834.

Lock No 5 Ballydrain

The lock keeper here in 1880 was named Robert Norwood. Other names associated with it were James Smith, James Gallagher, Dick McClelland and Robert H McDowell.

The “canal folk” who normally slept on the boats overnight would not stay here. They claimed there were “strange influences” and the temperatures were lower than anywhere else on the canal…………………….

Lock No 6 The Drum

The Thomas Omer-designed the lock keeper’s house was built in 1757 but due to a legal case between Lagan Navigation Company and Dixon Estates the lock keeper and his family had to move out to limewashed cottage adjacent to the lock. It is no longer there but the original house is still there.

Lock No 7 McQuiston’s Lock

This was also known as “Agnew’s”. There are the remains of an original Thomas Omer-designed house which can be seen by crossing the small sandstone bridge – also original.

Lock No 8 Ballyskeagh

The steps adjacent to the bridge go up to the road from where you can see another Thomas Omer-designed house. In 1884 William Ward, the lock keeper, exchanged places with son Arthur at No 7 because of lighter duties there.

Lock No 9

The site has a deep underground aquifer which made it ideal for building the lock and for the Lambeg Bleaching, Dying and Finishing Company which was adjacent to the lock.

Lock No 10 Hilden

Lock No 10 had a Thomas Omer-designed house.

Lockkeepers J Morrison, Johnnie Kilpatrick, Harry Elliott and Billy Hart
Just beyond the bridge is old mill from further upstream mill quay can be seen with tie-up rings for barges

Lock No 11 Scott’s Lock

The river, canal and mill race for Barbours Mill all run concurrently at Lock No 11 which is named after William Scott who was one of the lock keepers there. The water from the mill race powered the mill and factory.

Lock No 12 Hanna’s Lock

John Hanna was the lock keeper latter half of the 19th century. His brother James took over and then his son Dick who was lock keeper for almost 60 years. Dick supported a wife and four children on 10s a week. He had three certificates for lifesaving saved over twenty people and horses. This lock originally had a Thomas Omer-designed house.

Lock No 13 Becky Hogg’s Lock

This was the last lock during the first phase of opening. In 1856 William Hogg was the lockkeeper and he was followed by his wife Becky.

Lock Nos 14 – 17 Union Locks

There are four locks going up twenty-six feet to the “head level” of the canal in a distance of about a hundred yards. Between two of the locks there is a basin where a boat could stop. There was also a boat house, carpenter’s workshop, lock keeper’s house, stables and coal quay. Originally there was a horse bridge which crossed the canal. In 1866 Navigation House was built for the canal manager.