Chichester Canal

Chichester Canal
A map of the planned route of the canal from 1815
Specifications
Maximum boat length	85 ft 0 in (25.91 m)
Maximum boat beam	18 ft 0 in (5.49 m)
Locks	2
Status	part navigable
Navigation authority	West Sussex County Council
History
Date of act	1819
Date of first use	1822
Date closed	1928
Date restored	1984
Geography
Start point	Chichester
End point	Chichester Harbour

The Chichester Canal is a ship canal in England, currently navigable at either end, save for two low-level modern bridges obstructing the middle of the route. Its course is essentially intact, 3.8 miles (6.1 km) from the sea at Birdham on Chichester Harbour to Chichester through two locks. The canal (originally part of the Portsmouth and Arundel Canal) was opened in 1822 and took three years to build. The canal could take ships of up to 100 long tons (100 t). Dimensions were limited to 85 feet (26 metres) long, 18 feet (5.5 m) wide and a draft of up to 7 feet (2.1 m).^[1] As denoted by the suffix -chester, Chichester is a Roman settlement (Noviomagus Reginorum), and 300 Denarii were unearthed when Chichester Basin was formed in the 1820s.