What was the social impact of canals?
The introduction of canals had many social impacts as well as economic impacts.
Canals were man-made - they needed to be built by someone. Canals created an all new paid labor force, called Navigators, or "navvies" for short. These were men who built canals, and often loaded and unloaded barges. This was a fantastic employment opportunity as it gave well-paid jobs to thousands of men across Britain. Indirectly, canals provided new opportunities in mining, hardware, potteries and many other industries. This was because with the easy transport of goods available, new markets opened up and industries grew bigger as trade became cheaper.
Canals also had a massive economic impact. They allowed a larger amount of goods to be transported more precisely at a much smaller cost, opening many new businesses and markets. Sea ports could be connected to the inland trade. The coal industry boomed; coal could be moved further and sold cheaper. There were over 150 canal acts passed from 1760 to 1800, and out of these 90 were for coal related purposes. When the Bridgewater canal opened in Worsley to the centre of Manchester in 1763, the price of coal in the town was halved within a year. This inspired 'Canal Mania' an intense period of canal building across the nation. Before the railways were invented, only canals could cope with the rising demand for coal from industries such as iron.
The years of the Industrial Revolution saw the formation of most of Britain’s most important canals, set up by merchants, aristocrats and bankers, but particularly by coalmine owners, textile manufacturers and pottery barons wanting to open up new markets for their products.
Canals were man-made - they needed to be built by someone. Canals created an all new paid labor force, called Navigators, or "navvies" for short. These were men who built canals, and often loaded and unloaded barges. This was a fantastic employment opportunity as it gave well-paid jobs to thousands of men across Britain. Indirectly, canals provided new opportunities in mining, hardware, potteries and many other industries. This was because with the easy transport of goods available, new markets opened up and industries grew bigger as trade became cheaper.
Canals also had a massive economic impact. They allowed a larger amount of goods to be transported more precisely at a much smaller cost, opening many new businesses and markets. Sea ports could be connected to the inland trade. The coal industry boomed; coal could be moved further and sold cheaper. There were over 150 canal acts passed from 1760 to 1800, and out of these 90 were for coal related purposes. When the Bridgewater canal opened in Worsley to the centre of Manchester in 1763, the price of coal in the town was halved within a year. This inspired 'Canal Mania' an intense period of canal building across the nation. Before the railways were invented, only canals could cope with the rising demand for coal from industries such as iron.
The years of the Industrial Revolution saw the formation of most of Britain’s most important canals, set up by merchants, aristocrats and bankers, but particularly by coalmine owners, textile manufacturers and pottery barons wanting to open up new markets for their products.
wHICH ELEMENTS OF SOCIETY DID CANALS DISADVANTAGE?
Although canals benefited the most of society, some elements of society would have suffered the disadvantages of having canals built. Canals had to be built somewhere. They followed long routes, which flowed across the country, and not all of the land was government owned; they had to be built on someone else's land. Many farmers would have had to sacrifice their properties for the sake of a new canal. This would have had other problems, especially with cattle and sheep. Moving animals from property to property or into new fields would be impossible with a canal running right through. Travellers and nomads at the time would have also found this especially hard - canals ran for miles and miles, and many bridges often had tolls. In some ways they could act as an obstruction.
Canals also used a lot of water. Sometimes they were filled with rivers, but often would have to be topped up with pumps especially during the summertime. Some might see this as a waste of water - hundreds of thousands of litres would be in one canal alone. In droughts or periods without rain there would be not much water to use as drinking water.
Canals also used a lot of water. Sometimes they were filled with rivers, but often would have to be topped up with pumps especially during the summertime. Some might see this as a waste of water - hundreds of thousands of litres would be in one canal alone. In droughts or periods without rain there would be not much water to use as drinking water.