History of The Forth and Clyde Canal By Iain McGrath "The great utility of a navigable communication between the east sea and the west, has given occasion to the forming of several projects for this purpose in different parts of the kingdom of Great Britain; the principal of which are, the Thames and Severn; the Trent and Severn; the Trent and Weaver; the Calder and Mersey; and the FORTH and CLYDE: But from what I have seen and heard of these matters, I am well convinced, that by far the most easy to be accomplished, not only in point of perpendicular height, is the last: And it is somewhat remarkable, that, notwithstanding the country at this place lies in general as high, if not higher than any of the rest; yet that through this high ground there happens two different passages, both lower than any of the others, and so much appearance of equality in point of practicability, that, upon ocular surveys, it has remained a doubt which of the two ought to be preferred." John Smeaton, Engineer, concerning the practicability and expense of joining the rivers Forth and Clyde by a Navigable Canal. 1767. The Forth and Clyde Canal, a narrow incision of water that snakes its way across the central lowlands of Scotland, joining the Irish Sea to the west with the North Sea off the east-coast, reflects the images of life that peer into it along its thirty-five mile route. The congested Glasgow tenements, rural shrubbery's and pylons, spiralling east-coast monuments and a myriad of human experience stare back from its murky, shimmering countenance. The 'Forth and Clyde' reaches out and touches many lives. Every man, woman and child that grew up with the canal drifting past their homes and into their lives, and there are many, the majority of the nations population residing along the central belt, each one having stories to tell, fond and tragic, of the 'Nolly'. The function of the canal also symbolises the historical utility of the nation. Ambitiously constructed during the industrial explosion at the end of the eighteenth-century, the canal was open in time to witness Glasgow's elevation to the second city of the Empire, as its strategic west-coast situation and low wage work force transformed a mainly rural, agricultural economy into a thriving, vibrant metropolis. The twentieth-century post war depression, and the global dynamic of economic trends, shifting the impetus from the western edge of Europe, along with the monopolising effect of the railway, left the canal languishing in a state of disuse and neglect. By the nineteen-sixties all navigation of the canal had ceased, mangled shopping trolleys and stolen cars being the only form of transportation to be seen gracing this once great accomplishment of engineering. The millennium link project, with a budget of £78m, aims to restore the Forth and Clyde Canal to its former glory, making it a fully navigable waterway again for the first time in over thirty-five years. Once again reflecting Scotland's key industries, tourism and leisure. Deliverance Productions, an ambitious independent film production company based just to the west of Glasgow, has been filming the progress of the regeneration process, including extensive footage of the canal both before and after work began, with the focus from the water. By the summer of 2001 the company will have completed a comprehensive documentary, outlining not only the physical changes of the canal during the regeneration project, but also capturing the history and humour that has become intrinsic to life beside the Forth and Clyde Canal. Telling the story of its significance to the lives of the people to whom it will always be 'The Nolly'. Further information on this film and other film projects can be obtained from the Deliverance website at : www.deliverance-productions.co.uk LINKS: Forth and Clyde Canal Focus of Film Forth and Clyde Canal Society History of the Forth and Clyde Canal The Forth and Clyde Canal Map The Forth and Clyde Canal