A Brief History of Fradley Junction, Staffordshire
Fradley
Junction
Fradley Junction is now a picturesque visitor attraction and is home to the two
centuries old Swan Inn, as well as a recently developed Nature Reserve and Kingfisher Holiday Park. The canalside settlement at Fradley
Junction was established after the Coventry Canal was linked to the Trent & Mersey Canal in 1790.
Fradley was a major junction on the
Victorian canal network. Both the Trent & Mersey and the Coventry Canal
companies built houses and cottages for their workers, while two
warehouses, complete with hoists, were erected at Junction Row alongside the Swan public house.
The canal system has enjoyed a renaissance in recent years and is now
markedly different from the near derelict state of several decades ago.
Once the motorways of their day, the canals were overtaken by road
transport and descended into disrepair and dereliction, now turned over
to leisure use the canals are once again thriving.
A working
boat at Fradley circa 1950
Notice how old the lorry is in the photo above, thought to be around
1960, as is the scene from above.
