Ashted Lock No 4
Ashted Lock No 4 is one of some locks on the Birmingham Canal Navigations (Birmingham and Fazeley Canal - Digbeth Branch); it was rebuilt after it collapsed in 1888 between Norwich and Leicester.
Early plans of what would become the Birmingham Canal Navigations (Birmingham and Fazeley Canal - Digbeth Branch) were drawn up by Oliver Smith in 1816 but problems with Portsmouth Aqueduct caused delays and it was finally opened on January 1 1835. The canal joined the sea near Sheffield. Expectations for coal traffic to Blackburn never materialised and the canal never made a profit for the shareholders. In later years, only water transfer to the treatment works at St Helens kept it open. The Birmingham Canal Navigations (Birmingham and Fazeley Canal - Digbeth Branch) was closed in 1905 when Prescroft Cutting collapsed. In his autobiography Peter Harding writes of his experiences as a navvy in the 1960s

This is a lock with a rise of 5 feet and 1 inch.
| Ashted Tunnel (northwestern end) | 1½ furlongs | |
| Ashted Tunnel (southeastern entrance) | 1 furlong | |
| Ashted Lock No 2 | ¾ furlongs | |
| Ashted Lock No 3 | ¼ furlongs | |
| Belmont Row Bridge | ¼ furlongs | |
| Ashted Lock No 4 | ||
| Ashton Lock No 5 | ¼ furlongs | |
| Curzon Street Bridge | ½ furlongs | |
| Site of Curzon Street Wharf | ½ furlongs | |
| Ashted Bottom Lock | ¾ furlongs | |
| Curzon Street Tunnel (northern entrance) | 1 furlong | |
Amenities here
- Birmingham Canal Walks — associated with Birmingham Canal Navigations
- Sixteen walks along the Birmingham Canal Navigations with a detailed description, history and photographs.
- Digbeth Branch Canal Walk — associated with Birmingham Canal Navigations (Birmingham and Fazeley Canal - Digbeth Branch)
- A walk along the Digbeth Branch Canal from Aston Junction to Warwick Bar
Mouseover for more information or show routes to facility
Nearest water point
In the direction of Aston Junction
In the direction of Bordesley Basin
Nearest rubbish disposal
In the direction of Aston Junction
In the direction of Bordesley Basin
Nearest chemical toilet disposal
In the direction of Aston Junction
In the direction of Bordesley Basin
Nearest place to turn
In the direction of Aston Junction
In the direction of Bordesley Basin
Nearest self-operated pump-out
In the direction of Aston Junction
In the direction of Bordesley Basin
Nearest boatyard pump-out
In the direction of Aston Junction
In the direction of Bordesley Basin
There is no page on Wikipedia called “Ashted Lock”


![Ashted locks by Belmont Row. Compare this with my shot from the 1980s [[1654797]]. The ruined building in the background is the former Co-operative Wholesale Society (CWS) factory [[1508195]]. This was a dismal Saturday afternoon, although the forecast had implied a brighter afternoon. by Chris Allen – 19 February 2011](https://s3.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/02/27/63/2276307_0b9e1248_120x120.jpg)





![Redevelopment work underway near Ashted Locks. Looks like something's happening at last in the area referred to in [[2294097]] - the ground to the right of the fencing has been laid out for foundations. We will watch with interest to see what emerges here. by Richard Law – 24 July 2014](https://s0.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/04/14/64/4146472_be1b666c_120x120.jpg)




![Pound between two locks on the Ashted flight. A very short pound, so the volume of water in it was extended with a side pond [alongside the lower lock]. by Christine Johnstone – 09 May 2022](https://s3.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/07/22/37/7223703_db6675c2_120x120.jpg)



![Disused Home, Belmont Row. View of disused home from Ashted locks and Belmont Row bridge. Also [[[2276307]]], [[[2293976]]] by Michael Westley – 04 March 2011](https://s1.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/02/29/40/2294057_85f880ae_120x120.jpg)






![Canal Bridge. Looking through the Belmont Row Bridge near Curzon Street. [[[2276307]]] by Carl Baker – 04 May 2006](https://s0.geograph.org.uk/photos/23/18/231892_90416b0d_120x120.jpg)
![34 Belmont Row, Birmingham. This house overlooks the Digbeth Branch Canal, and is known as the Lock Keeper's Cottage. It seems not to have been occupied by a lock keeper for a very long time, on the evidence of this 2013 blog post at the site of the Birmingham Conservation Trust, which elicited a reply from a man who was born here and whose family lived in the house for much of the 20th century http://www.birminghamconservationtrust.org/2013/01/11/the-friday-photo-the-lock-keepers-cottage/ . From this angle the house looks very flat, like a piece of stage scenery; it is in fact almost triangular in plan, a miniature 'flat iron' building. The illusion is enhanced by the boarded-up doors and windows with abstract murals. These are unmistakeably the work of Lucy McLauchlan; see [[[7112193]]]. The building is one of the few survivors in an area of urban decay that is now being 'regenerated' with university buildings and apartment blocks. by A J Paxton – 15 April 2023](https://s2.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/07/46/37/7463762_27e63de3_120x120.jpg)




