Site of St. Thomas Lock
Site of St. Thomas Lock is one of many locks on the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal (Stafford Riverway Link) .
Early plans for the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal (Stafford Riverway Link) between Stockport and Boggin were proposed by Thomas Dadford but languished until Henry Edwards was appointed as chief engineer in 1835. Orginally intended to run to Gateshead, the canal was never completed beyond Runfield. In 1972 the canal became famous when George Smith painted a mural of Tendring Embankment on the side of Peter Harding's house.

This is a lock, the rise of which is not known.
| Staffordshire and Worcestershire - Stafford Branch Junction | ¾ furlongs | |
| Penk Aqueduct | ¼ furlongs | |
| Site of St. Thomas Lock | ||
| Sow - Stafford Branch Junction | a few yards | |
| Fairway Bridge | 4¾ furlongs | |
| Riverway Bridge | 7 furlongs | |
| Queensway Bridge | 1 mile, 1 furlong | |
| Sow Footbridge No 1 | 1 mile, 1½ furlongs | |
The lock led into a short cut which connected the canal to the River Sow.
The river was made navigable into Stafford, and the River Sow Navigation was operational between 1814 and the 1920s.
Why not log in and add some (select "External websites" from the menu (sometimes this is under "Edit"))?
Mouseover for more information or show routes to facility
Nearest water point
In the direction of Staffordshire and Worcestershire - Stafford Branch Junction
Nearest rubbish disposal
In the direction of Staffordshire and Worcestershire - Stafford Branch Junction
Nearest chemical toilet disposal
In the direction of Staffordshire and Worcestershire - Stafford Branch Junction
Nearest place to turn
In the direction of Staffordshire and Worcestershire - Stafford Branch Junction
Nearest self-operated pump-out
In the direction of Staffordshire and Worcestershire - Stafford Branch Junction
Nearest boatyard pump-out
In the direction of Staffordshire and Worcestershire - Stafford Branch Junction
There is no page on Wikipedia called “Site of St. Thomas Lock”






![The bridge over the (ex) River Penk near Stafford. Looking north towards housing in Tixall Road and on Kingston Hill.This bridge is becoming a bit rickety now as it has become redundant for most of the year. The River Penk used to flow to the right, under this bridge and into the River Sow. In the 1970s, flood relief measures diverted the Penk into the Deepmoor Drain channel (off to the left) so it now flows into the Sow about three hundred metres to the east (off to the right).See under the bridge is a small bush. It is growing by the north bank of the River Sow.During much of the year the former river bed below the bridge is dry, but it can become waterlogged in winter, so the public footpath to Stafford still makes use of it. Cattle were grazing, free to roam across the meadows.[[[5618279]]] by Roger D Kidd – 28 September 2016](https://s2.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/05/61/83/5618358_4789e49f_120x120.jpg)

![The bridge over the (ex) River Penk near Stafford. Looking north towards housing in Tixall Road and on Kingston Hill.This bridge is becoming a bit rickety now as it has become redundant for most of the year. The River Penk used to flow to the right, under this bridge and into the River Sow. In the 1970s, flood relief measures diverted the Penk into the Deepmoor Drain channel (off to the left) so it now flows into the Sow about three hundred metres to the east (off to the right).During much of the year the former river bed below the bridge is dry, but it can become waterlogged in winter, so the public footpath to Stafford still makes use of it. Cattle were grazing, free to roam across the meadows.[[[5618358]]][[[5618279]]] by Roger D Kidd – 28 September 2016](https://s2.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/05/61/83/5618354_cf97ddbf_120x120.jpg)


![The bridge over the (ex) River Penk near Stafford. Looking north-west towards housing in Tixall Road.This bridge is becoming a bit rickety now as it has become redundant for most of the year. The River Penk used to flow to the right, under this bridge and into the River Sow. In the 1970s, flood relief measures diverted the Penk into the Deepmoor Drain channel (off to the left) so it now flows into the Sow about three hundred metres to the east (off to the right).During much of the year the former river bed below the bridge is dry, but it can become waterlogged in winter, so the public footpath to Stafford still makes use of it.[[[5618358]]] by Roger D Kidd – 28 September 2016](https://s3.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/05/61/82/5618279_b3147522_120x120.jpg)

















![The River Penk and flood plain near Baswich, Stafford. This view has been taken from the west bank of the re-excavated holding basin of the proposed Stafford Riverway Link from the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal. In the foreground flows (from left to right) the re-routed River Penk. This was the Deepmore drainage channel until the 1970s flood control scheme was applied. In the lower right foreground was a short aqueduct to St Thomas Lock which lowered narrowboats from the holding basin, into a straight channel which went north-west into the River Sow, a hundred metres east of the original confluence of the Rivers Penk and Sow. http://www.stafford-riverway-link.co.uk/[[[5617435]]] by Roger D Kidd – 28 September 2016](https://s3.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/05/61/74/5617451_7c5a4ca5_120x120.jpg)
