Coventry Canal Basin

Coventry Canal Basin Coventry Canal Basin and it's attendant buildings form an area of architectural and historic interest. The unusual Y-shaped Basin was initally constructed and opened to traffic in 1769 and later enlarged to it's present form in 1788. The initial planning and construction of the Coventry Canal Navigation was the work of the pioneering canal engineer James Brindley, who was appointed on 9th February 1768 at a salary of £150 per annum. He was dismissed in 1769 and replaced by Thomas Yeoman. Later appointments of general superintendent to the company were John Warner (1795-1820) and John Sinclair. An able pupil of Thomas Telford, Sinclair was appointed in 1820 as the canal company's full time engineer and remained so for 43 years. Most of the historic buildings and structures around the Canal Basin were erected by the Coventry Canal Navigation Comapny and as such represent some of the finest surviving examples of original 'Canal Company' architecture in the West Midlands. There are three Grade II listed buildings / structures at the basin. Namley, the Canal Bridge, the Historic Warehouses and Canal House. the Weighbridge Office and Old Vaults are also of historical interest. You will find information plaques attached to each of these buildings around the Canal Basin. Between 1993 and 1995 Coventry City Council and British Waterways undertook refurbishment and redevelopment works in the Canal Basin and Drapers Field. This was partly financed with aid from the European Regional Development Fund and from the Urban Partnership Fund.

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