Moorcroft History In The Making Collection
History In The Making Collection
The waterways of Stoke-on-Trent include the smaller Burslem Branch Canal which was once one of the cornerstones on which the growth of The Potteries was built. Sadly, today, parts of the half mile stretch are now filled in, and many of its buildings are unused and run down. When the canal was authorised by an Act of Parliament in 1797, it paved the way for Burslem to become the Mother Town of The Potteries. Construction work was completed in 1805, 30 years after James Brindley completed the adjoining Trent and Mersey Canal. Large quantities of china clay, stone and other raw materials were shipped in for use at the Burslem potbanks. It was against this backdrop that barges made their silent way through The Potteries a hundred years ago. In Emma’s vision of a bygone age, the trio of bottle ovens at the Moorcroft factory can be seen. As an added homage to the historic art pottery, Emma has even named one of her barges ‘Moorcroft’.