If you are interested in the history of Wakefield Waterfront, and the construction of the River Calder Navigation in the 18th century, a new book has been published by Wakefield Historical Publications: “John Smeaton and the Calder Navigation”. It records the work of the many people in Wakefield and up the Calder Valley who, despite opposition, were instrumental in this huge undertaking. John Smeaton, fresh from his work at the Eddystone lighthouse was the superintendent engineer. A transcription of Smeaton’s Journal from 1760-1763 details the busy scene at Wakefield with labourers digging out the cuts and locks, masons working on the stonework, smiths providing tools and ironwork, and carpenters working on the gates and paddles. As work continued upriver they were hampered by floods and many other problems, but they knew that the financial returns would be substantial. Goods could now be transported by water up river, nearly all the way to Halifax, a cheaper and better alternative to wagons over rutted, muddy roads.
https://www.wakefieldhistoricalsociety.org.uk/publications/wakefield-historical-publications/
