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| Approaching the 'Blow Up' Bridge, from the west. |
I have walked Regent's Canal on many an occasion, passing beneath bridges and through tunnels, but one bridge stands out from the rest. Not because it is ornate or is the oldest, but because it had to be replaced after it was blown up, by accident.
The barge 'Tilbury' was one of six barges being pulled along Regent's Canal by a steam tug, destined for the Midlands. Its cargo contained coffee, nuts, barrels of petroleum and about five tons of gunpowder. It is believed that one of the people onboard 'Tilbury' struck a match, just before 05:00 on the morning of Friday October 2, 1874, just as they were passing below the Georgian Macclesfield Bridge.
