Making and Moving Salt at The Lion Salt Works and The Anderton Boat Lift

In Brief.

Several towns in Cheshire, typically those with names ending in wich (Northwich, Nantwich, Middlewich), developed in significant measure through salt production, initially from brine springs, but later from more intensive mining and extraction techniques. The Lion Salt Works is a restored salt making site plus museum that provides a vivid introduction to the steps involved in moving from brine to sellable salt. Moving coal to the salt works and salt to markets required canals, and the The Anderton Boat Lift, just a few miles from the Lion Salt Works, connects waterways that, among other things, supported the salt-making industry. 

The Anderton Boat Lift

What's Here?

The Lion Salt Works sits on ground that includes two layers of salt beds. A pump extracted brine from these salt beds, which then went through a series of processes for which the original buildings and some of the equipment are preserved in the museum. These include substantial salt pans, where the brine was heated and the resulting salt extracted by hand, stove houses where the extracted salt was dried, and a crushing mill where salt blocks were broken down for sale. The museum includes informative displays, and the buildings reflect the pragmatics of the process, with wood used as a building material for the salt pans and brick to hold the heat in the stove houses.

The Pump House at the Lion Salt Works

The Anderton Boat Lift is an imposting structure in what is still an industrial landscape, with a large chemical factory occupying a site across the river.  The lift connects the Trent and Mersey Canal to the River Weaver, thus linking two major waterways of the Industrial Revolution in Cheshire. The site includes a modern visitor centre and a play area, and can be used as a starting point for walks and a river cruise. However, if you want to do more than look at the boat lift, it is necessary to book a tour. I did this, and it was interesting to explore the imposing structure, and to hear about and see the various mechanisms, hydraulic, electric and then hydraulic again, that have driven the boat lift over time.

The winding gear of the lift from when it was powered by an electric motor.

The National Waterways Museum provides further information on the canal network.

Practicalities.

Distance from Manchester Town Hall: 27 miles

Drive Time: 1hour

Price: Anderton Boat Lift: free, tour $; Lion Salt Works $

Parking: There is paid parking at the Anderton Boat Lift and free parking at the Lion Salt Works

Food and Drink: Both have cafes, with more lunch options at the Anderton Boat Lift

Retail therapy: There is a toy-based shop at the Anderton Boat Lift and a general-purpose gift shop with some salt related products at the Lion Salt Works

Child Friendly: There are play areas at both sites.

Toilets: At both sites.

Do it justice in: Anderton Boat Lift: 90 minutes with the tour; Lion Salt Works: 1 hour

Inside-Outside: 50:50

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