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Summary

The former sea lock of the Itchen Navigation canal was located next to Woodmill, on Woodmill Lane. Although the site is still apparent, it has been obscured by subsequent development. The lock would originally have been built between 1665 and 1710, when the Navigation was constructed. It was reconstructed in 1829. Un the late 19th century in was filled in.

Features and deposits thought to be part of/associated with the 1829 lock were found during an archaeological watching brief on a trench dug at Woodmill Lane in 2008 (SOU 1470).

Protected Status: None recorded

Other References/Statuses

• HER backup file (new series): MSH373/374  paper & digital
• Old Southampton SMR No/Backup file: SU 4315 SE 11  

Monument Type(s):

• HARD STANDING (Post Medieval - 1665 AD? to 1829 AD?)
• REVETMENT (Post Medieval - 1665 AD to 1829 AD)
• SEA LOCK (Built, Post Medieval - 1665 AD to 1710 AD)
• SEA LOCK (extant, Post Medieval - 1665 AD? to 1897 AD?)
• TIDAL LOCK (Built, Post Medieval - 1665 AD to 1710 AD)
• TIDAL LOCK (extant, Post Medieval - 1665 AD? to 1897 AD?)
• SEA LOCK (Rebuilt, Post Medieval - 1829 AD to 1829 AD)
• TIDAL LOCK (rebuilt, Post Medieval - 1829 AD to 1829 AD)

Full description

[2][9]: The Itchen Navigation was constructed between 1665 and 1710, being virtually complete by 1710. It served as the navigable link between Southampton and Winchester, used by barge traffic. The Navigation started at a sea lock located next to Woodmill, on Woodmill Lane, Swaythling. The sea lock was reconstructed in 1829 (details given). It is described in detail in a report of 1862. The Itchen Navigation was last used for commercial traffic in 1869, however the sea lock remained in use for barges going to West End Mill (now Gater’s Mill) for some time after. Although the site is still apparent, it has been obscured by subsequent development (photograph).
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HISTORIC MAPS:
HER 1/9/10: The "Sea Lock" and bridge at Wood Mill are shown on the 1791 map [8] and 1800 map [11] (although not named on the latter). It is also shown on the 1883 map [3]. See parent record for all maps.
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[4] (pp 4-5): The sea lock, which had been reconstructed in 1829, had two pairs of gates to retain the water, with an additional pair, pointing downstream, to prevent salt water flowing into the Navigation during very high tides (citing [1] page 13). The chamber was lined with bricks, unlike most of the other locks on the Navigation, which were turf locks with brick supports for the gates. A wooden bridge 15 feet wide, built in 1829, crossed the east part of the chamber diagonally (citing [9]). The Ordnance Survey map of c1867 (fig 2) (probably the 1883 map [3]- HER) shows the sea lock and the bridge, but not the third pair of gates, which may have been removed by then. The Ordnance survey map of 1896 (=[10], 1897) shows that the chamber had been filled in and the bridge removed.
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IP 2/12/03: Traffic on Woodmill Lane now crosses the site of the lock.
[1]: Woodmill Lock is mentioned.
[5]: Woodmill Lock is mentioned.
[6]: Woodmill Lock is mentioned.
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SOU 1470 (watching brief on a trench dug on the bank of the River Itchen, north side of Woodmill Lane in 2008):
[4]: Two brick features (contexts 1 and 3) were observed in the base of the trench (figs 5 and 6). These were probably part of the former sea lock of the Itchen Navigation, known to have been reconstructed in 1829. The brick features lay just north of the site of the lock chamber. The part of the trench that crossed the site of the lock chamber was not excavated to sufficient depth to expose the chamber. An angled projection of the river bank near the east end of the site is thought to be a remnant of the east end of the south wall of the northern entrance to the lock.
Elsewhere in the trench, a clay and chalk deposit was found below the modern concrete and tarmac. This had probably been laid down to provide a firm ground around the lock, perhaps during its original construction, although brick inclusions within the deposit suggest it dates to the 1829 reconstruction. Within this deposit was a double timber alignment (context 4), probably part of a revetment intended to prevent slumping of the material towards the nearby riverbank, although not part of the riverbank itself.

ESH2016 (conservation assessment of Itchen Navigation in 2005):
[7]: (Information derived from this record.)

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Finds: None recorded

Associated Events

• ESH1828 - Watching Brief on the Installation of New Roadside Barriers in Woodmill Lane in 2008 (Ref: SOU 1470)
• ESH2016 - Conservation assessment (desk-based assessment) of the Itchen Navigation in 2005 (Ref: /)

Related records

Associated Links: None recorded

If you have any feedback or new information about this record, please email the Southampton HER (her@southampton.gov.uk).

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