Behind-the-scenes look at Welshpool lock works

But while the use of canals these days is reserved for holidaymakers and boat fans, hundreds of people flocked to Welshpool to see how £38,000 is being spent on upgrading the 200-year lock.

The trust has installed two new gates weighing 3.6 tonnes at the lock, which holds about 80,000 gallons of water.

Jim Forrester, partnership chairman of the North Wales & Borders region of the Canal and River Trust, said he was delighted that so much interest was shown in the lock, with more than 200 people in attendance at an open day last weekend.

He said: "As part of its first annual waterway maintenance programme, the Canal & River Trust invited members of the public to a behind-the-scenes look at Welshpool Lock to see the work required to protect the 200-year-old waterway network.

"The open day gave the people of Welshpool the opportunity to go inside the drained lock chamber to learn about the breadth of experience and skills required to undertake the maintenance work, and how the lock gates are craned in and out.

"Powysland Museum, next to the lock, was also open on the day and ran heritage tours about local history."

He added: "Welshpool Town Lock is at the heart of the town and replacing these lock gates is part of the essential maintenance needed to enable the canal network to be used by the local community."

The hidden history of the lock is being opened to the public this winter as part of the trust's £50m spend on conservation and maintenance works across 2,000 miles of waterways in England and Wales, replacing 104 lock gates and undertaking repairs.

Mr Forrester said the work carried out in Welshpool cost £38,000. He said the 'historically significant' lock dated from the 1790s, while the new gates are replacing a pair from 1973. He said that Welshpool was the main town on the Montgomeryshire Canal and became its administrative centre during its 1800s heyday.

The canal wharf at Severn Street was the first site for managerial work and general trade. The wharf was enclosed by a green stonewall and during the early 19th century a row of cottages was built against the wall. By the middle of the 19th century there were 30 warehouses along the canal.

Two of these were in Welshpool and owned by the canal company.

One of these was a small warehouse at Welshpool Canal Wharf – now the south corner of the present building. During the last quarter of the century, the canal company, seeking to encourage trade and use of the canal, decided to develop this building.

Most of the warehouses on the Montgomeryshire Canal had an integral crane usually tied into the roof.

"At the Welshpool Canal Wharf warehouse, a one-ton capacity crane was built into the structure of the roof. The crane itself has disappeared but remains of the structure can still be seen on the ground and in the roof.

Mr Forrester added: "Originally planned to run from Llanymynech to Newtown via Welshpool, the canal is today considered to run 33 miles from the Llangollen Canal to Newtown." Opened in 1797, the canal fell in to disuse in 1936, and was officially abandoned in 1944. The Welshpool portion was threatened by a new bypass in 1969, when it was decided to restore it.

In 1987 the locks at Frankton Junction were restored and officially reopened, while in 1996 the four-mile section from Frankton Junction to Queen's Head, near Oswestry, was reopened. In 2003 the three mile section from Queen's Head to Gronwen Wharf was reopened.

To find out more about the winter stoppage programme go to www.canalrivertrust.org.uk/winter-stoppages