Before BQ at Boxmoor

Boxmoor Wharf  Hemel Hempstead has to me like many others always been the Lime juice dock. I remember living in Watford and driving to Hemel passing the mountainous stacks of Oak barrels just where BQ is today. Coming over the canal bridge and driving along the side of the dock into town barrels towered above you. In the hot weather they were sprayed with water probably to stop the Oak barrels shrinking and leaking. Thousands of them brought up from Brentford by boat and then shipped to St. Albans for bottling.
It is stated the trip took 12 hours. Canal plan states 27 miles 36 locks 17 hours. Boy would I have liked to be aboard and watch the old boatmen knock 5 hours off.
If the canal branch from Cassio had been built the barrels might have been shipped direct into St. Albans.
The wharf is owned by the Boxmoor Trust who built it following the sale of 25 acres of common land for£900 ($1400) so the canal could be built.
 Now all I have read says they built it but I believe they only built the warehouses and other buildings as in the 3rd picture down. I did find reference to the canal company having allowed for the basic wharf side in the original plans but could not find any more details other than from memory it was to do with a timber mill.
 One day I will visit the National Archives and find out the answer to many things that move around in my head like water flowing past the bow, gentle and causing no problems. Searching the old ordnance survey maps in the library's for the original route of the canal was when I discovered how big these wharves were.                         Some interesting facts and figures for the wharf;
Balderson a dealer in coal, stone, timber and the import of wines had a lease on the wharf in 1856. By 1890 his son Henry had negotiated a lease of £100 ($150) per year.
Roses Lime juice in 1946 had a 21 year lease for £150 ($225) rising in 1955 to £450. 1975 and just before Roses become part of Cadbury Schweppes the lease is £23,000 ($34,000)
BQ ( Home Depot to U.S. readers) came along in 1984 paying £50,000($75,000) and onto 1995 £300,000($450,000) In the early years they had a reduced rent owing to a deal with the Boxmoor trust as to the buildings construction by BQ. Last years accounts show the rent was £480,970 and the building reverts back to the trust if BQ give up the lease.



 

 

A poster(section above) advertising the wharf refers to it being able to hold 10 or 12 barges! It mentions the present occupier to be Howard and sons who I found held a lease in 1818 so I assume it is around this date the lease is being advertised.

The old ordnance map shows the two wharves. The one on the right was occupied by W. H. Lavers timber and still is today under the name Travis Perkins.  Lavers were at Fishery wharf near the pub/lock of the same name back in 1869 and moved to Boxmoor in 1870 for larger premises. They had timber brought by boat from London docks and processed it in their own steam mill on site. 

So here we have the same view then and now. In the picture above the caption states......... shows the swing bridge that carried the towpath over the River Gade on it`s earlier course to Two Waters. I assume they mean the old mill whose chimney can be seen.The swing bridge can just be seen but I did find a close up below.

Now this is the swing bridge over the R. Gade. At first I was confused because I assumed the bridge crossed the Gade on the canals offside which made the bridge seem in the wrong place. But further reading and digging out the map above I realised the Gade ran straight through the present day towpath. BQ is just under the road bridge.
Just to the left of this picture is Boxmoor lock 64 the start of the long pound stretching over one and a half miles to the next lock. This was of course before the canals present route came about in 1819.

All the old images have come from; Royalty to Commoners: 400 Years of the Box Moor Trust, Joan and Roger Hands. My thanks
Modern day pictures are my own.
The map is from the library collection and photographed by me. It is beyond the 50 year copyright rule that enabled me to copy it.