For some time we have wondered about the origins of the name Chemistry Lock and failed to find anything on Google - even the Listed Structures entries are not helpful.
However, this morning, at last, something came to light and this post is just to record its reference and a very brief summary to say that it seems to have gained its name (not its original) from an adjacent chemical works that produced acid for tanning from oak apple galls.
We also found that the lock cottage dates from just after 1800 so was either an addition (originally Hoole Lane and Chemistry Locks shared a keeper) or a re-build to 'modern' housing standards. In any event, the lack of space between the canal and the railway may explain - if the dates can be aligned - the odd arrangement of one ground and one gate paddle at the top end, with the cottage walls only about half a metre away from the canal.
The Chester and Crewe Railway was first approved by Act of parliament in 1837 and opened in 1840 as part of the Grand Junction Railway.
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