The Waterways Archives Ellesmere Port and Resource Centre holds a wide range of material relating to Britain’s inland waterways and a smaller amount of material from waterways throughout the world.
The document collection includes boat building plans and working records. We also hold extensive collections relating to the Weaver Navigation Trust, Middlewich Wharf, the Charles Hadfield World Canals Research and the Manchester Ship Canal.
The photographic collections include work by Robert Aickman, Michael Ware and Eric de Mare and a wide range of books and periodicals are available for research use.
The Resource Centre is open by appointment for research Monday to Wednesday between 9am and 5pm. Please note Christmas closing, the Centre will be closed from 24 December 2007 reopening on Monday 7 January 2008.
For further information on the the Waterways Archives Ellesmere Port or to make an appointment please contact the Archives Team on 0151 373 4378 or via email
Please note: a minimum of 24 hours notice is needed for bookings.
The Waterways Archives Research Service
The Waterways Archives undertake a limited amount of research for those who are unable to visit in person. Our research service uses the full range of material available in the archives as well as relevant online resources to carry out searches for individuals.
The service can carry out work for many people including those researching family history, academics, students, engineers, the media. In fact, anyone with an interest in Britain's waterway history.
How much does it cost? The first 15 minutes of research is free. After this research taking less than one hour is charged in proportion to the time taken.
STANDARD PERSONAL/INDIVIDUAL SERVICE Minimum fee of £12.50 for 30 minutes work or £25 for up to 1 hour’s work. Our response is usually posted within 6-8 weeks after we receive your order but if demand is heavy this may take longer. We acknowledge promptly safe receipt of your payment. We recommend that initially you order 1 hour’s work unless the archive research assistant advises otherwise. We regret that we cannot refund the fee if no information is found.
PRIORITY PERSONAL/INDIVIDUAL SERVICE Minimum fee of £17.50 for 30 minutes work or £35 for up to 1 hour’s work. Replies are dispatched as soon as possible and certainly within 8 working days after receipt of your order. If for any reason this cannot be done we reply as soon as possible thereafter but only charge you our standard rate. A maximum of 2 hours per letter can be accepted on Priority basis.
STANDARD BUSINESS SERVICE Minimum fee of £17.50 for 30 minutes work or £35 for up to 1 hour’s work. Our response is usually posted within 6-8 weeks after we receive your order but if demand is heavy this may take longer. We acknowledge promptly safe receipt of your payment. We recommend that initially you order 1 hour’s work unless the archive research assistant advises otherwise. We regret that we cannot refund the fee if no information is found.
PRIORITY BUSINESS SERVICE Minimum fee of £22.50 for 30 minutes work or £45 for up to 1 hour’s work. Replies are dispatched as soon as possible and certainly within 8 working days after receipt of your order. If for any reason this cannot be done we reply as soon as possible thereafter but only charge you our standard rate. A maximum of 2 hours per letter can be accepted on Priority basis
What does the fee include? We will send you a full report of what we have found (plus any sources checked without success) and advise without obligation as to whether further research could be undertaken. Our report to you will be available to our staff for use in other enquiries unless you state with your order that you wish it to be kept private.
The fee includes a few photocopies/printouts if appropriate; we may make an extra charge if a large number of copies are required. Copies are supplied on the strict understanding that they will not be further copied or published by you; if you wish to do this you must first contact the archive research assistant to enquire whether this is possible.
This fee also includes VAT and postage.
How do I request a search? Please contact the archive research assistant stating your requirements by post:
The Waterways Archive
Ellesmere Port Research Service National Waterways Museum Ellesmere Port
South Pier Road
Ellesmere Port
Cheshire
CH65 4FW
An estimate will then be made based on the time likely to be needed. Following your quote, if you would like to order research this can be done as follows:
Fill in your details and return the form to The Waterways Archive
Our archive research assistant will acknowledge receipt of your order and advise on when to expect your report. On completion of the research you will be asked to pay. The information found will be sent to you once payment has cleared.
For information on the waterways archives, you can also explore the Virtual Waterways, an on-line database, from the comfort of your own home.
