Chester City Walls - North West Section

St Martin's Gate to Watergate

Average Walking Time = approximately 11 minutes (not accounting for sightseeing)

 

15. Pemberton's Parlour

The site of a medieval watch tower when it was known as Dille's Tower and, subsequently, the Goblin Tower. It was reconstructed in the 18^th century as part of improvements to the Walls. Its current name is thought to originate from its use by John Pemberton. He had a rope works below and used the tower to keep an eye on his workmen. It was rebuilt in 1893 after the earlier tower fell down. To the West of this point Parliamentary bombardment during the Civil War created a breach in the wall, another major breach being near the Newgate on the Eastern side of the city (No 38 on the Walls Heritage Trail).

 

 

 

 

16. Selected View: From Wall near Bonewaldesthorne's Tower looking North

The large expanse of water is Chester's canal basin. This was built as an interchange in the 18^th century between the Port of Chester at Crane Wharf and a canal system that ultimately linked Chester to the Midlands via Nantwich and to Ellesmere Port (on the Mersey). In the centre of the basin is a dry dock which was built in 1798 for repairing canal boats and which still functions as a repair yard.

One warehouse remains - 'Telford's Warehouse'. This is now a bar, restaurant and music venue. If you venture over to the basin you will see that this warehouse is built partly over the canal with shipping holes allowing craft to dock below the building to make unloading/ loading easier.

The building next door was the Canal Company's office and at one time included a tavern. The tavern provided refreshment for passengers using the canal's packet boats en route to Liverpool (at least a 3 hour trip from this point) often as part of a longer journey to the United States. In 1801 some 15,000 passengers used the packet service.

To the East the canal climbs a flight of three locks (originally five), which when they were built were the largest in Britain. The Locks are also on the Chester Millennium Trail. The towpath of the canal is now part of a network of cycle tracks and also provides a pleasant place to stroll.  Visit the Canal Towpath Trail for more information on the canal and a trail between Chester and Ellesmere Port.

 

17. Bonewaldesthorne's Tower

A watch tower on the Walls which originally stood adjacent to the river. However, as the river silted up in the Middle Ages a new tower was built further West connected by a spur wall. Bonewaldesthorne's tower, therefore, came to guard access to that spur. Today the tower houses a camera obscura and is open to the public on certain days of the year.

 

 

 

 

 

18. Water Tower

Officially the 'New' Tower, the Water Tower was built in 1322 to protect the port. Although the tower was located at the end of a 30m (75ft) long spur wall and intended to stand in the waters of the river, it now stands isolated as the Dee changed its course and silting continued. Along with Bonewaldesthorne's Tower, it is open to the public on certain days of the year. One of the best views of the Water Tower and Spur Wall (together with a water gate in the Wall) is obtained from Water Tower Gardens which can be accessed using near-by steps from the Walls. For further information Visit the Water Tower fact sheet. The Water Tower is also on the Chester Millennium Trail.

 

 

 

19. Selected View: From Wall near Bonewaldesthorne's Tower looking West

In medieval times you would have been looking over water at this point since the River Dee once flowed below the Walls. Indeed, the Norman wall builders used the line of the river cliff to construct the Western Walls, so that often you may feel that you are not actually on a wall but walking at street level. However, if you look over or along the Wall you will realise that it is, indeed, a wall.

Over the centuries the area below silted up and the river migrated to its current position at New Crane Wharf some ¼ mile away. The Port of Chester has, therefore, also changed location over the centuries and keeping it open is a story of a battle with nature and the problem of silting. The Old Port area around New Crane Wharf is currently being regenerated and a new Riverside Promenade Trail has been constructed from the Old Port to the Groves.

You can descend the steps (behind you) to Water Towers Gardens to reach this Promenade and should you venture to Cop Park (to the North) you can see how the River Dee was canalised in the 1740s to try to improve navigation. However, problems continued and the importance of Chester as a port declined over the 18^th and 19^th centuries.

In the distance are the Clwydian Hills of Wales, including the distinctive form of Moel Famau - a triangular hill with a square block (the remains of a former monument commemorating George III's Golden Jubilee built by Thomas Harrison) at its peak.

Also, from this point you can see the railway viaduct built in 1844 which takes trains to Holyhead and Shrewsbury. At the end of the viaduct a bridge crosses the river. This was the site of an early railway accident associated with Robert Stevenson's design which incorporated cast iron. In 1847 a cast iron girder broke as a train passed over the bridge leading to five dead as carriages and the tender plunged into the river. Subsequent bridge design worldwide used wrought iron rather than inherently brittle cast iron.

 

20. Infirmary

The original and remaining core of the Chester (Royal) Infirmary. Most of the site was demolished in the late 1990s following the opening of the Countess of Chester Hospital to the North of the City. The building has since been converted into apartments. The infirmary was opened in 1761 and the institution became 'Royal' when a new wing was opened by King George V in 1914.

 

 

 

 

 

21. Queen's School

The building is an example of the vernacular revival and was built in 1882. It has a statue of Queen Victoria in a recess above the former main doorway. The school was established for 'middle-class girls' in 1878 and moved to these premises in 1883. This building is also on the Chester Millennium Trail.