Map of Wednesbury Oak Loop (shown in pink), an original part of James Brindley's James Brindley James Brindley was an English engineer. He was born in Tunstead, Derbyshire, and lived much of his life in Leek, Staffordshire, becoming one of the most notable engineers of the 18th century.-Early life:...  Birmingham Canal, and its modern neighbours. The canals as they stand today are shown as solid lines. The Bradley Branch (top of map) linked the BCN Old Main Line and the Walsall Canal Walsall Canal The Walsall Canal is a narrow canal, seven miles long, forming part of the Birmingham Canal Navigations, and passing around the western side of Walsall, West Midlands, England.-Route:...  through nine locks.

The Bradley Branch or Bradley Locks Branch was a short canal of the Birmingham Canal Navigations

Birmingham Canal Navigations

Birmingham Canal Navigations is a network of navigable canals connecting Birmingham, Wolverhampton, and the eastern part of the Black Country...

 in West Midlands (county)

West Midlands (county)

The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2009 estimated population of 2,638,700. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The...

, England. It is now disused and largely dry.

Completed in 1849 it ran from the Wednesbury Oak Loop

Wednesbury Oak Loop

The Wednesbury Oak Loop, sometimes known as the Bradley Arm, is a canal in the West Midlands, England. It is part of the Birmingham Canal Navigations ....

 of the BCN Old Main Line, descending nine locks,

to Moorcroft Junction on the Walsall Canal

Walsall Canal

The Walsall Canal is a narrow canal, seven miles long, forming part of the Birmingham Canal Navigations, and passing around the western side of Walsall, West Midlands, England.-Route:...

. It closed in 1961. Today the western seven locks and canal have been filled in and are used as a public path and open space. The eastern two locks have been restored, filled in and culverted, with the canal remaining as a reed-filled stream as far as Moorcroft Junction.

Route

See also

• Canals of the United Kingdom
  Canals of the United Kingdom
  The canals of the United Kingdom are a major part of the network of inland waterways in the United Kingdom. They have a colourful history, from use for irrigation and transport, through becoming the focus of the Industrial Revolution, to today's role for recreational boating...
  
  
• History of the British canal system
  History of the British canal system
  The British canal system of water transport played a vital role in the United Kingdom's Industrial Revolution at a time when roads were only just emerging from the medieval mud and long trains of pack horses were the only means of "mass" transit by road of raw materials and finished products The...