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#dukescut #oxfordcanal #narrowboat #widebeam
Duke's Cut connects the Oxford Canal with the River Thames via the Wolvercote Mill Stream.
It is named after George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough, as it was his land through which the waterway was cut.
Dukes Cut is recognised as a branch of the Oxford Canal.
The Cut was constructed at the request of the Duke of Marlborough.
The Duchy of Marlborough had owned Wolvercote paper mill since 1720, and much of the surrounding land belonged to their Blenheim Palace estate.
In the 1790's, the Duke saw the benefit of bringing Warwickshire coal to the area, as the upper Thames area typically only received fuel from the Northumberland Coalfield via London, and consequently little cargo was left by the time vessels reached the upper river.
As owner of the land between the Oxford Canal and the mill stream, the Duke was aware of how level it was (and thus suited to a waterway) and permitted construction of a 500-yard cut to join the two waterways. The millstream provided a connection to the River Thames above King's Weir, bypassing the flash lock.
The cut opened in 1789; the exact date is unknown but an advertisement in William Jackson's Oxford Journal, published by the tenant of Wolvercote Mill and printed on the mill's paper, showed that the cut had opened by 3 October 1789.
Adjacent to the cut is Duke's Lake, a reservoir also used for carp, roach, tench, and bream fishing.Mooring on the Wolvercote Mill Stream between Dukes Cut and the River Thames is possible, but be aware of possible changes in water levels.
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