The Horseshoe Falls - the birth of the canal
It was the Shropshire iron masters, in particular William Reynolds of Ironbridge, who were responsible for promoting canals to serve the county and the Welsh Marches. The chosen engineer appointed to survey possible routes of this new canal was William Jessop, whose first proposed route to connect Wrexham and Ruabon was rejected on account of difficulties with the terrain and the expected cost. He was instructed to find an alternative and the result was the present route, which received Royal assent on April 30th 1793. One of the problems connected with any canal system is how to maintain a good supply of water. Each time a lock is used many thousands of gallons of water are used. Thomas Telford solved this problem by building a weir for taking water from the river Dee at Llantysilio. We now know this as the Horseshoe Falls.