The Old Union Canal

Scottish canals expert Gethrie Hutton has finally produced a long-awaited new book on the Union Canal, which goes from the heart of Edinburgh to the Falkirk Wheel via Slateford, Wester Hailes, Ratho, Broxburn, Winchburgh, Linlithgow and Polmont. The book recounts the fall and rise of the canal from its 19th century beginnings when it failed to make money through bad timing and the railways pinching its business leading to subsequent decay and dereliction before the remaining sections were closed in 1965. This glorious failure of a history is recounted together with the revival of the canal's fortunes as one half of the millennium Link when it was restored together with the Forth & Clyde Canal. A mix of archive and more recent photographs, all extensively captioned, tell the story.