Existing Buildings
The pier was at the end of a narrow gauge tramway from a colliery. The wagons would be brought right to the edge of the canal to be tippled so that their contents went straight into the waiting barges. The original wooden pier is believed to have been demolished in 1929, with the iron from the tippler being sold as scrap. Because of the more recent pride in the area's heritage, a replica tippler, consisting of two curved rails, has been erected at the original location.
The former Wigan Terminus Warehouses were built in the 18th century and refurbished in the 1980s. Boats could moor inside the building and off-load directly into the warehouse.
A warehouse with covered loading bays, converted into a museum of Victorian life (often mistakenly thought to be Wigan Pier), and the home to The Way We Were museum, was part of the Wigan Pier Experience museum and exhibition centre. The exhibition featured a Victorian school room, a colliery disaster, the Second Boer War and (on the top floor) a complete pub transported from Hope Street and reconstructed by shopping centre developers. The Wigan Pier Theatre Company used these displays to remind present generations of "The Way We Were" – not always a happy life. The attraction closed on 20 December 2007.
Gibson's Warehouse is a Victorian cotton warehouse, originally built in 1777, re-built in 1984 as The Orwell at Wigan Pier, is situated on the canalside.
Trencherfield Mill is a former cotton mill, located across the road from Wigan Pier - currently being converted into luxury apartments. It still contains the massive working steam engine which will be kept in the new development.
There are several bridges across the canal. Bridge #51 Pottery Changeline is a roving bridge, one which swaps the tow path from one side of the canal to the other, usually in such a way as to allow the horse pulling the barge to pass easily and without disconnecting its tow-rope. Bridge #50 Seven Stars Bridge is adjacent to the Seven Stars public house, taking its name from "The Plough" star constellation.
Elizabeth House, whose address is The Pier, Wigan, houses Keep Britain Tidy, an environmental charity.
Wigan Pier Nightspot is a night club on the southern bank of the Canal. The club plays music predominantly from the bouncy house genre.
Read more about this topic: Wigan Pier
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