Technology
The ancient Romans also had a complex system of aqueducts, which were used to transport water across long distances. The first Roman aqueduct was built in 312 BCE. The eleventh and final ancient Roman aqueduct was built in 226 CE. Put together, the Roman aqueducts extended over 450 kilometers, but less than seventy kilometers of this was above ground and supported by arches.
Architecture of Manchester
The Industrial Revolution gathered momentum after the Bridgewater Canal was opened to Castlefield on 10 July 1761. The canal brought coal to the town from Worsley and when in 1776 it had been extended, cotton could be shipped into the town from the Port of Liverpool. At Castlefield Basin are a series of early warehouses, such as the Dukes Warehouse and the Grocers Warehouse. By 1800 the Bridgewater at Castlefield was connected to the Rochdale Canal and beyond that to the Ashton Canal. On the Ashton Canal the Store Street Aqueduct designed by Benjamin Outram, is believed to be the first skewed aqueduct of its kind and the oldest still in use and a brick lock-keeper's cottage constructed about 1800 survives by Number 2 Lock.