Carrying Coal
by Ian H Bruce (2008)
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Chorus: (G)Carrying (Em)coal from (C)High Lane to (G)Bosley Then dropping (Em)down through (Am)Telford’s neat (D)flight Passing through (Em)Congleton, (C)onward to (G)Kidsgrove Hoping for (Em)beers in the (D)Red Bull (G)tonight ’Twas late in the day when construction started The railways were coming doom prophets did say But in only five years the canal was completed And Macclesfield’s goods could then move on their way Limestone from Bugsworth, coal mined near Poynton Twist and silk buttons and cotton from mills Barrels of felt hats destined for London In horse powered barges skirting Derbyshire hills The boom years soon passed and boat cargoes dwindled Overwhelmed by the railways, the power of steam Pleasure boats briefly took tourists to Lyme Hall But the silver strewn highway was a vanishing dream The route struggled on for over a century When closure was planned many expressed concern But some valiant efforts by keen leisure cruisers Saw closure abandoned, pleasure boating return Fibreglass followed the wooden hulled cruisers Now the steel narrow-boats need fuels to be burned Coalite for cabin stove, diesel for engine So the travelling coal boats now have returned |
