Whitchurch Lock, River lock in Oxfordshire, England
Whitchurch Lock is a pound lock on the River Thames in Oxfordshire with two pairs of gates that create a controlled water chamber for boats. The structure links two different water levels of the river together.
The lock began as a flash weir in 1580 and was rebuilt as a wooden pound lock in 1787 by the Thames Navigation Commissioners. This transformation was part of broader improvements made to the Thames for navigation.
The lock played a role in Jerome K Jerome's 1889 novel Three Men in a Boat, where the characters pass through during their Thames journey.
The site is accessible only from the water, so visitors need a boat to reach the lock. This makes it a special destination for those traveling on the Thames.
The lock is the only one among the 45 Thames locks that cannot be reached on foot and remains accessible only by boat. This isolation has kept it less well-known than its neighboring locks.
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