Quick Links => Milepost Campaign , Mileposts Index , Phil Myott’s website , Mileposts replaced by TMCS (this list is a PDF which will open in a new tab)

The Trent and Mersey Canal is famous for its mileposts, and many people may assume that they have been undisturbed since they were first installed. However when the society was launched they were nowhere to be seen. This is because they were mainly removed and buried or hidden during the second World War (like many road-signs) to stop the enemy finding their way if they invaded.

A campaign to restore all the mileposts on the canal was launched by the Trent & Mersey Canal Society in 1977. Original mileposts removed during the war were found (many after extensive searches), cleaned and painted before being reinstalled. Not all of them could be found however so 34 new mileposts were cast and installed with due ceremony. An extra 94th milepost was added at Derwent Mouth. The final replacement milepost was unveiled in October 1985 at Brownhills, near where the first sod was cut when the canal was built.

See a full list of the Mileposts replaced by TMCS (PDF file, last updated 15th July 2020 to correct spelling mistakes).

Read a fuller description of our Milepost Campaign

In 2017 it was decided that our web-site should feature the history of all our mileposts to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the beginning of our mileposts campaign (and also the 240th anniversary of the opening of our canal). There is page for each milepost, with history and photographs, both old (e.g. unveiling ceremonies) and new (e.g. repainting of the Cheshire Locks mileposts). See the Mileposts Index to this new section of our web-site.

We have also resurrected Phil Myott’s useful website (which was visible at www.tmc-mileposts.co.uk from 2002 to 2016 when he decided that it was too out-of-date and that he no longer had time to maintain it). See Phil Myott’s website by clicking HERE. Please note that TMCS has NOT verified or approved the contents of Phil’s website, and that many of the pages are 15-20 years old.