Sluice/Road Bridge At Outfall Of Earnshaw'S Warping Drain Approximately 25 Metres South-East Of Park Cottages

The sluice and road bridge at the outfall of Earnshaw's Warping Drain, located approximately 25 metres south-east of Park Cottages, dates from the late 18th century to early 19th century. It is constructed from tooled ashlar and features a timber sluice gate with an iron hoist mechanism. The south-west face includes a central tunnel arch flanked by projecting revetment walls that are splayed out to each side, rising to a roadside parapet between coped rectangular piers. The sluice gate and hoist are still in place; the board gate has a timber lifting bar with iron teeth that pass through a wheeled ratchet mechanism, which is attached at one end to the parapet and at the other to an iron girder between the revetment walls. The north-east side has a parapet, while the rest is obscured by later earth infill. This structure carries the main A161 road. In addition to functioning as a land drain, this watercourse was used to improve the nearby low-lying farmland through a process called warping, where silt was deposited by controlled flooding. It is one of only two sluices in the Axeholme-Marshland area that retains the original hoist mechanism, the other being on the Folly Drain in Keadby with Althorpe parish, and it is the most complete example of a warping drain sluice in the area.