Following the death of Pyott, ownership of the navigation was bought by James D'Arcy, by then married to the widow of one of Pyott's sons. There were still mortgages of £4,666 outstanding, all of them owned by members of Pyott's family, on which interest had to be paid. He appears to have leased the tolls to the proprietors, according to a local newspaper report of the time, and then to Edward Knapp, before taking over again in 1794. Around 1802, the navigation was carrying of freight, of which were coal and culm, were salt, tons were chalk, and the remaining tons were made up of other goods. The average annual income was quoted as £3,735, but this probably included freight charges as well as tolls, since D'Arcy managed both. He operated four barges.