Trent & Mersey Canal
The plan was made by the  canal engineer James Brindley. It was agreed by an Act of Parliament in 1766 and the first sod was cut by Josiah Wedgwood in July that year at Burslem. In 1777, the canal was completed, including more than 70 locks and five tunnels.  Wedgwood used the canal to bring clay into his potteries and to send the finished products to Liverpool. He built his factory village called Etruria on the outskirts of Stoke-on-Trent, close to the canal.