Løgstør Canal

Facts

Shortcut through the Liim Fjord

By Steffen Elmer Jørgensen, Arkivar, seniorforsker, Ph.D. (18 stories)

For many years, shipping in the Liim Fjord had problems with the shallows over the Løgstør Grunde sandbank northeast of the town of Løgstør. In 1856 Parliament decided to dig a canal at Løgstør to give the vessels easier passage. The King Frederik VII Canal was dug at Løgstør and opened for traffic in 1861. It was 4.4 kilometres long, 23-28 metres wide and 3.1 metres deep. The old iron Swing Bridge, now restored, is situated next to the canal bailiff's residence which today houses the Liim Fjord Museum. A crank handle allows the bridge to be swung open, parallel to the canal to allow free passage for vessels.

Public place

Selected entry

The canal at the water's edge

Story written by Steffen Elmer Jørgensen

Time / Periode 1861 1913

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East of Løgstør is the narrowest section of the Liim Fjord. West of the town, the Fjord spreads out into open sea. Here, in the 1850s, a four kilometre-long canal was dug along the coastline. The King Frederik VII Canal was dug to guide vessels around the Løgstør Grunde sandbank. It might seem illogical to dig a channel on land instead of on the sea bed through the shallows, but in the 1850s it was easier to dig a canal inside the coastline than to make a channel in the water. Until it was closed in 1913, the canal was operated by the Department of Hydraulic Engineering, which also supervised the state-owned harbours. The canal was made superfluous by the creation of a new channel out in the water over the Løgstør Grunde bank.