The Duke of Bridgewater was at this time developing his estates in Cheshire by means of the great Bridgewater Canal. In 1761 it was open from Manchester to Worsley, and James Brindley, “the schemer,” was engaged in extending it to tide-water below Warrington. Brindley was already well known in the Potteries. He was born in the High Peak in 1716, and after serving his apprenticeship as a mill-wright at Macclesfield, and designing many improvements in spinning factories and mine drainage, he settled more or less in the Potteries. In or about 1758 he put up a windmill for grinding calcined flint on an estate called the Jenkins, near Burslem, belonging to John Wedgwood of the Big House; and many other pieces of engineering for the convenience of potters were invented by him. But in 1759 he commenced, under the Duke of Bridgewater, those 365 miles of canal which made his name famous.[97] Acting under the orders of Lord Gower and Lord Anson, Brindley had, in 1758, made a preliminary survey for a canal to connect the Trent and Mersey. The success of the Bridgewater canal caused this project to be revived in 1764, and an association was formed to obtain Parliamentary powers. In December of that year a meeting was held at Lichfield between Lord Gower and others, at which they discussed the conflicting interests of the proprietors, the landlords, the manufacturers and the public.[98] The scheme was dropped for that session, but all through 1765 Wedgwood, who saw the prime importance of this new method of transport, was engaging support, combating the opposition of rival interests, and getting Bentley to issue pamphlet after pamphlet showing all its advantages. At last, on May 14, 1766, the Bill received the Royal Assent. On June 3, a meeting of the proprietors was held, presided over by Lord Gower. There were present Lord Grey, Mr Bagot, Mr Anson, Mr Gilbert, Mr Smith of Fenton, Mr Sam. Robinson and others. A committee was formed and the following officers appointed: “James Brindley, Surveyor General, £200 per ann. Hugh Henshall, Clerk of the works, £150 ” T. Sparrow, Clerk to the proprietors, £100 ” Jos. Wedgwood, Treasurer, £000 ” out of which he bears his own expenses, and it was ordered that the work be begun on immediately, both sides of Harecastle and at Wilden.”[99] The first sod was cut by Wedgwood on July 26 at Brownhills, between Burslem and Tunstall, before a great concourse of people, and we are told that an ox was roasted whole for the populace.[100]