Benson Lock

The history of Benson Lock goes back into the 1300s, when a mill and weir were documented. It was not until 1788 that the first timber pound lock was built and this was converted to a stone lock in 1870. The original timber oak manual beams were removed when it was later rebuilt as a hydraulic lock in 1966.

One of the interesting facts about Benson Lock is not the lock itself, but the river. The distance between Benson and Cleeve Lock is exactly 6.5 miles - making it the greatest distance between locks on the Thames.

In times past, a ferry operated here, but this stopped running when the weir walkway and lock gates opened to the public.

The lock keeper’s attractive house was built in 1913, but it replaced the original which historical records show was in use in the mid 1800s. Interestingly, The Times newspaper of August 1865 reported that ‘Benson Lock House was deserted, and shut up’.

The first official mention of Benson was in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle of AD 571, where it appears as Bensington. This is still the village’s formal name and is written on the name board which stands outside the parish church.

Benson Lock attracts a wide variety of wildlife, including the kingfisher, red kites and owls, while the river here has its share of large pike, according to local anglers.

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