The canal ran broadly north, following closely the course of the river itself, for a distance of 5.9 miles (9.5 km), terminating at Moorswater, in the valley to the west of Liskeard.

Moorswater was chosen as a feasible terminal because of its altitude—below Liskeard town—and proximity to the agricultural lands the canal was built to serve.

Agricultural land around the Looe valleys was considered to be of high quality, but the acidic soil required annual improvement with lime.

Traditionally the limestone to prepare this had come from the Plymouth area by coastal shipping to the East Looe Valley where it was burnt in kilns to make the lime.

While the coastal shipping element of the journey was straightforward, even main roads were in a primitive condition; for example: Despite its grand title, it would seem that the 'Royal Cornish Way' (today's A30) was little better than a muddy cart-track by the beginning of the 18th century.

[9] After at least one other abortive proposal, a local solicitor Peter Glubb convened a meeting on 2 August 1823 in Liskeard to agree the way forward.

He swiftly presented his views, on 30 August, recommending a tub-boat canal, suitable for four-ton boats in trains (i.e. connected groups).

The rise of 180 feet in 6.25 miles (10,060 m) in 10 km) threatened water supply difficulties if negotiated by locks, so Green repeated the earlier proposal for two inclined planes.

[10] A subscription list was quickly filled, but soon this proposal too stalled, due to strong opposition from interests in Lostwithiel and Fowey, and "weakness of the proprietors in a pecuniary point of view and other insuperable obstacles".

In order to appease John Buller, a substantial local landowner, the canal would have a "Towing Path of sufficient width for Gentlemen's Carriages".

4. c. clxiii), was obtained on 22 June 1825, but after Green's departure, the proprietors asked Robert Coad to design the route in detail.

[13] The act created the Liskeard and Looe Union Canal Company, with an authorised capital of £13,000 in shares of £25, and authority to borrow a further £10,000 on mortgage if required.

"[3] However Priestley does not offer this as a direct quotation from the act, and he may have heard this reported from an earlier, unsuccessful bill, and mistakenly understood the plan to be still current.

[14] There was some internal tension in the committee of management, for there was a motion at the general meeting in February 1826 that a properly qualified civil engineer should be asked to assess the work done so far, and whether the two men should be allowed to proceed without further assistance, but the motion was defeated by 49 votes to 10,[15] and four of the nine Committee members changed at the subsequent election.

[16] During the construction, the company operated a health insurance scheme for the labourers similar to that commonly in place in the Cornish mines, with each worker contributing 6 pence (2.5p) per month, which was used to pay Mr. Robert Rean, an apothecary and surgeon from East Looe, for his services.

It rose through 156 feet (48 m) over its length of 5.9 miles (9.5 km) Although the canal was in full operation, there were numerous challenges facing the proprietors.

Lime was burnt at Moorswater and elsewhere on the higher reaches of the canal, leading to the failure of kilns at Sandplace, which lost trade.

Lyne built five kilns in 1831, and water from a pond to the north of the works was channelled along a culvert to power an overshot wheel.

[23] By 1835 the poor condition of the canal works was again giving cause for concern, and contract arrangements were put in place to rectify the situation.

However, the unsatisfactory state of affairs was slow to be rectified, and complaints about the conditions and measures put in place by the directors continued to dominate the minute books until at least 1851.

Mineral ore could now be brought relatively conveniently to market: by railway to Moorswater; by canal boat to Looe; and onwards by coastal shipping.

The upper section may have been used by the tenants of the Morval Estate for the transport of agricultural produce, for which no tolls were chargeable, but residents at Duloe complained in 1867 that the canal could no longer be used since the railway had been built.

Between 1901 and 1909, the annual gross dues averaged 35 shillings (£1.75), mainly derived from tolls of 3 pence (1.25p) for small boats of about 1.5 tons carrying sand and seaweed, which was used to improve the land.