The canal was conceived as part of a wider scheme to drain the low-lying land and fens between the Humber Estuary and Market Weighton.

The scheme eventually put before Parliament was for a new cut from Market Weighton to the River Foulness, which would be straightened from the junction to the Humber.

The Act did not include powers to raise capital, as a group of people had agreed to finance the initial construction, while ongoing revenue was to be provided by a tax on landowners who benefited from the drainage and by the enclosing of common land, in addition to the normal tolls.

Because of the dual purpose of drainage and navigation, water levels in relation to the land surface were strictly controlled by the terms of the enabling act.

The York to Market Weighton Line opened in 1847, and the subsequent loss of income resulted in the condition of the canal deteriorating, to the extent that the commissioners sought an act of Parliament[which?]

[5] Further repairs and an overhaul of the structure were carried out in 1994 by the National Rivers Authority at a cost of £1.5 million,[2] and although there is no public right of navigation on the waterway, access is possible by arrangement with the Environment Agency, who currently own it.

[5] During the 1960s, the area was affected by flooding, as a result of heavy rainfall, and the decision was taken to convert the River Foulness and the canal into a highland carrier drain.

This involved raising the level of the banks, making the main channel wider and deeper, and creating storage areas for floodwater on both sides of the canal at Broomfleet.

[2] When the Weighton Lock sluices were converted to electro-mechanical operation in 1971, water levels in the canal could be raised without adversely affecting the drainage functions.

Above Sandholme Landing, the canal is joined by the River Foulness entering from the left, and about 1.2 miles (1.9 km) further on lies the derelict Sod House lock, the current head of navigation.