Slight anachronism- Ellesmere Port wasn't built until the 1790s, indeed the canal was only authorised in 1791. The nearest canals in 1787 would have been the Bridgwater at Runcorn, the Trent and Mersey at Preston Brook, and the old Chester canal (which was actually abandoned in 1787, though of course later revived as part of what is now the Shropshire Union system).