A change of ownership occurred in 1832, when the bankers Duckett, Morland and Company failed, and Sir George Duckett, the son of one of the original three funders, became bankrupt.
At the time, the annual income from tolls was around £5,000, and the whole concern was estimated to be worth £150,000.
It passed to a firm called Birbecks, who had loaned the company £40,000 but then foreclosed the mortgage.
They then passed it on to Gurney and Co., who were bankers based in Norwich.

In May 1842 the Northern and Eastern Railway opened a line to Bishop's Stortford, which followed the valley of the Stort, and had stations almost on the banks of the navigation.
The effect on trade was dramatic, with income dropping from £5,477 to £2,593 in the ten years between 1838 and 1848.
The decline then stopped, and the Lee Navigation gave serious thought to purchasing their neighbour.
Acts of Parliament obtained by them in 1868 and 1874 included powers to authorise the acquisition, but surveys were made, and the amount of repairs and dredging that would be required persuaded them to only offer a small sum, which was rejected.
Gurney and Co. sold it in 1873 to a firm of brewers from Spitalfields called Truman, Hanbury and Co. Sir Walter Gilbey took it over next, and formed the Stort Navigation Company Ltd in 1905, a company in which most of the directors were members of his own family.

With income dropping, Gilbey began negotiating with the Lee Navigation.
Bishop's Stortford Urban District Council offered £170 towards its purchase, on condition that other local authorities should also contribute.
Later that year, one side of Brick Lock at Roydon collapsed.
As it was the second lock above the junction with the Lee, nearly all the barges that operated on the Navigation were trapped above it.
Gilbey offered the Navigation to the Lee Navigation for a small fee.
Although the deal was not finalised, they sent extra men to assist the six already employed on rebuilding the lock, and it reopened on 4 October 1909.
Another assessment by the Lee Conservancy Board estimated that £10,800 was needed to put it back into good order, and noted that income had dropped from £927 to £319 between 1901 and 1907.
Eventually Gilbey gave in, and the Lee Conservancy Board took ownership on 1 June 1911, having paid just five shillings (25p) for it.

Prior to the takeover, the Lee Conservators had applied for a loan under the Development and Road Improvement Funds Act of 1909, and were granted five annual payments of £2,500, to be repaid when profits were made.
Work began on rebuilding the locks in 1913, but the onset of the First World War in 1914 resulted in all work stopping, except for urgent repairs.
It resumed when the war ended, and the navigation was reopened on 4 July 1924, the ceremony being performed by Harry Gosling, the Minister of Transport.
Some traffic returned to the navigation, as trade in timber, grain and malt grew, but it died away after the Second World War, and the last commercial traffic was in 1972.
However, the growth in leisure boating was already well under way, and the navigation has seen a new lease of life as a result.
A change of ownership occurred in 1832, when the bankers Duckett, Morland and Company failed, and Sir George Duckett, the son of one of the original three funders, became bankrupt. At the time, the annual income from tolls was around £5,000, and the whole concern was estimated to be worth £150,000. It passed to a firm called Birbecks, who had loaned the company £40,000 but then foreclosed the mortgage. They then passed it on to Gurney and Co., who were bankers based in Norwich.
In May 1842 the Northern and Eastern Railway opened a line to Bishop's Stortford, which followed the valley of the Stort, and had stations almost on the banks of the navigation. The effect on trade was dramatic, with income dropping from £5,477 to £2,593 in the ten years between 1838 and 1848. The decline then stopped, and the Lee Navigation gave serious thought to purchasing their neighbour. Acts of Parliament obtained by them in 1868 and 1874 included powers to authorise the acquisition, but surveys were made, and the amount of repairs and dredging that would be required persuaded them to only offer a small sum, which was rejected. Gurney and Co. sold it in 1873 to a firm of brewers from Spitalfields called Truman, Hanbury and Co. Sir Walter Gilbey took it over next, and formed the Stort Navigation Company Ltd in 1905, a company in which most of the directors were members of his own family.
With income dropping, Gilbey began negotiating with the Lee Navigation. Bishop's Stortford Urban District Council offered £170 towards its purchase, on condition that other local authorities should also contribute. Later that year, one side of Brick Lock at Roydon collapsed. As it was the second lock above the junction with the Lee, nearly all the barges that operated on the Navigation were trapped above it. Gilbey offered the Navigation to the Lee Navigation for a small fee. Although the deal was not finalised, they sent extra men to assist the six already employed on rebuilding the lock, and it reopened on 4 October 1909. Another assessment by the Lee Conservancy Board estimated that £10,800 was needed to put it back into good order, and noted that income had dropped from £927 to £319 between 1901 and 1907. Eventually Gilbey gave in, and the Lee Conservancy Board took ownership on 1 June 1911, having paid just five shillings (25p) for it.
Prior to the takeover, the Lee Conservators had applied for a loan under the Development and Road Improvement Funds Act of 1909, and were granted five annual payments of £2,500, to be repaid when profits were made. Work began on rebuilding the locks in 1913, but the onset of the First World War in 1914 resulted in all work stopping, except for urgent repairs. It resumed when the war ended, and the navigation was reopened on 4 July 1924, the ceremony being performed by Harry Gosling, the Minister of Transport. Some traffic returned to the navigation, as trade in timber, grain and malt grew, but it died away after the Second World War, and the last commercial traffic was in 1972. However, the growth in leisure boating was already well under way, and the navigation has seen a new lease of life as a result.
Stort Navigation