Paul H

I don’t believe any of the Royalty boats were built with well deck counters - although Linda/Victoria was modified as such around 1960. The “fish class” Joshers were a revolutionary design intended by Fellows Morton and Clayton to replace some of their single horse boats in the north west with single motors. They had extra long holds partly achieved by slightly shorter cabins and shorter engine rooms with the fuel tank “dished” to make room for the flywheel of the engine and thus save a few precious inches. There were also experiments at the stern! The “starn end” cupboard was much prized by the boatmen in their butties/horse boats - it was after all the boatman’s fridge well away from the range - and of course they were familiar with the design of back end hatched. So there was an attempt to lure boatmen away from horse boats on to single motors with the adoption of “well deck” counters on some of the early fish class motors - Dory, Lamprey and Perch amongst them. All were pretty soon converted to conventional motors. Paul

... and built by Graeme Pearce of Stockton Dry Dock Co at Warwickshire Flyboats. Without I believe not a false rivet in sight!

This is quite an interesting/historic boat having been built by Ralph Kirkham for his retirement and featured in an ancient Waterways World. Mr Kirkham had a plastics company in Yorkshire which designed and made the blue tops for British Waterways river class narrow boats and also some prototype fibreglass containers which were designed to be lifted out of narrow boats on to lorries. It has to be the same boat - Saga is very much a one off - but agree that the survey must be very out of date! Paul

Ray Shill, the BCN expert who posts on this forum as Heartland, wrote a book called “The Industrial Canal: The Railway Interchange Trade” in 1996. Audlem Mill appears to have a copy https://www.canalbookshop.co.uk/Secondhand list for website 090120.pdf I also remember an article by Tom Foxton in a magazine, possibly Waterways World. Paul

British Waterways painted their “spare”boats at this time in plain grey although a memo concerning Capricorn also specified a black stripe on the cabin side. This was presumably to preserve the cabin without going to the expense of a complete repaint. The picture to me looks posed and is probably a still from a film. I’ve come across it before on the internet - possibly Getty images. I can’t remember how to do a reverse image lookup. Any one else fancy a try? Paul

The previous thread I linked to above says Sentinel was built by Brian Duvall when he was at Spurr Marine. He owned the Bantock-derived tug Emerald and built a number of boats in various exaggerated traditional styles. Paul

Sentinel previously discussed:

Sadly the quoted history is far from accurate. Kilsby was built by Braithwaite and Kirk for Fellows Morton and Clayton in 1913 as a horse boat for general cargo. In 1945 it was sold to the Manchester Ship Canal Co for use as a mud boat on the Bridgewater Canal. Sold off for conversion to a houseboat in the 1980s it was called Helsby for a while. I’m sure Pete H has much more info! Paul Mods - can this be moved to History & Heritage where it will get more attention?

But I don’t believe the roundel logo featuring the word Board ever appeared as a transfer on the boats. Paul

... ...and where did that come from?

The British Waterways Board was set up in 1963 taking over from the Docks and Inland Waterways Executive, part of the British Transport Commission. As this coincided with the decision to withdraw from narrow boat carrying apart from 2 small contracts, there was no reason to redesign the life belt roundel. Paul

Ex-butty Achilles. This is the former bow section motorised by Roger Farringdon (I believe still owned by him) and moored outside his slipway. Achilles was for many years in the fleet of Birmingham and Midland. paul

The William (ex-Beauchanp Lodge) was worked on at this location but much later, probably mid 1980s. I know it wasn’t earlier because I owned it from 1977-79. Unfortunately the couple rebuilding it split up and restoration ground to a halt. I believe Jem Bates of Puttenham took away the ironwork but when I asked a few years ago couldn’t put his hand on it. But maybe another Ovaltine boat was here earlier. Paul

I think the first two boats, Milton Maid and Milton Queen were built in- house by Johnson Bros. The third boat, Milton Princess was supplied by Malcolm Braine of Norton Canes and lives on as Milton as a passenger boat for London Waterbus Co. The boats carried China between the two works at Hanley and Milton but in 1986 the Milton operation was closed and Princess became disused and was sold off. The other boats were then only used in a limited way around the Hanley site. Paul

I would suggest the first is Severn Dolphin - probably ex-Taygeta, a middle-Northwich GUCCC boat and now being restored at Brinklow. The second I’d Hercules, a GUCCC small woolwich still in use by CRT in the north west. Paul