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Dartagnan

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I would like to learn what various items were used for on the old working boats.  I have seen some beautiful photographs of the boats but not knowing the names or the terminology of the items I haven’t a clue what to search for!  Could anyone be so kind As to point me in the right direction of a suitable resource?

Thank you

Martin

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This list is quite reasonable 

 

https://www.iims.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Glossary-of-Narrowboat-and-Canal-terms.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwik5dTHharrAhUjQ0EAHe4-AwQQFjABegQIBRAB&usg=AOvVaw3xsEQkd9pW0knlVayQ6uII&cshid=1597935368407

 

Downloads a pdf from the IIMS (International institute of marine surveyors). 

 

ETA if I had known about "backering" twelve years ago I might have gone for that as an alternative to getting together with a woman and "bickering'. 

 

Horses which can do the towage by themselves sound pretty cool.

 

Edited by magnetman
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I'll add 3 bits of small but significant bits of lock ironwork. 

 

Butterfly - that cast iron part which holds the handrail vertical parts.3 bolts. Not all lock gates have them. Grand Union most locks have butterflies. 

 

Groove irons. The grooves where the stop planks go above and below locks. 

 

Breast irons. The vertical guard irons fitted to the lock gates where they meet to help prevent damage from boats breasting the gates. 

Edited by magnetman
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29 minutes ago, magnetman said:

This list is quite reasonable 

 

https://www.iims.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Glossary-of-Narrowboat-and-Canal-terms.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwik5dTHharrAhUjQ0EAHe4-AwQQFjABegQIBRAB&usg=AOvVaw3xsEQkd9pW0knlVayQ6uII&cshid=1597935368407

 

Downloads a pdf from the IIMS (International institute of marine surveyors). 

 

ETA if I had known about "backering" twelve years ago I might have gone for that as an alternative to getting together with a woman and "bickering'. 

 

Horses which can do the towage by themselves sound pretty cool.

 

 

Really good list, thanks for posting it. Tested it by looking up several of what I thought were obscure terms, sure enough they were all in there. Added to my favourites.

 

 

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1 hour ago, magnetman said:

This list is quite reasonable 

 

https://www.iims.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Glossary-of-Narrowboat-and-Canal-terms.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwik5dTHharrAhUjQ0EAHe4-AwQQFjABegQIBRAB&usg=AOvVaw3xsEQkd9pW0knlVayQ6uII&cshid=1597935368407

 

Downloads a pdf from the IIMS (International institute of marine surveyors). 

 

ETA if I had known about "backering" twelve years ago I might have gone for that as an alternative to getting together with a woman and "bickering'. 

 

Horses which can do the towage by themselves sound pretty cool.

 

Thank you very much, I appreciate it.

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Image by Edward Paget Tomlinson.

18301717_10212484570645314_7994502199372215630_n.jpg

 

Water can on roof, sometimes called a "Buckby Can." Used for storing drinking / cooking / washing water.

Mop (rag mop), for cleaning the boat down.

Hand bowl, used as a washing up bowl, for washing, preparing food etc.

Cabin or side strings used to store cotton line and dry it from the heat of the stove.

Tiller strings used to keep the tiller in a central position in locks so it doesn't catch the lock wall.

Cross straps used for towing an unloaded butty close to the motor.

Snubber a longer line used for towing a butty astern.

Tipcat, button fender, swans neck, ellum, ram's head.

"Mate", steerer's wife. 

 

Many many more.......

 

Cross straps.jpg

23032524_1324344331028596_2380391318543707389_n.jpg

18893045_1933588333553820_1026584337311264463_n.jpg

c559808f-ad19-4942-b704-6efa4971f858[1].jpg

Edited by Ray T
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On 20/08/2020 at 16:00, magnetman said:

This list is quite reasonable 

 

https://www.iims.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Glossary-of-Narrowboat-and-Canal-terms.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwik5dTHharrAhUjQ0EAHe4-AwQQFjABegQIBRAB&usg=AOvVaw3xsEQkd9pW0knlVayQ6uII&cshid=1597935368407

 

Downloads a pdf from the IIMS (International institute of marine surveyors). 

 

ETA if I had known about "backering" twelve years ago I might have gone for that as an alternative to getting together with a woman and "bickering'. 

 

Horses which can do the towage by themselves sound pretty cool.

 

The real difficulty in attempting to put something like this together is that terminology changes from canal to canal, and region to region. For example, those operating boats on the eastern end of the L&LC were happy to be called bargemen, but it was something of an insult to those from the western end. Names for the various types of paddle gear - some are called 'types' in Yorkshire - are extremely varied, as are the names for specific details of lock construction. The list linked gives mainly modern and narrowboat, or is that narrow boats, terms.

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  • 6 months later...

Donkeys years ago now, (Last Century anyway,) the various Waterways Museums and a few that had an interest in Waterways formed a Heritage Network, (long before it became fashionable because there was some money available), got together with the Museums Documentation Association to create a Glossary of Terms to try to introduce a standard for use in the Documentation Software being introduced into Museum Collections.  It was fairly comprehensive although some of the obscure to non boaters terms needed adding in the first revision. I remember crossing swords with the MDA project leader over Handled Swages being called Hammers when they are not but that is by the by. No idea if the list is still available from MDA as I haven't had any call to look at it although I probably have a 3.5 floppy disc of it somewhere in the old discs that still clutter up the study, even though I haven't got a reader any more.

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Many of the names attached to narrow boats, barges, sailing boats and other things with some history, wagons, carts and so on have a fairly obvious etymology (think that's the word, nothing to do with butterflies) but its always puzzled me how the anser pin got its name and why tunnel hook? 

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 20/08/2020 at 18:52, Ray T said:

 

18893045_1933588333553820_1026584337311264463_n.jpg

 

 

I'm trying find the correct (or most widely used) boat terminology for a couple of parts on a butty:  i.e. the surface the lady is stood on (is it 'counter' as per the motor boat), the name of the locker behind her and the forward surface (bulkhead) of the locker? Thanks.

 

 

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The boat people I know have always referred to the place where Audrey Harper is as "The 'atches," for a butty.

Locker =  "starn cupboard." or "Stern Cupboard." Possibly other variations.

 

Some of these names may be localised, depends upon the boaters accent and what they were brought up with.

 

Edited by Ray T
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32 minutes ago, Ray T said:

The boat people I know have always referred to the place where Audrey Harper is as "The 'atches," for a butty.

Locker =  "starn cupboard." or "Stern Cupboard." Possibly other variations.

 

Some of these names may be localised, depends upon the boaters accent and what they were brought up with.

 

 

Thanks Ray, within the 'atches, do you know if the deck has a specific name?  I need to technically describe the location of drains located in that area and would prefer to avoid the term "steerer's position deck" if there is a more appropriate name.

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25 minutes ago, GRLMK38 said:

 

Thanks Ray, within the 'atches, do you know if the deck has a specific name?  I need to technically describe the location of drains located in that area and would prefer to avoid the term "steerer's position deck" if there is a more appropriate name.

Not to my knowledge.

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On 24/02/2021 at 16:07, Bee said:

Many of the names attached to narrow boats, barges, sailing boats and other things with some history, wagons, carts and so on have a fairly obvious etymology (think that's the word, nothing to do with butterflies) but its always puzzled me how the anser pin got its name and why tunnel hook? 

It was quite common to tow a train of horse boats through tunnels or up rivers.  Braunston, Blisworth ,River Severn,  W&B summit, Harecastle as examples.  The tunnel hook provides a convenient way to attach a boat behind, without fouling the ellum as would happen if the central stern T stud was used.

 

Answer pins?  Not sure. Maybe  the pin provides the answer to fixing the spring strap that secures the boats together and prevents surging.

 

N

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2 minutes ago, BEngo said:

  Answer pins?  Not sure. Maybe  the pin provides the answer to fixing the spring strap that secures the boats together and prevents surging.

 

N

I came across that term offshore with lifting equipment but cant tie it down closer than that, I seem to remember it was connected with snatch blocks

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Tingle is a word we used to hear associated with a thin galvanised piece of steel, used to protect timber. Frequently on the side of wooden boats.

I’ve just pulled out a 1982 survey done by John Whooley on our butty. Written in one lined yellow paper in blue biro.

It says, caulk front board behind shoe plate, and cover eroded elm with tingle.

 

we did 8 years later we replaced them with steel plate as they were rotting badly.

 

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19 hours ago, BEngo said:

It was quite common to tow a train of horse boats through tunnels or up rivers.  Braunston, Blisworth ,River Severn,  W&B summit, Harecastle as examples.  The tunnel hook provides a convenient way to attach a boat behind, without fouling the ellum as would happen if the central stern T stud was used.

 

Answer pins?  Not sure. Maybe  the pin provides the answer to fixing the spring strap that secures the boats together and prevents surging.

 

N

https://www.iims.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Glossary-of-Narrowboat-and-Canal-terms.pdf

 

Always thought it was Anser rather than answer, but I guess both can be applicable.

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22 hours ago, GRLMK38 said:

 

I'm trying find the correct (or most widely used) boat terminology for a couple of parts on a butty:  i.e. the surface the lady is stood on (is it 'counter' as per the motor boat), the name of the locker behind her and the forward surface (bulkhead) of the locker? Thanks.

 

 

 

I have various construction drawings including a copy of 1/2" to 1 foot plans copied from GUCCC originals and it is marked prosaically as 'steerage cockpit', but boat people always referred to it as 'the hatches' as said. One of the drawings calls the shackle the 'hawser shackle', but the copy dated January 1936 for a large Yarwoods ('town' class) motor has them as 'Answer pin and shackle. On the odd occasion I've had cause to write the term I've written 'anser pin'.

 

22 hours ago, GRLMK38 said:

 

Thanks Ray, within the 'atches, do you know if the deck has a specific name?  I need to technically describe the location of drains located in that area and would prefer to avoid the term "steerer's position deck" if there is a more appropriate name.

 

You wrote "locker behind her" - do you mean behind her when she is steering? Technically that is called the aft peak, and the triangular top is the stern deck. I've heard boat people refer to it as 'the starn' but nothing more specific. Although a modern boat with a forward well deck will have drainage scuppers and possibly fitted with a non-return valve I've never encountered a drain in the hatches of a working butty - they'd be pretty much at water level when you're loaded.

 

Tam

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