Perseverance IV is a preserved Wey barge, moored at Dapdune Wharf

Dapdune Wharf

Dapdune Wharf is a former wharf on the Wey and Godalming Navigations in Guildford, England, UK, close to the Surrey County Cricket Club ground. It is now maintained by the National Trust....

 on the River Wey

River Wey

The River Wey in Surrey, Hampshire and West Sussex is a tributary of the River Thames with two separate branches which join at Tilford. The source of the north branch is at Alton, Hampshire and of the south branch at both Blackdown south of Haslemere, and also close to Gibbet Hill, near Hindhead...

. She was the final barge to leave the historic yards at Dapdune, Guildford, in 1966. She is on the National Register of Historic Ships under registration number 2080, but does not form part of the National Historic Fleet.

History

Perseverance IV was built in 1934 by GJV Edwards and Sons at Dapdune Wharf, Guildford – the tenth of eleven Wey barges. The barge was built for the then owners of the Wey Navigation, Wm Stevens & Sons, and carried bulk wheat between the London Docklands and Coxes Lock Mill at Weybridge

Weybridge

Weybridge is a town in the Elmbridge district of Surrey in South East England. It is bounded to the north by the River Thames at the mouth of the River Wey, from which it gets its name...

. After more than thirty years working the route, she was rebuilt at Dapdune Wharf from 1964–1966. She then went back into service, before being sold to another owner who used her as a cable-laying barge

Cable layer

A cable layer or cable ship is a deep-sea vessel designed and used to lay underwater cables for telecommunications, electricity, and such. Cable ships are distinguished by large cable sheaveshttp://atlantic-cable.com/Cableships/Monarch%284%29/ | History of the Atlantic Cable & Undersea...

 on the Regents Canal, where she ended her working life in 1982.

In 1982, she came under the ownership of the Museum of London

Museum of London

The Museum of London documents the history of London from the Prehistoric to the present day. The museum is located close to the Barbican Centre, as part of the striking Barbican complex of buildings created in the 1960s and 70s as an innovative approach to re-development within a bomb damaged...

, and was rebuilt two further times: in 1986/87 and 1998.

She is one of only three remaining Wey barges in the world, and is the only floating example. The barge Reliance is permanently damaged and in a drydock at Dapdune Wharf, whereas Speedwell is in poor condition at the National Waterways Museum

National Waterways Museum

The National Waterways Museum holds the inland waterways collection at three museum sites in England: Gloucester, Ellesmere Port, and Stoke Bruerne....

 in Ellesmere Port

Ellesmere Port

Ellesmere Port is a large industrial town and port in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is situated on the south border of the Wirral Peninsula on the banks of the Manchester Ship Canal, which in turn gives access to the River...

.

In future, the National Trust hope to use the barge for public boat trips up and down the Navigations. Unfortunately, due to a lack of annual maintenance, she is in dire need of repair, and requires £10,000 per year to maintain. Consequently, the National Trust has launched an urgent appeal to raise funds for the vessel's purchase and restoration. £200,000 is required (by 17 September 2011) to transfer the vessel to National Trust ownership, and a further £300,000 is required to fully restore the barge and support it in the future. However, if the appeal fails, her details will be recorded, and she will be broken up.

External links

• Perseverance IV at the National Register of Historic Ships
• Save Perseverance Appeal at NationalTrust.org.uk