Wooden Canal Boat Society
Encyclopedia
The Wooden Canal Boat Society (WCBS) is a waterway society
and a registered charity in England
, UK, based at Ashton-under-Lyne
, Greater Manchester
. The Society started as the Wooden Canal Craft Trust in 1987, and by 1995 the Trust owned six boats; it was wound up in 1997, and its assets were hand over to the WCBS.
at the confluence
of the Ashton Canal
, the Peak Forest Canal
and the Huddersfield Narrow Canal
, known to boaters as Dukinfield
Junction.
The Society's oldest boat is "Lilith", a working boat which was 100 years old in December 2001. Lilith is a butty
, i.e. a narrowboat without an engine
, destined to be towed, or hauled, by another boat. Lilith was also a Birmingham
"joey" boat, and No. 9 in Stewarts' and Lloyds' fleet.
"Forget-Me-Not" was built in 1927 as a horse-drawn boat
for Henry Grantham who was a "Number One" (owner boatman). The boat was used to carry coal
from Coventry
to the Grand Union Canal
, but from 1959 she became a houseboat.
"Hazel" is the last surviving full length example of a Runcorn
Wooden header, built in 1914 to trade on the Bridgewater Canal
. From 1929 she was owned by Number One Agnes Beech. Subsequently she served as a comfortable home to several families.
"Queen", built in 1917, was originally named Walsall Queen and is the oldest surviving wooden motorised narrowboat
.
"Elton" and "Southam" were donated by British Waterways
as an alternative to being scrapped. Southam is one of a fleet of 62 wooden butties (known as "big rickies"
) built for the Grand Union Canal Carrying Company
in the Thirties at Rickmansworth
.
Waterway society
A Waterway society is a society, association, charitable trust, club, trust or "Friends" group involved in the restoration, preservation, use and enjoyment of waterways, e.g. a canal, river, navigation or other waterway, and their associated buildings and structures, e.g...
and a registered charity in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, UK, based at Ashton-under-Lyne
Ashton-under-Lyne
Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. Historically a part of Lancashire, it lies on the north bank of the River Tame, on undulating land at the foothills of the Pennines...
, Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
. The Society started as the Wooden Canal Craft Trust in 1987, and by 1995 the Trust owned six boats; it was wound up in 1997, and its assets were hand over to the WCBS.
Preservation
The Society aims to preserve wooden working boats, and its fleet of six wooden boats is moored at Portland BasinPortland Basin
The Portland Basin is a roughly topographic and structural depression in the central Puget-Willamette Lowland. The Portland Basin isapproximately long and wide, with its long axis oriented northwest. Studies indicate that as much as of late Miocene and younger sediments have accumulated in the...
at the confluence
Confluence
Confluence, in geography, describes the meeting of two or more bodies of water.Confluence may also refer to:* Confluence , a property of term rewriting systems...
of the Ashton Canal
Ashton Canal
The Ashton Canal is a canal built in Greater Manchester in North West England.-Route:The Ashton leaves the Rochdale Canal at Ducie St. Junction in central Manchester, and climbs for through 18 locks, passing through Ancoats, Holt Town, Bradford-with-Beswick, Clayton, Openshaw, Droylsden,...
, the Peak Forest Canal
Peak Forest Canal
The Peak Forest Canal, is a narrow locked artificial waterway in northern England. It is long and forms part of the connected English/Welsh inland waterway network.-General description:...
and the Huddersfield Narrow Canal
Huddersfield Narrow Canal
The Huddersfield Narrow Canal is an inland waterway in northern England. It runs just under from Lock 1E at the rear of the University of Huddersfield campus, near Aspley Basin at Huddersfield to the junction with the Ashton Canal at Whitelands Basin in Ashton-under-Lyne...
, known to boaters as Dukinfield
Dukinfield
Dukinfield is a small town within the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies in central Tameside on the south bank of the River Tame, opposite Ashton-under-Lyne, and is east of the city of Manchester...
Junction.
The Society's oldest boat is "Lilith", a working boat which was 100 years old in December 2001. Lilith is a butty
Narrowboat
A narrowboat or narrow boat is a boat of a distinctive design, made to fit the narrow canals of Great Britain.In the context of British Inland Waterways, "narrow boat" refers to the original working boats built in the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries for carrying goods on the narrow canals...
, i.e. a narrowboat without an engine
Engine
An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert energy into useful mechanical motion. Heat engines, including internal combustion engines and external combustion engines burn a fuel to create heat which is then used to create motion...
, destined to be towed, or hauled, by another boat. Lilith was also a Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
"joey" boat, and No. 9 in Stewarts' and Lloyds' fleet.
"Forget-Me-Not" was built in 1927 as a horse-drawn boat
Horse-drawn boat
A horse-drawn boat or tow-boat is a historic boat operating on a canal, pulled by a horse walking on a special road along the canal, the towpath.-United Kingdom:...
for Henry Grantham who was a "Number One" (owner boatman). The boat was used to carry coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
from Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
to the Grand Union Canal
Grand Union Canal
The Grand Union Canal in England is part of the British canal system. Its main line connects London and Birmingham, stretching for 137 miles with 166 locks...
, but from 1959 she became a houseboat.
Runcorn
Runcorn is an industrial town and cargo port within the borough of Halton in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. In 2009, its population was estimated to be 61,500. The town is on the southern bank of the River Mersey where the estuary narrows to form Runcorn Gap. Directly to the north...
Wooden header, built in 1914 to trade on the Bridgewater Canal
Bridgewater Canal
The Bridgewater Canal connects Runcorn, Manchester and Leigh, in North West England. It was commissioned by Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater, to transport coal from his mines in Worsley to Manchester...
. From 1929 she was owned by Number One Agnes Beech. Subsequently she served as a comfortable home to several families.
"Queen", built in 1917, was originally named Walsall Queen and is the oldest surviving wooden motorised narrowboat
Narrowboat
A narrowboat or narrow boat is a boat of a distinctive design, made to fit the narrow canals of Great Britain.In the context of British Inland Waterways, "narrow boat" refers to the original working boats built in the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries for carrying goods on the narrow canals...
.
"Elton" and "Southam" were donated by British Waterways
British Waterways
British Waterways is a statutory corporation wholly owned by the government of the United Kingdom, serving as the navigation authority in England, Scotland and Wales for the vast majority of the canals as well as a number of rivers and docks...
as an alternative to being scrapped. Southam is one of a fleet of 62 wooden butties (known as "big rickies"
W.H. Walker and Brothers
W.H. Walker and Brothers was a narrow boat builder based in Rickmansworth, England, from 1905 to 1964. They were one of the major producers of narrow boats for the English Canal Network....
) built for the Grand Union Canal Carrying Company
Grand Union Canal Carrying Company
The Grand Union Canal Carrying Company was a freight carrying transport service in England from 1934 to 1948.-Background:For more detail on this section see the History of the Grand Union Canal....
in the Thirties at Rickmansworth
Rickmansworth
Rickmansworth is a town in the Three Rivers district of Hertfordshire, England, 4¼ miles west of Watford.The town has a population of around 15,000 people and lies on the Grand Union Canal and the River Colne, at the northern end of the Colne Valley regional park.Rickmansworth is a small town in...
.
Present and future
To help with the unending task of repairing and maintaing the Society's wooden boat fleet, Tameside Council made available a piece of land to serve as a boatyard. Heritage Lottery funding was obtained, and the 80 ft boatyard frontage will be completed. Future plans include the erection of a Visitor and Education Centre from which visitors and school students will be able to observe the restoration work on the narrowboats.See also
- List of waterway societies in the United Kingdom
- Horse-drawn boats
- Horseboating SocietyHorseboating SocietyThe Horseboating Society is a national society, with the primary aim being the preservation and promotion of Horseboating on the canals of Great Britain...