Old photos of Droitwich?

[Durhamdales]

I bought 3 photos at a flea market yesterday, they are clearly new reproductions from an old negative - but each of them was marked Droitwich. Can anybody shed any light upon them and confirm they are Droitwich - was surprised to see the masts still up on the barges!

 

 

 

 

 

[EmmaB]

The second is the Cherry Orchard Salt Works 1912

 

"Wyche Barges “Success” and “Harriet” loading salt for Bristol. Owned by John Harris they had a crew of three. At the tiller is Walter “Tongy” Bourne. With the wheelbarrow full of salt is William “Blue” Bateman. So many Droitwich People had the same surname, they all had nicknames, even the postman knew over 100. The “Harriet carried 115 tons of industrial salt to the British Alkali Works. Max."

 

http://worcestervista.com/index.php/archives/2005/11/13/cherry-orchard-salt-works/

 

Max Sinclair has done extensive study of these canals and their history.

 

There's an article in NABO News Issue 6 2012.

Edited September 23, 2013 by EmmaB

[Guest]

Success is a lovely looking boat...

[Max Sinclair]

The salt barges used sail whenever the wind was favourable to their direction of travel. They sometimes erected a square topsail at the top of the mast to catch the wind above the trees and bushes.

These pictures were taken by Mr Sayce Droitwich Photographer in 1906.His daughter Anne Sandles was Droitwich Mayor and a great supporter of the Canal trust. Her daughter Anne Tafts was mayor and performed the canal opening ceremony with me, and proposed me as a Freeman of the town.

Success was a lovely boat built in Bristol. It is sad none of them survived Having carried salt the timbers were well preserved.

The barge lock ,now in Vines park, was rebuilt three times because it sank with salt subsidence as did much of old Droitwich. Never buy property on the line of the underground salt stream as it is still dissolving the huge block of salt.

Edited September 23, 2013 by Max Sinclair

[Ian Mac]

The first picture is of the barge lock where the canal enters the River Salwarpe, and as Max says now in Vines Park. The shape is still the same post our restoration, down to the stop plank groves. You can see the old main road bridge in the background of the photo, behind the wooden hut.

[Max Sinclair]

The photographer was facing west towards the mass of salt works, now Vines Park. The

Chapel Road Bridge was behind him. It started to twist sideways so carriages and carts slipped into the gutter. It was rebuilt and the Chapel was removed.

The cills on the Barge Canal locks at 5 to 6ft restricted the loads to 60 tons. Larger barges like Success and Harriet were horse drawn down to the Hawford Lock on to the Severn followed by Tom Cartwright and his son Tom in the narrow boat The Three Brothers laden with 30 tons of salt. This drew into the bank behind the top gate and the salt was wheel barrowed to the lock side and tipped into the barge. When Brindley built the lock the Severn was tidal with a rise and fall of some 5feet so the bottom cill was, and is, 10ft deep. This was fortunate as it allowed over 100 tons to be loaded.

A line was attached to the stern of the barge and taken forward to a pulley mounted at the lock mouth and back to the horse facing upstream on the towpath. Driving the horse forward shot the barge out into the Severn where the stern line was slipped. If the river was normal level it floated over to Bevere Lock, but if in flood it went straight over the weir to avoid the fees.

The Three Brothers was towed by the donkeys Jack and Nellie but were known as 'Animals' to the boatmen.