Early Hire boats.

[Hairy-Neil]

I have a copy of the lock keeper's log from Braunston covers late 1961 to early 1965. In addition to the working boats plying up and down (BW, Willow Wren, Blue Line) the pleasure boat passages are also listed and totals given for the periods. Many have the 'Water' prefix and I believe BW operated them out of Hilmorton. There are other boats that are regulars in the area which implies they are hire boats. Some I recall are prefixed 'Aylesbury'

 

When I've a few minutes to spare I'll try to dig it out and note some of the names.....

 

 

I dug the following names out of the log from a couple of months in the summer of 1962. It is not an exhaustive study by a long way.

 

Aylesbury Boat Co. ? I think these may all have been prefixed Aylesbury....

 

Godswall, Goshawk, Lysander, Mallard, Pintail, Shoveler, Teal, Wigeon.

 

Unknown, out of Bletchley

 

Annabelle, Corabelle, Rosabelle, Sallybelle

 

Blue Line

 

Blue Bird III, Blue Bird IV, (implying there were more), Blue Chick, Blue Dawn, Blue Peter, Blue Sprite, Blue Star,

 

Blue Swift,

 

BWB

 

Water Baby VII, Water Baby XI, (implying there were more), Water Gnome, Water Iris, Water Kelpie, Water Lilly,

 

Water Lupin, Water Miss II, Water Miss IV (implying there were more), Water Reed, Water Valiant, Water Violet,

 

Water Viper, Water Vixen, Water Vole, Water Willow.

 

Maid Line

 

Prefixed 'Maid': Carol, Celia, Coral, Jenifer, Judith, Mary, Sandra, Sonya, Stella.

 

Suffixed 'Maid': Bonny, Magic, Melody.

 

Rose Narrowboats ?

 

Rambling Rose, Wild Rose.

 

Wyvern Shipping

 

Benevolance, Dutchess of Athol, Heather Bell, Lady Flora? Perseverance, Princess.

 

Also listed as hire boat is Venturer, (Atherstone)

[Big John]

Would be interested to know if "Pegasus" from Cosgrove CC was around duringthat period. - our first narrowboat hire :-)

[Hairy-Neil]

Would be interested to know if "Pegasus" from Cosgrove CC was around duringthat period. - our first narrowboat hire :-)

 

I'll see what I can do. It could be a needle in a haystack though. The ledger covers over three years of boat movements.

[norm 'n' Q]

Just got a christmas card off Wyvern

Lovely picture of "Benevolence" passing through cosgrove lock 1958

Maybe Alan (chalice) may recognise it or may even be in the picture !!!

[John Orentas]

I have never understood why, as there are so many much modified ex hire boats around, nobody to my knowledge has ever restored one of them to it's original condition.. I was moored alongside Kettleshulme for many years, I got the owner half interested in having a go but it didn't come to anything.

[carlt]

There are a few Walton boats that have pretty original fittings. I can't think of many metal boats that have had a '70s hire boat resto, though.

 

It may well be the different attitude people have, towards their boats.

 

It seems that many owners of metal boats are "boating" enthusiasts, who want to equip their boat for optimum comfort and practicality.

 

Owners of wooden, or working, boats, however are "boat" enthusiasts who strive for originality (often at the expense of comfort or sanity).

 

My lifeboat, for instance, can't be restored to its original lifeboat fit-out because it would be unworkable, as a family vessel, so I am researching the fit-outs of yachts and motor cruisers of the '30s and will replicate those styles.

[RLWP]

I have never understood why, as there are so many much modified ex hire boats around, nobody to my knowledge has ever restored one of them to it's original condition.. I was moored alongside Kettleshulme for many years, I got the owner half interested in having a go but it didn't come to anything.

 

There we are. That's why I haven't repainted Tawny Owl after owning her for five years. We are preserving the original Alvechurch livery on a modern working boat.

 

Richard

[Machpoint005]

I dug the following names out of the log from a couple of months in the summer of 1962. It is not an exhaustive study by a long way.

Unknown, out of Bletchley

 

Annabelle, Corabelle, Rosabelle, Sallybelle

 

I can't remember the hire company name (might have been Bell Line?) but my family hired from them twice, in 1965 and 1967 I think. We had Paulabelle in '65, which I remember as a cruiser about 25 to 30 feet long with a central cockpit and a petrol engine. When we went back in '67 we took Sallybelle for a fortnight, and did the Thames ring starting and finishing at Bletchley. AFAICR Sallybelle had a diesel engine and a forward cockpit, and was sufficiently 'chunky' that the Thames floating gin palaces were scared of intimate contact.

[Keeping Up]

I can't remember the hire company name (might have been Bell Line?) but my family hired from them twice, in 1965 and 1967 I think. We had Paulabelle in '65, which I remember as a cruiser about 25 to 30 feet long with a central cockpit and a petrol engine. When we went back in '67 we took Sallybelle for a fortnight, and did the Thames ring starting and finishing at Bletchley. AFAICR Sallybelle had a diesel engine and a forward cockpit, and was sufficiently 'chunky' that the Thames floating gin palaces were scared of intimate contact.

Can you remember where the yard was? Someone told me they though it was where Willowbridge Marina now stands, then someone else told me it was at Fenny Stratford.

 

I wonder if anyone else remembers the small hire fleet that ran from just above Slapton Lock too.

[Richard T]

Off work with a nasty dose of flu so was catching up on a DVD which I have had for a few months. It is of Scouting around Loughborough in the early 1960s shot on Super 8 and now transferred to DVD. There is about 3mins of Willow Wren camper Warbler on the S Oxford - its very nice footage.

Also on the Cranfleet Beeston reach is to be found 50ft wooden top Lapwing - externally it looks right apart from the paint job -it still has the nice big brass air scoop the location is so remote the thieving ... have not nicked it. On Cranfleet cut there is another wooden top whcih I am convinced is ex Willow Wren but it has no name.

To finish off GUCC motor Slough is still moored on Sawley Cut.

Edited December 10, 2008 by Richard T

[magpie patrick]

Also listed as hire boat is Venturer, (Atherstone)

 

Venturer was operated by a Mr Tingay from Atherstone, later Shackerstone on the Ashby. He also had Joanna and Anker. All weree cut down working narrowboats. I had childhood holidays on all three. Tingay traded under the name of Anker Valley Cruisers (I think) but there was no connection with the present outfit at Atherstone

[Timleech]

I dug the following names out of the log from a couple of months in the summer of 1962. It is not an exhaustive study by a long way.

 

Aylesbury Boat Co. ? I think these may all have been prefixed Aylesbury....

 

Godswall, Goshawk, Lysander, Mallard, Pintail, Shoveler, Teal, Wigeon.

 

Unknown, out of Bletchley

 

Annabelle, Corabelle, Rosabelle, Sallybelle

 

Blue Line

 

Blue Bird III, Blue Bird IV, (implying there were more), Blue Chick, Blue Dawn, Blue Peter, Blue Sprite, Blue Star,

 

Blue Swift,

 

BWB

 

 

 

Water Baby VII, Water Baby XI, (implying there were more), Water Gnome, Water Iris, Water Kelpie, Water Lilly,

 

Water Lupin, Water Miss II, Water Miss IV (implying there were more), Water Reed, Water Valiant, Water Violet,

 

Water Viper, Water Vixen, Water Vole, Water Willow.

 

Maid Line

 

Prefixed 'Maid': Carol, Celia, Coral, Jenifer, Judith, Mary, Sandra, Sonya, Stella.

 

Suffixed 'Maid': Bonny, Magic, Melody.

 

Rose Narrowboats ?

 

Rambling Rose, Wild Rose.

 

Wyvern Shipping

 

Benevolance, Dutchess of Athol, Heather Bell, Lady Flora? Perseverance, Princess.

 

Also listed as hire boat is Venturer, (Atherstone)

 

Water Kelpie was a day trip boat, aka Themis

 

Tim

(One time owner thereof)

[alan_fincher]

BWB

 

Water Baby VII, Water Baby XI, (implying there were more), Water Gnome, Water Iris, Water Kelpie, Water Lilly,

 

Water Lupin, Water Miss II, Water Miss IV (implying there were more), Water Reed, Water Valiant, Water Violet,

 

Water Viper, Water Vixen, Water Vole, Water Willow.

My understanding is that there were 29 Water Babies, (IIRC the one we had was originally Water Baby VIII).

 

I also believe there were many less Water Miss boats, (and have heard only 4 suggested).

 

Just got a christmas card off Wyvern

Lovely picture of "Benevolence" passing through cosgrove lock 1958

Maybe Alan (chalice) may recognise it or may even be in the picture !!!

No, I only became aware of most of the earliest Wyvern hire boats relatively recently.

 

The only one from Neil's list by the time I knew them was Princess, a converted former horse drawn ice breaker, with very scary bows. That one had recently been completely rebuilt above gunwale level by the time I knew it, but I don't know how much longer they operated it. It was a pig to handle, and stopped only very reluctantly. I wonder where it is now ?

 

Alan

[Hairy-Neil]

I wonder where it is now ?

 

Alan

 

I saw it on the K&A in the mid 90s.

[richardf]

It was in very poor condition by the early 90s but was completely replated (quite a job considering the round bottom) - a steel inspection launch cabin was fitted and a 2.2 BMC. It was scarily fast when it was allowed to be - spent quite a lot of time on the Thames. Normally moored on the Wey Navigation.

[Machpoint005]

Can you remember where the yard was? Someone told me they though it was where Willowbridge Marina now stands, then someone else told me it was at Fenny Stratford.

It was further north than Willowbridge: about half a mile to a mile north of Fenny Stratford Lock IIRC. We were taken to FSL to be shown the 'ropes' on our first trip.

It's probably been subsumed into Milton Keynes now: MK did not exist in the mid-sixties!

[carlt]

MK did not exist in the mid-sixties!

Don't let the locals hear you say that!

 

It dates back to the 12th century, though "Middleton" is mentioned in the Domesday book.

[alan_fincher]

It was in very poor condition by the early 90s but was completely replated (quite a job considering the round bottom) - a steel inspection launch cabin was fitted and a 2.2 BMC. It was scarily fast when it was allowed to be - spent quite a lot of time on the Thames. Normally moored on the Wey Navigation.

The thought of that weapon with a 2.2 BMC in is pretty scary.

 

It only had a 2 pot Lister back in Wyvern days, and may have been one of those with only an SL2 rather than an SR2, so possibly less than 10HP.

 

IIRC the lack of any counter or "counter substitute" meant that most of the power in reverse was used just to build up a nice froth.