Category: wooden boat

London to Istanbul dinghy sailor and campaigner seeks a UK boatyard for significant project

Memphis of Dartmouth

Successful London to Istanbul dinghy sailor Giacomo De Stefano (he’s currently in the running for Classic Boat’s Person of the Year Award for his voyage) is setting up a new project – and is looking for a boat yard in the UK that can help him achieve his goals.

He’s planning to use two boats to campaign about the ‘connectedness’ of those who use water resources – agriculture, those who use waterways to dispose of effluents, as a source of drinking water, as a means of making and living, and to collect stories that make his points. Read all about the project here: http://www.bewater.info.

One of the boats to be used for this purpose is Memphis of Dartmouth, an impressive 62ft ketch built in 1928 by James Miller & Sons of St Monans, Fife, which he will be bringing to the UK through the French canals in May this year. When she arrives she will need a fair amount of work by a yard to replace rotted oak frames etc, and there will also be a significant amount to be carried out by his own team.

Giacomo tells me he plans to pay for this by raising money from supporters and through organising partnership and sponsorship deals, which he is optimistic of achieving, but he adds that he can also offer financial guarantees to the yard that takes the job on. The job is also likely to attract publicity, it goes without saying.

If you’re interested, please contact Giacomo through the http://www.bewater.info website.

Now and Then 1979 – lifeboatman and local fisherman Shrimp Davies talks about life and work at Cromer

Now and Then film Shrimp Davies

The East Anglian Film Archive has some cracking stuff. Here’s a 1979 film in which local fisherman and legendary lifeboatman Shrimp Davies talks about life and work around the beaches of Cromer in Norfolk, and finishes up with some singing and stepdancing in a favourite pub. We’ve seen the last bit before, but the rest is new and it’s all interesting.

Here’s how the archive describes the short film:

‘Shots of the streets of Cromer, guided by Henry ‘Shrimp’ Davies. He shows Cromer town centre, Bob Davies’ Crab Shop, and the bust of lifeboatman Henry Blogg. He walks down to the beach to the crab boats which gives clear views of Cromer and its major buildings, including the Church and the Pier. A stills sequence, compares various scenes of Cromer in the 1970s with how they appeared in 1890. There seems to have been very little change. An interesting feature from this sequence are the bathing machines sitting on the beach. Crab boats are winched onto a trailer and then pulled up the beach by tractor and the crabs unloaded. There are shots of children playing on the beach and of a Punch and Judy man setting up. Concludes with shots of the interior of the Bath Hotel. Fisherman are singing and step-dancing to the accompaniment of Percy Brown on the accordion.’

I’d call that accordion a melodeon, but it’s still a great thing…

Btw, I love this photo of Blogg.

While we’re looking at the EAFA’s material, there’s a fabulous piece of 1902 footage showing herring drifters returning to port and Scottish fisher lassies on the Great Yarmouth’s quays, and a 1930s piece showing bad weather at Clacton in Essex – including a paddle steamer leaving Clacton Pier, probably in order to take holiday makers home to London despite the storm.

Steam pinnace 199 open day at Gosport, 2nd February

Pinnace 199

The Steam pinnace 199 project is holding an open day this Saturday at the Maritime Workshop, Gosport, Hampshire, from 10am to 3pm – she’s been undergoing a refit at the workshop since February 2012.

Built in 1911, Steam pinnace 199 is a wooden-hulled picket boat powered by steam machinery and is the sole operational survivor out of 634 vessels of her type. Picket boats were essential to the effective operation of the Royal Navy: their role was to defend capital ships while anchored.

Steam pinnace 199 is thought to have served alongside HMS Monarch at Jutland during the First World War, and is operated and maintained for her owners, the National Museum of the Royal Navy.

Throughout Saturday there will be opportunities to learn about her history as well as to talk with volunteers who have undertaken over 3,000 hours of work so far.

The current group of volunteers were recently awarded a highly commended certificate  for their preservation work by National Historic Ships.

Entry is free, but I’m sure donations large and small will be very welcome!

To date the volunteers have raised £86,500 of the £97,500 required for the restoration project, including a £50,000 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund, £30,000 from the Friends of the National Museum of the Royal Navy and £1,000 from National Historic Ships.

Directions: approach via Forton Road and Mill Lane. Take the third right turn into St Vincent College grounds and proceed down to the end where there is a parking area next to some moorings. Note that the workshop’s official address is 50 Ferrol Road but this through the old shipyard entrance and access is very restricted unless you are on foot.