WRG BC news from our Boat Club Letters Camp reports: essential reading

Boat club News

Including details of the WRG Boat Club AGM at the IWA St Neots Festival, plus some interesting reminiscences from the waterways of 1954...

WRG Boat Club News

I recently received a very interesting letter. It was a bit ‘Bad news Good news’ as it was from a couple who had been members for years, and it was telling me that they were leaving the waterways and our club! The history of the waterways that they included was very interesting, so I asked them if I could pass it on. Here it is, from Peter (and Jean) Cooke...

I started boating in 1954 when my father bought a 24ft wooden cruiser. It had a Swedish Solo engine that could run on TVO (tractor vaporising oil), this appealed to my father’s Yorkshire roots – no need for expensive petrol! He kept the boat at the Sheffield Canal Basin. There were half a dozen or so boats moored there, most of them being modified in some way or another. Dad built a rear cabin for sleeping purposes.

In those days I can remember being fascinated by what I know now were the Sheffield-size barges fully loaded with grain. These would dock under one of the warehouse arches; here a scoop/hopper thing would take the grain up into the warehouse. It was mainly working boats in those days; rarely did we come across other cruisers. We’d pass Vic Waddington’s depot at the junction of the derelict Dearne and Dove Canal. There were no narrowboats on the Yorkshire waterways. My first sight of a narrowboat was when we moored at West Stockwith Basin.

There were stop planks under the first bridge of the Chesterfield Canal as this derelict waterway was a mere stream. Opposite the towpath side, by the bridge, were two carcasses of wooden narrowboats, with swans nesting in one of them! It was then that my father told me about narrowboats, as he had seen one on the Pocklington Canal as a young lad in the mid twenties. It was such a carefree time for me as a young lad, no worries about mooring fees, insurance, boat tests etc etc. page 18

I’m sure that between us we know lots of canal history. Please share what you know; I’ll be delighted to hear from you!

Soon we will all be off to St Neots, to the Festival of Water. Well, I live in hope that lots of members will be there.

As you all know, our AGM will be held there so here is a list/agenda for you to read through, think about and determine to help us. It’s your club and we would hate to be less able to represent you all.

AGENDA for 2018 AGM

Apologies for absence

The Minutes of last year’s AGM (Please read these as they were published in Navvies last year.)

Matters Arising from the minutes

Officers’ Reports: - Commode Door - AWCC Representative - Secretary (including Membership) - Treasurer

Setting Subs for the coming year

Allocation of funds / donations this year.

Election of Officers. Please note our need for new officers to ensure the future of our club!

Future Plans

Any Other Business

(Compulsory ‘socializing’ of members! There may even be FUN)

We all look forward to seeing members there. We only meet up once each year; please make the effort to join in. xxx Sadie Heritage 07748186867 sadiedean@msn.com