IWA Great Ouse Branch Summer 2019 Ouse News

Great Ouse Branch

Ouse News - Summer 2019 Newsletter covering the Great Ouse and tributaries Contents: p2 p3 p4 p6 p7 Mike Petty Returns p8 p12 Reach Fair St Ives Boat Parade p13 p14 Word Search p15 Award Ceremony p16 Jordans Mill p18 Freight News p20 River Cam News IWA Press Statement p23 Branch Committee Branch News Chairman’s Corner Regional Chairman David Anderson

Parliamentarian of the Year Award Ceremony Monday, 13th May2019 Details on Page 15

Campaigning for the conservation, use, maintenance, restoration and development of the Inland Waterways.

Book Review

p24

The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Inland Waterways Association or of the Great Ouse Branch. They are, however, published as being of interest to our members and readers.

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Great Ouse Branch Committee: Chairman: Keith Alderton Tel : 01366 727236 Secretary: John Hodgson Tel : 01234 344884 Treasurer: Enid Hodgson Tel : 01234 344884 Ouse News Editor: Carole Alderton Tel : 01366 727236 Membership Officer: Peter Webb Tel: 01353 658581

Volunteer Coordinator: Gail Mead Tel: 01359 232603 Member: Stephen Foote Tel: 01763 838936 Member: Derek Bradley Tel: 01353 661601

We are a small, friendly group and would welcome another committee member to help us organise meetings and events. Please contact the editor.

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Branch News Winter Meetings are at 8.00 pm at the North Lodge Pavilion, North Lodge Park, Milton, CB24 6UD. T HURSDAY 24 TH O CTOBER

2019

An illustrated talk about the Boat Safety Scheme by Graham Freeman, outlining the reasons for each check and showing some of the horror stories he has found.

T HURSDAY 28

TH

N OVEMBER

2019

This will be an illustrated talk by Hugh Howes on Milling Dynasties and their Watermills in this Region.

T HURSDAY 27 TH F EBRUARY

2020

An illustrated talk by Richard Thomas on The Royal Gunpowder Mills, beside the River Lea at Waltham Abbey.

T HURSDAY 26 TH M ARCH

2020

This will be our branch Annual General Meeting, together with an update from the Environment Agency.

We welcome the following new members to the branch. We hope you will introduce yourselves to us when coming to an event or meeting:

Tim Pledger, Coton, Cambridge Christine Barker, Hardwick, Cambridge Michael Platten, Lode, Cambridge Paul & Ruth Watkinson, Priory Marina, Bedford Members who have moved to the branch: Chris & Mary Garrner, Wickham Market, Woodbridge

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Chairman’s Corner The last few months seem to have been busy on many fronts, not only with our own spring branch programme, but also being involved in regional and national activities.

On the 13th March, John Hodgson & I attended the first AGM of the reconstituted Eastern Region Committee. This committee provides a forum for branch chairmen and officers from the Great Ouse, Milton Keynes, Northampton and Peterborough Branches to meet and discuss matters of mutual interest. Unfortunately there has been no progress on the formation of the proposed Norfolk & Suffolk branch (to replace the defunct Ipswich Branch) due to the ill health of the potential leader.

The branch visit to Jordans Mill on the 23rd March proved to be popular and was attended by 29 members and guests, the majority of whom joined us for lunch in the visitor centre prior to touring the mill. The proceedings concluded with yet more food in the form of a cream tea. Whilst the catering arrangements could have been a lot slicker, the food was good and the tour was most interesting. All-in-all a good day out! (See report on pages 16 and 17).

Our Branch AGM was held on the 28th March and was conducted in the normal brisk manner with the proceedings completed in seven minutes; not quite a record time! The formal business was followed by an illustrated talk

by Nathan Arnold of the Environment Agency, outlining the work carried out over the previous year. Nathan reported that throughout 2018 their major maintenance and refurbishment efforts had been concentrated on the River Nene rather than the Great Ouse. He added that it would be our turn this year!!

Ouse News Page 5 The early Spring Bank Holiday was celebrated in the usual manner with a meal at the Black Horse, Swaffham Bulbeck, on Saturday 4th May and our stand at Reach Fair on Monday 6th May. It was just our luck to be stuck in a gazebo all day wearing five layers of clothing on the coldest May Day on record! This was quite the reverse of last year when we experienced the hottest May Day on record! However, the crowds still came along and our WOW (Wild Over Waterways) activities for children proved to be as popular as ever. Our new badge making kit attracted a constant stream of kids and made a good contribution to branch funds.

On the 13th May I was privileged to attend the IWA Parliamentarian of the Year Reception at the Houses of Parliament, hosted by Lord German. This is an annual event where representatives of the IWA and restoration societies have the opportunity to meet Members of Parliament to ask them for their support for local projects. Andrew Bridgen, member for North West Leicestershire was named Parliamentarian of the Year in recognition of his support for the restoration of the Ashby Canal (see report on page 15).

Our next branch event will be our presence at Ely Aquafest on Sunday 7th July when we will once again be manning our gazebo. This event is always hugely popular with thousands of people coming to watch the annual raft race, arena displays and stalls.

We have now completed arrangements for our 2019/2020 off-season programme of talks, details of which are listed on page 3. As always, we have endeavoured to find knowledgeable speakers on a wide range of waterways related subjects.

Keith Alderton

Ouse News Page 6 Chris Howes, Eastern Region Chairman: When plans were first announced to build an Ely by-pass there were objections that it would obscure the views of Ely Cathedral from the river upstream.

I considered that there were probably more flattering views of the Cathedral, without the railway in front of it. It was definitely necessary to fix the traffic problems associated with the low bridge and level crossing, which regularly caused gridlock on the A142 side of Ely .

When the bridge opened, and subsequently the nature walk, I thought them a positive achievement (despite the £13million overspend).

I was delighted to learn that as a result of the new £36 million bypass, GOBA were to acquire 100m of new mooring, at Cawdle Fen, just upstream of Ely. A welcome addition to GOBA’s many great moorings.

Riverside Ely is a victim of its own success. In season there are too many boats chasing too few moorings. Personally I welcome the enforcement by East Cambs District Council of their 48 hour time limit, it gives more boaters a fair chance to be able to make a stop and visit the lovely Ely city.

Although the land for the new mooring has been earmarked, and signs erected on the site, I was disappointed to learn that the necessary work to transform a stretch of river bank into a mooring has been delayed by the E.A.

Ouse News Page 7 Apparently there may be water voles living there, and mooring works would disturb them. Now I am a great lover of water voles (Ratty in Wind-in-theWillows), though I’ve only ever seen them and their holes where the river bank is considerably higher than at Cawdle Fen. It’s safe to assume that the poor water voles have already been considerably upset and inconvenienced by the arrival of the 2,000 tons of steel and 5,000 cubic metres of concrete used in the bypass.

The EA and GOBA propose coming up with a water vole mitigation plan (dependent on Water Voles still being there - hopefully they may move on to a more commodious home of their own accord).

I am looking forward to the happy time when the mooring becomes fully available, and adds to Ely’s facilities.

David Anderson Retires

David was presented with an engraved tankard at our AGM in March, thanking him for his many years of service on the committee.

Ouse News Page 8 Mike Petty returns At the meeting on 28th February the branch again welcomed local historian Mike Petty. His talks are ever popular and he was received enthusiastically by a well attended meeting.

This time he addressed the ‘bottom end’ of the system from Ely down to Denver. He explained that a lot of information, covering 1897 to 1990 is now available on line in the River Ouse and Old West Scrapbook. His own Facebook page (other media platforms are available!) also contains a host of information.

He explained that the nature of the area has changed much over the years in both a physical and commercial way. With the closure of the beet factory, boat building became the major industry in the area but this has since diminished, as has the reed harvesting activity. The area was frequently flooded but with management of the waterway (principally the cutting of the new route downstream of Ely through Queen Adelaide in 1930 and construction of the cut-off channel) this has fortunately diminished. Much of the flooding was caused by the washings of the mud and other refuse from the beet silting up the waterway.

The gault clay required to line the new cut was sourced locally from Roswell Pits. In common with many areas of the country, the commercial use of the waterway as a transport medium changed radically with the coming of the railway in the 1860s – Littleport had previously been a successful, bustling port.

A number of the old bridges needed to be replaced, notably one at the confluence with the River Lark as the old one collapsed in 1928!

Ouse News Page 9 Along the river there are many pumping stations – using diesel powered pumps - which have replaced the old windmills. Whilst this may be a more effective method, they do not have the character of their predecessors nor their environmental credentials of using a sustainable energy source – the wind.

This is of necessity a very brief overview of Mike’s presentation and I commend readers to look up the huge amounts of literature available via his Facebook pages etc.

John Hodgson

The following information was found on Mike Petty’s Internet Archive Site by Peter Webb on 10th May 2018: News of the Day – May 10th 1974 Water seeping through the banks of the Reach, Burwell, Swaffham Bulbeck and Bottisham lodes presented the Great Ouse local land drainage committee with a cash dilemma: spending a smaller amount of money but partly closing the system to navigation or spending a lot more to allow boating to continue.

The engineer said there was a straight choice. This involved demolishing all or part of the high-level lode systems, so creating a new low-level system of drains, or retaining the high-level systems and controlling the seepage that occurs.

“Once you close a system of waterways to navigation you will never get it open again”, he said.

Cont’d:

Ouse News Page 10 News of the Day – May 10th 1976 A flotilla of 14 boats sailed to Burwell in a “quiet demonstration” in support of preserving the ancient fenland waterways.

The Commodore of the Cambridge Motor Boat Club, Chief Inspector Roy Hardingham of the City Police, said it was designed to make the point that the lodes should be protected for boating of all kinds, for fishing and because they were part of our heritage.

Mr Geoffrey Woollard said Anglian Water Authority now seemed convinced that it would be foolhardy to destroy the lodes, which are reputed to date back to Roman times.

These are two of thousands of stories reported in Cambridgeshire newspapers between 1897 and 1990 that you can read and download for free from Mike’s Internet Archive site - https://archive.org/details/ CambridgeshireScrapbook2018Revision

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Advertising in Ouse News  Do you want to contact boating enthusiasts?  Advertisements cost £30 (+VAT) per half page or £60 (+VAT) for a whole page for a year.

 Three editions a year.  Circulation = 300 within 30 miles of Cambridge.

 Contact the Editor on 01366 727236 or (carole.alderton@waterways.org.uk)

Ouse News Page 12 Reach Fair 2019 - Carole Alderton On 6th May, Bank Holiday Monday, several members of the committee spent the day on our stand at Reach Fair. Despite the cold weather, attendance was good and our stand was busy. Our menfolk, however, having at last mastered the art of erecting a gazebo, still had difficulty putting our ‘toy’ lock together. Luckily this was achieved prior to the opening; and our new badge making kit proved very popular.

Three men and a lock:

The art of badge making:

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FESt - Press Release Announcing: St Ives Illuminated Boat Parade on 7th September 2019 The River Great Ouse at St Ives will be lit up with a spectacular boat parade - a great night out with families gathering on the historic Town Bridge and The Quay.

Make a note of the date – Saturday 7th September 2019 - to join in the fun: The ‘Disney’ themed event will begin with music and entertainment from about 7.45 pm, with the parade starting at dusk and with a Firework Finale.  All boats, large and small, are welcome  There will be weekend mooring on Nobles Field  Free BBQ for all crews prior to event  Prizes for most creative decorations, with First Prize of ‘week in Spain’ for two. (accomm. only)  Disney themes – with the childrens’ favourite characters  Music and commentary throughout the evening.

Register your interest on-line now at: www.stivesboatparade.co.uk The event is organised by not-for-profit group Festival Events St Ives (FESt), with help from members of GOBA. See the video of the previous event in 2016 on YouTube, St Ives Illuminated Boat Parade 2016, with thanks to Alan Bennett of Media Imaging Solutions.

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Enid Hodgson

Ouse News Page 15 Parliamentarian of the Year Award Ceremony I had the privilege of attending the IWA Parliamentarian of the Year Award Ceremony held on the River Terrace at the Houses of Parliament on the 13th May. The event was attended by 45 Members of Parliament, 5 members of the House of Lords and representatives from 30 different waterway restoration societies. It was good to see so many MPs making the time to attend as, no doubt, they had another pressing matter on their minds at the time!

The award ceremony is an annual event hosted by Lord German, and is designed to not only acknowledge the work of parliamentarians who show an interest in and actively support our waterways, but also to provide a forum where restoration societies can press their case for funding.

Following an introduction by Lord German, presentations were made by Ros Kerslake OBE, Chief Executive of the National Heritage Lottery Fund and Mike Palmer of the IWA Waterways Recovery Group. During the event, the IWA launched a new grant that offers organisations up to ÂŁ100,000 to assist in funding a project or projects that promote the objectives outlined in the Vision & Values Report.

Andrew Bridgen, MP for North West Leicestershire was named IWA Parliamentarian of the Year in recognition of his unwavering support and assistance regarding many different issues that have arisen on the Ashby Canal Restoration. He was particularly commended for his work with HS2, focusing on the proposed routing of the high speed rail link and limiting its impact on the Ashby Canal.

Ouse News Page 16 We have viewed the terrace from the river on Watermist on many occasions and so it was nice to be able to view the river from the terrace for a change. The last time that I visited the Houses of Parliament I was in the cubs, which was a year or two ago!

Keith Alderton Jordans Mill The Jordan family began milling in 1855 when the second William Jordan bought Eaton Ford Mill. The business has been in the family ever since with the head of each generation retaining the same first name, the current incumbent being the sixth William .

In 1874 a bridge near the mill collapsed under the weight of a heavy steam engine, killing the driver. The Ivel Navigation was subsequently closed in 1876.

The mill has experienced two devastating fires, the first in 1894 and the second in 1899. On each occasion the mill was rebuilt and modernised using the latest milling technology. After the first fire, some of the traditional mill stones were replaced with rolling mills. However, after the second major fire, the mill was almost completely rebuilt with a water turbine replacing the water wheel and the mill stones being totally replaced by the Carter Rolling Mill System. The mill was automated to an amazing degree using state of the art Victorian technology.

Sadly, the mill ceased production in 2005, but was refurbished and opened to the public as an historical visitor attraction in 2013.

Keith Alderton Please see next page for photographs of recent branch outing.

Ouse News Page 17 Photographs of our visit to Jordans Mill on Saturday, 23rd March 2019

Ouse News Page 18 Freight News The Yorkshire Waterways Museum at Goole runs boat trips around Goole Docks. One of the vessels used for these trips is a tug called Wheldale.

During her working life she was used to push towing compartment boats, known as ‘Tom Puddings’, loaded with coal. Goole is Britain’s inland port that is furthest from the sea. At the time of my trip last summer there were five ships in port, plus a large number of barges of various types, including tankers.

A considerable amount of shipping traffic also comes into Ipswich and King’s Lynn. I have taken a trip around Ipswich docks in the Orwell Lady. At King’s Lynn a heavy lift recently took place with a transformer destined for a power station that is being built nearby. Coasters are also coming into Boston in Lincolnshire. Ships also come into Wisbech, laden with timber and building materials.

I once did a trip in a Thames sailing barge from Maldon in Essex to Wapping in central London. Very many ships could be seen up river, some right up in London itself. There was also much barge traffic to be seen on the way.

Robin Adams

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News & Views Do you have an article, comment or photo you would like to share? We would be very pleased to receive it! Contact the editor at: carole.alderton@waterways.org.uk

Ouse News Page 20 Update on works from Tom Larnach (River Manager) , Conservators of the River Cam: Water vole mitigation. Bank strimmed and burrows located. A14 bank repairs.

Once burrows are located, they have to be individually hand dug to ensure that no water voles remain in the area during works.

Welding up sheet piles. A14 bank repairs .

Lifting piles into place. A14 bank repairs.

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Motorbike recovered during backfill. A14 bank repairs.

Floating Pennywort and rubbish chicane booms.

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(Authorised to examine all private boats and in addition, residential boats provided they are fitted with a gas bubble tester)

Ouse News Page 23 PRESS STATEMENT: IWA CONTINUES TO CAMPAIGN FOR INCREASED FUNDING FOR EA NAVIGATIONS FOLLOWING TRANSFER ANNOUNCEMENT The Inland Waterways Association has responded to the confirmation announced yesterday by Defra and the Environment Agency that the potential transfer of EA navigations to Canal & River Trust will not take place “at this point in time”. IWA welcomes the commitment by EA to develop a long term funding and business plan for its navigations and confirms that IWA will continue to lobby Government for additional funding for these waterways.

In meetings with EA senior management over the last 12 months, IWA representatives have learnt about EA’s new strategies to support navigation and increase funding in other ways. One of these is the inclusion of navigation in a new Future Funding Team that will be identifying potential funding opportunities. IWA has offered its support for these initiatives, particularly proposals around using more volunteers and developing income from commercial opportunities. One area that IWA is encouraging EA to consider is new mooring sites, particularly residential moorings, as a way of increasing income that would also help with the additional demand for moorings as more people take to a life afloat.

IWA disagreed with EA last year over its steep registration fee increases for boaters, which will see increases of over 30% over 3 years for some boaters, but agrees that additional funding sources need to be identified. IWA will also continue to lobby Defra and Government for ongoing Grant in Aid for EA’s navigations to reflect the benefits that our waterways bring to the wider population through opportunities for leisure, health and wellbeing, as well as the economic benefits of vibrant, well maintained waterways to tourism and local communities.

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Ouse News Page 24 IWA National Chairman, Ivor Caplan, said “We understand that current funding is constrained but believe that sufficient investment in waterways is essential to enable them to meet their full potential in environmental and amenity benefits. IWA will continue to campaign and to support EA in practical ways, in order to ensure that these benefits are realised.”

Issue date: 6th June 2019

Book Review

by Stephen Foote

Two for the price of one this time, folks. In a ‘charity’ bookshop I found two most interesting waterways book which I hadn’t seen before. Let’s have a look at them.

‘Fenland River’ – by Rodney Tibbs This book was published in 1969. At the time, Rodney Tibbs was a Features Writer for the Cambridge News. He was also a keen boater, cruising the river on hired boats with his friend Michael Manni. His book is essentially a detailed historical and geographical description of the river and its tributaries from source to sea – as it was, of course, in 1969.

Ever since I moved to Cambridgeshire in 1973 the river has been a source of constant fascination. I have acquired many books about it; cruised it from end to end, studied its remarkable history and marvelled at its unique contribution to the landscape. I thought I had probably found it all. But not so – this book is packed with little gems which were completely new to me and I have to say I was so captivated with its contents that I read it twice in case I had missed anything!

Ouse News Page 25 Given the date of publication, the photographs are all black-and-white of course; the majority taken by the author or his cruising companion, but others by the newspapers he was associated with professionally. They are a delightful retrospect of what the river used to look like. In many of them, it still does.

There are a few points which I perceived to be factual errors – but in a work like this, such is inevitable. Overall, I rated it as outstanding. For students of the river and its surroundings it would be a very worthwhile addition to the library.

I suspect it is long out of print, but if you can find one in a bookshop, buy it! I would recommend it.

‘Canal Crimes’ – by R.H.Davies This is a somewhat macabre offering and the titles of the chapters tell you what you are in for; Crimes of the Waterways; Misdemeanours and Transportation; Violent Assaults; Manslaughter; Child Cruelty; The Rape and Murder of Christina Collins on the Trent And Mersey Canal; The Murder of Jane Doley at Wolverhampton Top Lock in 1875; Canal Crime in the 20th and 21st Centuries.

The author has done some extremely thorough and in places somewhat academic research to produce this book and the impression I was left with was that in the days of commercial carrying the canal was an extremely rough and unpleasant place to be. A far cry from the tranquil and folksy environment that some writers of earlier times have tried to portray. As a judge from Stafford County Courtroom is quoted as saying, ‘I cannot refrain from remarking that I am afraid no men in this country are so destitute of all moral culture as boatmen’.

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The sentences for seemingly trivial crimes were draconian in their severity, such as the sentence of seven years transportation for a young boat-boy who stole another boater’s clothes while he was washing in the canal. Yet in other cases, ghastly crimes such as rape and murder went unpunished.

The author also examines the problem of crime and antisocial behaviour on the canals and rivers in more recent times. Readers may not agree with his analyses – but he has had the courage to address these issues.

This is a more recent publication, from 2010. It may still be available, though I haven’t succeeded in tracing any other copies.

Fenland River by Rodney Tibbs; Terence Dalton Ltd., Lavenham, Suffolk 1969 (SBN 900963 10 7) Canal Crimes by R.H.Davies; Amberley Publishing, Stroud, Glos. 2010 (ISBN 978 1 4456 0045 1)

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Bridge Boatyard Bridge Road Ely, Cambs CB7 4DY

email info@bridgeboatyard.com Website www.bridgeboatyard.com Telephone 01353 663726

Moorings in marina and on riverside in historic Ely. Close to rail station.

Repairs and servicing Engineering and glassfibre workshops Slipway Suppliers of diesel, gas and coal Authorised Nanni dealership Gas safe engineer

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The Inland Waterways Association is a non-profit distributing company limited by guarantee.

Registered in England No 612245.

Registered as a charity No 212342. Registered Office: Island House, Moor Rd, Chesham, HP5 1WA. Phone No 01494 783453.