Sponsors
National Historic Ships UK acknowledges the financial support of its sponsors
Registration number
660
Status
Registered
a12admin
Details
Function
Cargo Vessel
Subfunction
Barge
Location
Morcombe
Vessel type
Wey Barge
Current use
Museum based
Available to hire
No
Available for excursions
No
Construction
Builder
Stevens, William & Sons, Guildford
Built in
1925
Hull material
Wood
Rig
None
Number of decks
1
Propulsion
Towed
Primary engine type
None
Boiler type
None
Boilermaker
None
Dimensions
Breadth: Beam
14.98 feet
(4.57m)
Length: Overall
72.95 feet
(22.25m)
History
Built in 1925 for William Stevens & Sons of Guildford, SPEEDWELL is a Wey barge with a hull of oak frames, oak planking and a pitch pine deck. The barge was towed and its principal traffic was carrying grain from London docks to mills on the River Wey. This trade came to an end in 1969 when grain imports moved from the London docks to Tilbury. Subsequently she was bought by Balfour Kilpatrick for use on a pipeline laying contract on the Lower Grand Union Canal until 1980. She was acquired by the Boat Museum, Ellesmere Port in 1982 and is now a floating exhibit at the museum. In 2007, she was reported to be at Ellesmere Port, but in pretty poor condition, resting in mud in the top basin with an automatic pump left on.
Feb 2024 she was seen ashore at an offsite storage location secure but partially open to the elements.
Grants
-
June 2009
A Sustainability Award of ú1250 for remedial work on the cockpit was made from the Strategic Development Fund of National Historic Ships
Sources
The Boat Museum, The Boat Museum
Brouwer, Norman J, International Register of Historic Ships, Anthony Nelson, Edition 2, 1993
Own this vessel?
If you are the owner of this vessel and would like to provide more details or updated information, please contact info@nationalhistoricships.org.uk
