For those of you who’re familiar, each year the reality of having an old wooden boat meant I also holidayed… aboard my old wooden boat. 2010 was no different!
Day 1
Today, as ever was quite hectic (this stands true now – no matter how prepared I think I am – I still end up pulling a superhuman effort to leave the house on time with all the gear I need for a sailing trip)
The precious/vital items you’ve forgotten, the last minute jobs etc. This year it was further compounded by ‘Boris’ a truculent 30yr old Land Rover;
The L/R
You get 2 choices at Oby – make several time-consuming trips, OR make one lung bursting, eyeball popping legs-bowed trudge – thinking stoic thoughts about pack mules. The path itself was also uneven, often muddy & with livestock to contend with…. Character building!
With ‘Corsair’ loaded – we then entered our usual underwater ploughing competition to leave the mooring. 3ft 8″ draft. Sigh.
(having just bought a L/R with a 2.6L straight six – I was resigned to sailing without the engine as I couldn’t afford petrol for both. Improves your sailing skills, but watching both quants bend like bananas as we forced ‘Corsair’ through the mud always was unnerving!)
Freed, we set two reefs & middle jib saw us storming up the Bure toward Thurne junction. Despite our efforts at reefing, control soon became marginal (!)
Situation ‘not ideal’
…and it was only the sterling work of Mr Jalil (who I note has been promoted for 2010?) that brought relative calm by scandalising the mainsail.
We ventured up Womack water for the evening, and sliding upriver we spotted ‘Pickin Jack’ looking quite forlorn outside Colin Buttifant’s yard. Evidently he has still yet to complete ‘Seabird’s’ new mast…
(nb ‘Seabird’ had sustained an injury whilst acting as start-boat for Reedham regatta. Colin B. being tasked with a new mast. ‘Seabird’s’ owners been reported as muttering “I wanted a new bloody windscreen not a new bloody mast” to much hilarity.)
Mooring at the staithe proved tricky but we slid into a little spot!! We adopted our usual trick of aiming at the gap – pushing in until the fenders sqweak, keep pushing then adjust the other boats mooring lines to make the space fit ‘Corsair’… works every time – especially with unsuspecting tourists.
In fact, my top-tip for mooring next to holiday-makers. First come alongside, then step aboard… Get a line on the nearest cleat. Then, and only then ask if its okay to moor alongside them. Got it?
(alas boat next door turned out to be noisy swines)
Later that night, we found ourselves in the King’s Arms, which for some inexplicable reason had a DJ and the music… more bloody noise!
Well peeling your eyelids with rusty nails would have been less painful. However later in the evening there was entertainment in the form of Laura (also a pub-goer) who had an issue with her dress zip(!)
(The logbook notes the skipper became all unnecessary at this point & ends abruptly)
‘Corsair’ was kept at South Walsham broad, moored in a private dyke under the ownership of a M.Doleac. I’m uncertain as to whether she was actively for sale, but as is the way with many old Broads yachts, there was someone looking – and ultimately most boats are for sale if you ask very nicely.
The someone being Steve Sanderson, a local boatbuilder from Reedham.
The Sanderson family – 1981; Steve Sanderson far right.
He’d been tasked with finding a Broads yacht for Joe Kilner (from whom I bought ‘Corsair’) – although Steve & his family also deserve a mention…
The Sanderson family bought their boatyard in 1932, the site being known as ‘Hall’s yard’, wherry builders who’d built some absolute beauties.
Hall’s yard – Reedham. At least 2 wherries on the slip.
2 Halls built wherries survive, ‘Hathor’ (with her own rich & varied history) – and ‘Maud’, the last surviving clinker built trading wherry. A grandson of the Hall family worked for the Sanderson’s until the 1950’s.
The Sanderson’s lived aboard a sizeable ex-RAF launch ‘Astral’ for 28years, with brothers Colin & Steve joining the family business as they were able to. So when Steve was asked to source a suitable Broads yacht for Joe K. – he duly pointed him in the direction of ‘Corsair’.
Astral – moored outside Sanderson’s.
(Later I was to learn that ‘Corsair’ had transferred ownership via circuititous routes more than once!)
At this point, it’s very hard not to digress but in the mid-late 1980’s there was a huge resurgence of interest in old Broads yachts, their sailing & racing. The Broads legend (s) Maidie & M.Barnes in 1984 found themselves at Sanderson’s – the beginning of an ownership/story which is still ongoing today; 84_maidieeastored.jpg (600×1463) (broadlandmemories.co.uk).
As part of this resurgence, in 1985 a proposal to re-form the Yare Sailing Club was made – which caught the interest of Joe. ‘Corsair’ was purchased, and arrangements made to bring her south to Reedham – to a mooring in Sanderson’s Dyke.
Joe & Julia both lived out of Norfolk at this point, Julia recalls on her 1st trip down, her Mini clubman broke down outside of King’s Lynn, making a long journey to Reedham even longer. Salvation came in the form of a friend couple who drove Julia to their house nearby, enabling the RAC to be called (life before mobile phones!). The car was resurrected & after several hours the Ferry Inn lit up in the headlights, and an indroctrination in Broads sailing started.
(what a beginning!)
Despite the breakdown, the Mini was pressed into service almost immediately – with the mast counterweight being loaded into the back (!), something which I’m certain made the steering a lot lighter!!
After an early start ‘Corsair’ was fastened alongside the motorboat ‘Tinga’, owned by Brian Holden of the GWYC – and towed through Yarmouth. Tidally it’s always worth getting to Breydon at the right time, as wind over tide can create abit of a ‘slop’.
One of ‘Corsair’s’ many quirks came to light at this point… the forrad cabin ports will only close if the roof is raised! And, like all boats being towed alongside in even mild wind over tide conditions – torrents of water begun to fling about – especially as the towing boat bounces to a different ‘sync’ than the towed vessel. Cue lots of water flooding past those open cabin ports!
Julia at this point resorted to crouching in the cabin, holding both panes of glass in an attempt to keep the cabin dry! I’m not sure of the success of this tactic, but a ‘pit stop’ at the Berney Arms Inn restored spirits (or should that read restorative spirits?) for ‘Corsair’ to motor to Reedham & slip into Sanderson’s Dyke.
Joe & Julia’s ownership of ‘Corsair’ brought well-needed stability & care to the boat. When you own a boat for a long time you’re able to properly invest in its future. Joe set about a comprehensive programme of modifications / structural works to ‘Corsair’, which included a new rig. Since 1961, she’d carried a neat gunter rig which Joe replaced with a gaff-topsail set-up from ‘Sabrina’, then in the ownership of another GWYC member, Robin Stewart.
In the early days of Joe’s ownership – ‘Corsair’ had a tendency not to respond to the helm, this was solved with an extension to the rudder, and eventually alterations to the position of the keel. Many, many years later when rebuilding ‘Corsair’ we were able to utilise one of the original floors, which at the time was not fitted with a keelbolt – such was the distance the keel was repositioned!
Joe oversaw the replacement of many planks, fitment of a gas locker & deck hatch in the aft deck, repositioning the winches from the cabin roof onto the deck (their previous location on the roof can still be seen today). Interestingly, although the mast & bowsprit were extended – fittings were added to enable the original ‘small’ rig to be set on the same spars.
Early in their ownership (1988) ‘Corsair’ won the Turkey race, an annual event originally sponsored by Steve Sanderson, 1st prize. Celebrations post-race also included the Reedham Ferry, where interestingly enough, there’s a link to another story…
My favourite recollection of Joe & Julia’s ownership – is one from a very early sail… Whilst running down the Yare – Joe advised Julia not to let the tiller come up, as to avoid a gybe.
This advice duly given – Joe was gathering fenders in on the sidedeck, when a crash gybe flung him (and the fenders) straight into the river Yare! When questioned why she’d tell the tiller ‘up’ Julia calmly responded that it only moved from side to side… (!)
Although another good tale, is the day ‘Corsair’ was in the strops of Sanderson’s big crane;
The infamous ‘big crane’ – seen here in 1984 lifting the Broads racer Maidie S/N52.
This crane has personality… with ‘Corsair’ hanging just above the barrels – it took off slewing with no input at the controls – boat conkers! Although I think the planks & ribs which suffered have now all been replaced thankfully.
Living in Holly Farm Dyke, wintering in Holly Farm barn, Reedham was home for ‘Corair’ the next 20 years, truly becoming a ‘southern rivers’ boat.
Corsair & her friends – Holly Farm Dyke, late 1980’s.
Next time we’ll re-visit 2010’s sailing holiday, and start to unpick the trail of Corsair’s designer, A.L. Braithwaite.
I mentioned the white painted transom previously as an indication of an older yacht needing TLC… this perhaps was reflected in the price, £450!
The Bown family duly put ‘Privateer’ to use, often sailing as a family. Compare this photograph from the early 1960’s to Privateer in 1936.
Privateer – early 1960’s
Alas this proved to be quite true, as Mr Bown senior undertook a significant amount of work in 1965 on ‘Privateer’. At that time, much of the planking & many of the ribs were replaced.
Paul Bown (Mr B’s son) recounted that there was little evidence of Privateer’s hire-career, aside from a repair to a cabin-side, which was a legacy of the Royal (!) cock up on Breydon in ’48.
Interestingly – Paul also discovered evidence that ‘Privateer’ had been altered throughout her hire career at C&H, there were multiple holes in the hog, indicating that the keel had been moved on at least two occasions (!)
I suspect, that Privateer when built was almost entirely balanced, and that the re-positioning of the keel was an attempt to bring some weather helm into play for safety reasons.
(most Broads hire cruisers had enormous weather helm, which meant if a hirer panicked, they just luffed themselves and stopped)
Unfortunately the 1965 rebuild cost £720 (!), which reflects the nature of the bargain price.
During the 1965 rebuild – ‘Privateer’ underwent a significant change in physical appearance. Many C&H yachts have cockpits which are ‘snug’, ‘Privateer’ being no exception. Hence the tiller linkage during her early years.
To provide useful additional space, Mr Bown senior re cut the coamings, raised the benches & splayed the short coamings ‘outboard’ to give a little extra space, as seen here.
Privateer with new windows & an enlarged cockpit. Moored at NBYC, Wroxham Broad.
The external sliding windows & their frames also disappeared at this point, apparently they could be opened by a jib-sheet – resulting in VERY wet bunks!
The final addition during Mr Bown senior’s ownership was the addition of a bowsprit, added in 1970. Paul Bown can be seen here – attaching the new jib!
The new bowsprit.
Mr Brittain had purchased new sails in 1956, aside from the larger jib for the bowsprit, that suit soldiered on until early 1990’s, another long-lived Jeckells suit. (not quite as long-lived as ‘Corsair’s’)
Privateer was sold in 1979, to Peter Dunham, who kept her in a boatshed at South Walsham (it appears S.Walsham has a ‘draw’ for C&H boats!). He didn’t keep her long however, as in 1983 she changed hands again…
… to Paul Bown! Mr Bown’s son. Evidently despite having sold her 1st time round because she was ‘abit much to handle’ -she was bought again!
Following a similar pattern, after 2 years of family-sailing, Paul took the opportunity to undertake some signficant works to ‘Privateer’ during 1985;
Paul managed to squeeze her into his front garden for this work!
So, in 1985, with a new deck, and a new rudder – Paul was able to enjoy racing ‘Privateer’, predominantly at Wroxham Broad;
Privateer – racing – Paul Bown helming. S/N 52 ‘Maidie’ & S/N 119 ‘ButterCup’ also photo’d.
In 1990 though, Paul had another project lined up, and ‘Privateer’ soon changed hands again, this time going to Jean Vaughan & Terry Secker.
Jean Vaughan, was in fact Jean Oliver – whose family had regularly hired ‘Privateer’ in the 1950’s, the boat having made such an impact on Jean, she snatched her up given the opportunity!
Jean & Terry kept ‘Privateer’ at Oulton Broad for a further 8 years. During this time, the tan sails disappeared. She lived on a buoy in Oulton’s South Bay.
Privateer – Oulton Broad 1990’s
Their ownership wasn’t without the occasional excitement. One day having rowed out the buoy, the tiller was found lying on the deck… The rudder having detached itself & helpfully sunk!
A diver was summonsed, and with breathtaking luck, he jumped off the stern of ‘Privateer’, and stood straight on the rudder! Given that on a buoy, say about 40ft overall, that’s an 80ft diameter circle it could have been lost on the circumference, so 1st dive to find it is bloody amazing!!
In 1998, Jean & Terry sold ‘Privateer’ to Mr Child, who still owns her today – the longest period of single ownership ‘Privateer’ has had to date. Tim has continued to enhance her, starting with a jackyard topsail rig;
Privateer – Cantley Regatta 2006.
Undoubtedly the addition of a larger jib, and a topsail enhanced ‘Privateer’s’ sailing performance, and kept her a regular figure on the regatta circuit throughout the early 2000’s.
In fact, Tim further pushed for performance by introducing one of the first ‘integral’ topsail rigs to be seen on the Broads, seen here to good effect at another Yare Sailing Club event, Breydon Open Regatta;
Privateer – Breydon Regatta 2007
Aren’t they both fantastic photos? Really showing the A.L. Braithwaite ‘sleek’ look, with the added bonus of being a sunny day. Fantastic!
Which brings us upto now – Tim still owns ‘Privateer’, he was my next door neighbour for a prolonged period of time, re-enforcing that somehow, C&H boats are bizarrely never too far away from me or my life…
Next time, we go back to ‘Corsair’ – and how she came to be a ‘southern rivers’ boat…
I promised I would write about ‘Privateer’ – and have managed to pull together my notes. Whilst it’s a distraction from writing about ‘Corsair’ – I hope it’s interesting. This is Part 1 of 2.
It was an incredible experience, and these photographs only emphasised that if I’m honest. I believe they’re taken in 1936, and show a newly built ‘Privateer’, heeling to a fresh breeze, clearly the pride of the C&H fleet;
Privateer – A.L. Braithwaite’s photographs.
I will say, I still find it AMAZING that those photographs survived 80 odd years, before being found & rescued by me. I count myself as very lucky to have them.
‘Privateer’ is typically Braithwaite in her design, displaying the fine entry & narrow transom that’s a signature for C&H yachts he drew. Complete with characteristic chrome trim, including the corner pieces on the cockpit & cabin sides.
At 31ft on-deck, there’s a strong chance that her metacentric qualities mean the largest underwater sectional area is likely to be nearly dead-on 50% of the LWL.
Interestingly, period commentary of ‘Privateer’ from both anecdotes (more of this later) and the Blake’s catalogue suggest she was a ‘handful’. Certainly she was advertised with the stern warning;
“not available to novices”
Blakes catalogues, much like Estate Agency listings need some interpretation, ‘Lively’ means arm-breaking weather helm. “Bijou” accommodation means a pokey cabin, and ‘easily handled’ means it sails like a log whatever you do… (!)
So I suggest the warning given meant ‘Privateer’ was a powerful boat.
This was confirmed to me in an anecdote by Paul Bown – a previous owner. He recounted that a local boatbuilder – Stanley Nudd was working quietly in the rigging shed at Herbert Woods – suddenly being rudely disturbed by ‘Privateer’ bursting through the shed wall! The party of young women aboard having lost control.
I don’t think this is immediately the fault of the helm, or ‘Privateer’ if I’m honest. To capitalise on internal space, alot of hire yachts had large cabins, with comparatively small cockpits, and as a ‘work around’ – some had their rudders linked to the tiller, which could then be mounted much further aft.
This creates alot of space in the cockpit – but the mechanical linkage limits you to putting the helm over until about 45 or 50 degrees max…
‘Privateer’ originally had such a linkage, which was later removed.
My theory – is that ‘Privateer’ was running downriver – toward the bridge. Upon turning, the limits of the tiller linkage meant she couldn’t (and wouldn’t) turn. Hence the nasty thump on the shed.
No damage to ‘Privateer’ was reported!
Herbert Woods’ yard – photographed in 1938 shows a white shed, immediately adjacent to the main river – I suspect this was the unfortunate victim of ‘Privateer’s’ advances!;
Herbert Woods – Potter Heigham, 1938.
Note the white shed, next to the footbridge (and the river!)
Being larger than the ‘Clipper’s’ meant the ‘Privateer’ could boast being a 2-cabin, 4 berth yacht. That is with 2 berths in the forrad cabin, then a Heads compartment & companionway opposite segregating this from the aft cabin – also with 2 berths. I’ve slept on ‘Privateer’ – and can vouch that the bunks are over 6ft length, and very wide!
Even though she was built for hire, it’s clear that Braithwaite & Lejeune decided to experiment. The gaff spar is bamboo – reducing weight aloft and linking back to the aim that all C&H yachts would be rewarding to sail.
They also looked to reducing the weight of the hull through construction. ‘Privateer’s’ hull planking was reputedly 3/4 mahogany (!) – with oak frames at 9″ centres. By comparision ‘Corsair’ has 1 inch planking, and her ribs are at 6″ centres.
Use of metalwork featured in the structural members of the hull- there was an iron breasthook & quarter knees – plus a substantial iron frame around the tabernacle.
Internally – the cabin roof was raised by a primative hydraulic system, ambitious! Later removed – as the leather seals were prone to leaking & spraying holiday-makers with oil!
In 1957, ‘Privateer’ found herself hired by the Bowes-Lyon family.
Yes, that Bowes-Lyon family! Although Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother was not aboard.
The Bowes-Lyon’s were sailing across Breydon, where they hooked a post with the mainsheet. BANG. You stop quite quickly doing this, and it was apparent they & ‘Privateer’ were going nowhere.
Unforgivably – they piled into the dinghy, and rowed to the ‘Star Hotel’ on Yarmouth quayside. Where upon they calmly telephone Chumley & Hawke – informed them where ‘Privateer’ was, and curtailed their holiday by getting on a train, pronto.
‘Privateer’ was found, lying on the mud on her side, full of water.
I’ll save my opinions on that, but ‘Privateer’ is the only R.C.C. yacht that can claim to be sunk by Royal Appointment!
Bizarrely, a very close friend of mine spent her childhood hiring ‘Privateer’. In fact, Jean & her family first sailed from Chumley & Hawke in 1951, to begin with, hiring ‘Clipper’ yachts. A bit of me hopes that Jean & her parents hired Clipper VI, especially as in 1951 she was the newly built C&H yacht…
Jean re-counted that her Father had previously hired ‘Brigand’ from Wroxham, but found it too frustrating getting through the trees from Wroxham each year. So turned to C&H in Horning for holidays.
The format of their holidays was quite simple, the Oliver family would drive from Birmingham, get aboard ‘Privateer’ & head to Hickling Broad in company with some other yachts, including 1 or 2 from Hunter’s yard at Ludham.
Again, I’m hugely fortunate in that Jean’s shared a number of photographs of ‘Privateer’ in hire, during the early 1950’s;
Oliver family – Privateer, 1950’s.
By the 1950’s – the windows in ‘Privateer’ had undergone their first change – gone were the chrome ports – replaced by sliders in external frames. Jean reports that these frequently opened when ‘Privateer’ was heeled over!
Like ‘Clipper’s’, the original chrome ports didn’t make ‘Privateer’ that light inside the cabin, so they were changed. Much like the oval hopper windows that ‘Corsair’ received in 1961 in fact.
Also note the cross-trees, and tan sails.
I’m quite taken by the scene in the cabin at mealtime. So much atmosphere – and ALOT more room than in ‘Corsair’s’ cabin!
Once on Hickling – Jean was often set adrift in the pram dinghy, learning to row quite quickly. (!) Whilst her parents roared up & down the Broad;
Oliver family – 1950’s, Privateer including the Pram dinghy
A few days spent on the upper Thurne would result in a frantic ‘sort out’ between the boats present at the end of the holiday. One at least one occasion, Percy Hunter complained that his yachts were returned with C&H cutlery in the drawer.
In 1956, C&H disposed of ‘Privateer’ to a Mr J. Brittain – who kept her for 7 years, where she passed to Paul Bown’s father. He’s kindly shared with me this photo of ‘Privateer’ at South Walsham Broad, 27th July 1963 – when they bought her;
Bown family – ‘Privateer’, South Walsham Broad 1963
Note the white painted transom, potentially a sign of an elderly yacht needing some TLC.
Paul’s family bought ‘Privateer’ from Mr Brittain, who just bought S/N117 – Anne.
I’ll stop here for Part 1, and revisit my notes about Paul’s father, Paul’s ownership & ‘Privateer’s later history for Part 2.
Returning to the intended order of writing, it was early 2010 when I started looking into the fate of ‘Corsair’s’ sisters. In part this was spurred on by the C&H connection to Upton.
Of course the Clipper’s also have a bigger sister – ‘Privateer’, who I will write about next.
Having his head turned by ‘Loyalist’ – Stephen left ‘Corsair’ at a boat auction in Potter Heigham. This period of her life I don’t have many details about, save what’s printed in the class listings within the ‘Green Book’.
1978; sold at boat auction.
1979-1983; owned by K.T. Henson
1984-1987; owned by P. Willen
Bizarrely – during one change of ownership – the spelling of ‘Corsair’ was corrupted to ‘Coresair’ – which wasn’t corrected until 1986!
What I do know, is that for these 9 years, ‘Corsair’ lived on the Northern Rivers, with a prolong spell moored at South Walsham Broad. Given the proximity of S.W. Broad to Martham, it’s likely that she often saw her sisters, still hard at work in the business of hire.
The other C&H yachts went to a variety of owners, but sticking to the ‘Clipper’s’ – these found their way to Martham, where they became part of the Martham Boatbuilding & Dev. Co fleet.
Known locally as ‘Martham Boats’ – they still retain an extensive fleet of wooden sailing boats, and certainly they were the only yard who saved many beautiful yachts by keeping them working long enough that private owners could be found. More info on their fleet is available here; https://www.marthamboats.com/
In 1961, Martham bought I – V, bolstering their existing fleet of yachts with these small pre-war yachts. Clipper’s I-III were still engineless (!), credit to their reputation as immortalised by ‘Blakes’ the hire agency;
“a design giving distinctly superior sailing qualities”
Perhaps more objectively, this is an insight into the post-war attitudes at Chumley & Hawke. Knowing they intended to dispose of the fleet, it may well have been economic to limit the investment in R3M Stuart Turner engines to the newer (just) yachts.
During 2010, I went and spoke with Gordon Curtis, one of the founders of the Martham fleet, to learn more about how the ‘Clipper’s’ had turned out in their ownership.
By 1965 Clipper’s I-V all had inboard engines, but had had their rigs adapted slightly. Gone were the self-tacking jibs, and in their place a smart tan suit of sails changed their appearance considerably. Also, gone the pre-war varnished top-sides replaced with white gloss.
Clipper’s – MBBD Co.
Credibly, Martham kept these pre-war yachts active for a number of years. If it hadn’t been for their intervention, I am not sure that all 6 would have survived.
They did however remain very basic with optional extras limited to a wireless radio & a rowing dinghy!
Digressing slightly, it would have been an exhilerating time for any wooden boat enthusiast to walk the bank at Martham. Woods, Powles, Chumley & Hawke, Press, Pegg & numerous other pre-war pedigree craft lined the Upper Thurne. Gordon even bought a wherry (or two)!
In fact, as a complete aside – Gordon bought the wherry ‘Hathor’ from infamous Broads navigator – ‘Claud Hamilton’. His previous wherry – ‘Claudian’ had sadly broken her back during the 1953 floods. Seen here in 1950 at Barton Regatta looking quite spritely, sailed by ‘Claud’;
Claudian – 1950 Barton Regatta
Whilst chatting, Gordon recounted how he quickly learnt how to sail ‘Hathor’ using the original pre-war cotton mainsail, until this disintegrated. She then became a houseboat, until saved by Peter Bower – founder of the current Wherry Yacht Charter Charitable Trust.
Hathor – Martham. pic; M. Gravener.
Anyway, yes. This is writing about Clipper’s not wherries. Sorry.
Over the years, Clipper II, IV & V gradually left Martham’s fleet, with Clipper I being the last to formally retire from hire, being sold in 1998.
1998? That’s 63 years work of hire, being sailed week in, week out from Easter through to October. I’m amazed at the resilience of these dainty yachts.
Clipper III remained in Martham’s ownership, and to my knowledge was withdrawn from hire at some point in the early 1990’s. I wasn’t allowed to photograph her, but by a bizarre turn of fate – my good friends Vince & Linda had hired her in the 1970’s!
Clipper III – Vince & Linda Perry aboard.
I’m confident in saying that Clipper III is the most original to how the Clipper’s would have been in hire, having now been sojourned at rest for 30 years in her barn.
However, what’s astonishing to me, is the way in which the ‘Clipper’s’ seemingly brushed past me closely, without me knowing about them. Clipper V was bought and owned by my primary school Headteacher for example!
Both Clipper IV & V are perhaps the most significantly altered from original. Both have had their cabin’s cut-down, cockpits extended and some very neat integral topsail rigs fitted. This has made them both extremely competitive!
As an aside, the modifications carried out also haven’t spoilt the aesthetic of the Clipper’s. They retain a very sleek look, as you can see here;
Clipper IV – racing rig!
Clipper V (S/N 290) – Barton Broad
Clipper II still lives close to Martham, in fact she spends much of her time in a wet boatshed at Potter Heigham. She was reverted to varnished topsides – and although she is seen here sailing with an outboard motor mounted (sacrilege), she provides the closest aesthetic to the pre-war Clipper’s. I suspect if given a self-tacking jib, she’d be a facsimile of a 1930’s Blakes photograph.
Clipper II – Horsey Mere
Finally – Clipper I. After her exhaustive career in hire – she was owned by Robert Harris as a private yacht, and then bought back into Martham’s fleet, circa 2015. They immediately treated her to a new suit of sails, giving her a VERY similar appearance to ‘Corsair’, early 1960’s.
Clipper I & VI
What is apparent when you compare Clipper’s I-V to ‘Corsair’ is the difference that extra plank makes in terms of internal volume. I’m VERY grateful that when ‘Corsair’ was built as Clipper VI, that extra plank was added!
In 2010, Clipper’s I & VI found themselves at rest, Horsey Dyke, which started this whole process.
Clipper I & Clipper VI at rest.
So yes, in a round about way that’s the fate of all the Clippers. One day I might be lucky to get all 6 in the same place.
Returning to writing, after a long absence. At the end of last season, my head was full, and I needed to focus on wrapping ‘Corsair’ up. As you can see its taken a few weeks for me to feel like writing. Anyway.
End of the 2019 season, 11th December.
I’ve previously stored ‘Corsair’ at Upton, during the 2009/2010 winter.
That year, I sailed ‘Corsair’ to Upton from her Oby mooring in late December, she was due to be lifted just before Christmas. It proved to be the only time I’ve sailed her in the SNOW, and to be honest it felt very intrepid (bl&%dy cold) when I’d reached Upton.
A few days after she’d been craned – Upton froze rather spectacularly!
Cold!
In 2009 – when I worked on the boat, I’d live on ‘Corsair’ at weekends. Luxury it wasn’t! Sleeping inside 2 sleeping bags, having first made the boat utterly disgusting by filling it with dust, etc!
It embarrasses me now, but looking back through notebooks I can see that during that winter a repair (!) was inflicted to the port side-deck which leaked.
It involved removing the cant-rail, and then carefully peeling back the trac-mark. I hadn’t money to buy new! Then, very carefully I dug out the rot, and the soggy bits… being VERY careful not to go through the boards completely. Then I sprayed everything with cuprinol wood hardener, before literally trowling epoxy in and smoothing it out.
Inside the boat, a mixture of masking tape and playing cards were sacrificed to stop the epoxy from leaking through… (!!!)
I also had to complete my 1st replacement plank. I made about every mistake I could have made. The plank was short (about 4ft), was butt-jointed to the adjacent timber with some good old ‘prayer books’ on the inside, and I think I used a linseed based frame sealant to caulk up.
Also – in view of my ‘ahem’ limited budget – that plank was fashioned from a 5ft length of 7 inch wide skirting board… If you cut the moulding off, you can just about get a short plank out of it (!)
I can’t defend these repairs today, as they were short-lived. But at a time when I was struggling financially, they meant I kept the boat afloat and sailing.
Thankfully no pictures exist…
And, having suitably disgraced myself, I will try and explain the connection between Upton and Chumley & Hawke…
One of the post-war owners of Chumley & Hawke, Vic Harrison evidently supported Tim & Annie’s endeavour to run their own hire fleet. When they moved to Upton in 1958, it was in the midst of changes at Chumley & Hawke.
I understand that Vic was instrumental in Tim & Annie taking a number of the C & H yacht fleet with them;
– Reveries 1 – 6 (Press built)
– Brown Elf, Imp and Sprite (C&H built – ALB designed)
– Pixie (Press built)
R/e the builder’s notes above… I know they’re accurate in terms of ALB designs.
I’m not clear when the Reverie’s joined C&H, but given they are Press built boats, and Alfred Yaxley (the post-war foreman at C&H) came from the Press yard, I suspect the boats came with him post WW2, so to speak.
In fact, all these yachts were 2 berth, small yachts. Leading to the nickname that EW was the ‘honeymoon’ fleet!!
Design- wise, the Brown Elf class was the most interesting in the EW fleet at that time. They really show A.L Braithwaite’s tendency to experiment.
Originally these were ‘Una’ rigged, in the same way a ‘catboat’ is in the US. It certainly wouldn’t be the first instance of US design influencing boats on the Broads, its rumoured a local boatbuilder (from up Wroxham way!) used the ‘Rudder’ magazine as a source of inspiration!
Brown Elf, Imp & Sprite
They are diminutive – vital statistics; 20 LOA, 17ft 3″ LWL, 7ft 6″ beam, with 3ft draft and 223sq. ft of sail & 580lb of external ballast.
Interestingly, Braithwaite wrote to Yachting Monthly in 1949 about the Brown Elf class – they were designed by him in 1930, and must have been one of his 1st designs for C&H.
Their rig differed from a typical gaff Broads yacht, not just with the lack of jib, but also that they carried jaws on the boom, and a down-haul to tension the luff. Much like a lugsail dinghy, although you could argue given their size, Brown Elf, Imp & Sprite were little more than half-deckers (in the nicest possible way).
The Una rig would have made alot of sense for a Broads hire-boat, it locates the mast well out of the way of any accomodation. There’s minimal standing & running rigging. and of course in a moment of panic, if the helm is abandoned they should luff & come to a halt.
Most sailing yachts in hire operated on that same principle. A large mainsail with weather-helm was considered safer with inexperienced sailors.
Happily, unlike the ‘Clippers’ there are lines plans which have been replicated for the Brown Elf class, and you can really see the metacentric theory being applied, look at the area curves, and how uniform they are.
It certainly looks like the maximum underwater sectional area is absolutely 50% along the DWL.
Brown Elf – lines plan
Once the Brown Elves were rehomed at Upton, it wasn’t long before Tim also took to altering them. The cabin’s were extended forward, and the Una rig abandoned for a Bermudian sloop configuration.
As a nice circuitous touch, here’s a photo of Brown Elf in 1962, outside Horning Ferry, whose link to C&H was the tragic demise of Joseph Lejeune, foreman.
Brown Elf, Imp or Sprite – outside Horning Ferry 1962
I’ve no doubt that Lejeune oversaw the building of the Elf’s, at what must have been an exciting period in C&H’s history – a new owner, new designs and minor publicity in yachting press of time.
Anyway, I hope I’ve managed to narrate the link between Chumley & Hawke, Tim & Annie, Upton, and ‘Corsair’s’ history.
Yesterday I enjoyed what is likely to be my penultimate sail of 2019. I know, I know yet again I’m deviating from the intended order of writing. That’s the joy of being the Editor though.
Yesterday was glorious. Bitterly cold, clear, sunny and calm. Very calm. We rigged whilst tied to our mooring, and headed off upriver to Surlingham Ferry, for the Turkey Race – next weekend.
I found myself checking and double checking the rigging again – I’m not sure if I need to re-order and change the cleats on the tabernacle, now the topsail is there. Currently the peak halyard is lead onto the port face, with the throat on the starboard face. The topsail spar has a neat trick of capturing the peak – at the lower end of the spar, which can make lowering the mainsail tricky.
This definitely needs looking at, for two reasons. One – the rig should work, and this is dangerous. Two – when you sail on/off moorings, I find the best way is to keep the way on as much as possible, and to be able to drop the sail – bloody quickly if needed.
Gorgeous!
The rig did present a more amusing quirk – if you tension the topsail forestay just right, it ‘thrums’ and buzzes… Took me ages to work that out, including removing the floorboards and checking on the bilge-pump to see if that was running!
Heading upriver, we were lucky enough to be photographed by a friend, whose currently building a house for his family. The scaffolding made an excellent platform, although if I’m critical – that peak is about 1 or 2 inches ‘out’ by the look of the creases.
I’m struggling to find superlatives to describe the day if I’m honest, it was perfect.
Typical of the season, a North wind with no warmth, a clear sky and a medley of colour in the riverbank, reds, browns, yellow and oranges all competing in the remnants of summer foliage. We sailed every inch of the way, and we knew we’d taken the best of the day for ourselves.
But. I wanted to talk about the starfish.
This links with the subtly of the Broads rivers – and the villages which surround them. There are features worth exploring, and a hidden history. There is a tenuous link to Chumley & Hawke as well…
Surlingham has a starfish. Something which shows the far-reach of war, into the boring fields of Norfolk. In truth both Norfolk & Suffolk were riddled with military action during WW2, and you’re never far from it.
Starfish sites were large decoys – developed in WW2 to act as a distraction to enemy bombers. Norwich took a pasting, in what’s known as the Baedeker raids, with the railway station/yard & nearby engineering works of Bolton & Paul being prime targets.
The solution was to create a decoy – which could emulate (from afar) what bomb damage might look like, including fires. The deception went further – it had to look realistic. There was a network of lights rigged, which could replicate the cadence of lit railway carriage passing by at night. Or a red glow to simulate a fire-box door being opened on a railway locomotive.
For reference – here’s a 1946 aerial photograph of Norwich railway station;
Norwich Thorpe railway station, including motive power depot, Crown Pint depot, Bolton & Paul engineering works. All very lucrative targets. The River Wensum snakes around the lefthand side of the image.
Interestingly – the 1946 aerial photographs also show the deception required. Outside of Norwich, you can just see a crude attempt at censoring the existence of what is either a fuel installation, or the present-day sewage station at Whitlingham;
Nothing to see here!!!
Surlingham was chosen to host a ‘starfish’. Local firms such as the Rockland Reed & Rush company would supply bundles of reeds to act as ‘wicks’ for the fires – whilst the pyrotechnics were handled through a series of heath robinson-esque contraptions – mixing oil & water to make dramatic explosions.
Interestingly – the knowledge & expertise behind the starfish sites is credited to expertise within the theatric industry – being able to use lights, smoke & explosions to good effect on stage can enable a mimic on a much larger scale.
It’s no exaggeration that these sites were vital. Norwich became so battered and bruised, you would see families walking out on the Drayton & Dereham roads on a nightly basis – preferring to sleep out in the open than risk another night of bombs.
Today – the site of Surlingham’s starfish is much quieter. I stopped by, and knowing where to find the bunker – managed to capture it in its slumber;
Again – the hidden detail, and history of Norfolk’s rivers & surroundings amazes me. You can walk quite easily from Surlingham Ferry, and walk past this 100 times without knowing what it’s about.
I can’t imagine what it would have been like, orchestrating a site like this in the war – knowing it’d lure enemy bombs to drop adjacent to you instead of on an already burning city.
The link between this starfish and ‘Corsair’ is tenuous – but there. It links to Joseph Lejeune – foreman at Chumley & Hawke in the pre-war years, and the heyday of Alfred Lloyd Braithwaite’s design experiments. Lejeune’s & Braithwaite’s most extreme experiment was undoubtedly Khala Nag;
Khala Nag – sometime in the 1930’s, somewhere on the Broads near Horning.
I’m fortunate enough to own that photograph, which is to my knowledge the only extant photograph of Khala Nag – it was part of the treasure trove of ALB’s possessions which I found earlier this year, in Milford on Sea. See here for the highlights of that; https://broadssailing.blog/2019/07/18/on-the-trail-of-a-l-braithwaite/
‘KN’ was a flier. 27ft long, with only 4ft 6” (yes) beam and 3ft 6” draft she carried 2 separate rigs, one for the Broads, one for coastal waters. The extent of his commitment to balance, weight, sails & hullform is evident in this design & build.
Whilst Joseph Lejeune built the yacht, Braithwaite assisted throughout. Notably he weighed and recorded each and every component of ‘KN’. This eventually lead him not only to knowing the exact required weight of the ballast keel, but also how to trim the vessel, so that her centre of gravity could be altered to 1” in advance of the centre of buoyancy, calculated to counteract the weight of any crew. This simple calculation is often overlooked by designers, and pays dividends when sailing.
At the time of the outbreak of WW2 Joseph Lejeune was the foreman at Chumley & Hawke, and unquestionably there must have been a close working partnership between him, and Lt Cdr Braithwaite. They were close in age – and clearly shared a passion for experimenting with the limits of design at that time, to create some unique, and exciting craft.
For example, the noted cost of JL’s time during ‘KN’s’ build was £117, 4s 10d (!) The lead for KN’s keel only cost £7 9s 0d. ALB must have valued his input as a designer.
Sadly, this evidently close partnership wasn’t long lived. Whilst Lt Cdr Braithwaite went back into active service, Joseph Lejeune stayed in Horning.
I know that Alfred Lloyd Braithwaite felt very strongly about returning to active service. His age would have discriminated against him at the outbreak of war, and in fact I notice on the 1939 return there is a note which reads; ‘RNVR in Great War, but refused for present war’. ALB was not to be deterred, and was posted in 1940.
In Horning, during the evening of April 26th 1941, Horning village was subject to a stray bomb attack – which disastrous consequences.
(I actually sit, reading notes I first wrote – April 26th 2016).
It isn’t clear exactly, but it’s likely a Luftwaffe bomber was jettisoning bombs on the way back to the coast. And their attention was sufficiently drawn to drop their remaining payload of 15 bombs around Horning.
I wonder if they were aiming for the ferry itself – which may have been silhouetted. Else perhaps it was a chink of light as someone slipped into the pub?
Whatever the circumstances, the most unfortunate target was the Horning Ferry pub, and amongst the 22 fatalities that night was Joseph Lejeune, aged 50.
The devastation was instantaneous;
The link between Surlingham’s starfish and this, is that sites like that, their flashing lights and theatrical pyrotechnics were desperately trying to stop destruction and loss of life like this. Sadly it’s reckoned that Starfish sites only drew 5% of the intended bombs away from the actual targets.
This accounts for how ‘Corsair’ came to be built post-war by the apprentice at Chumley & Hawke – Tim Whelpton, directed by the then yard foreman Alfred Yaxley.
Anyway – In a roundabout way, I hope I’ve explained another bit of Norfolk’s hidden history, and some more of ‘Corsair’s’ story.
Returning desperately to my original concept of trying to write in the order in which I’ve learnt about ‘Corsair’ forces a return to 2009.
The 2009 season passed relatively smoothly. ‘Corsair’ stayed on the Northern Rivers aside from the Perryman memorial race that May, and I was in the enviable position of being able to sail with Joe & Julia aboard ‘The Only Girl’ when on the southern rivers, and on the north rivers with ‘Corsair’.
At the end of the season – I finished my sailing as I do now, with the YSC’s Turkey Race. Essentially we keep the boats in the water until December, and you race with 3rd prize being a brace of pheasant, 2nd Duck, and 1st prize is a Christmas Turkey.
As you can see, 2009 saw me aboard ‘TOG’ – on a particularly cold & calm day!
The Only Girl – 2009 Turkey Race.
During that winter – I was staying with friends in West Norfolk, and once ensconced in the spare room, I exercised one of my character traits… I just have to look at the books on other people’s bookshelves!! You will learn a lot that way, I recommend it, when you next get the chance.
Cruise of the Clipper – A. M. Derham
I don’t know what singled this book out to me, I assume it was that latent tie to that word ‘Clipper’. I know it was late, cold, and VERY quiet, so I didn’t waste time getting back into bed with the book. Within pages I was hooked.
This WAS a book about the Broads… More significantly – it WAS about Chumley & Hawke in Horning, and it featured three young men, who’d hired Clipper.
The book centres on 3 young men, who decide upon a September sailing holiday, and in the early pages even references the discomfort of the 3rd person sleeping on the cabin floor (some things never change!)
By page 21, I’d realised that Derham has used Broads landscapes and features – aside from ‘Brackley Hall’, which if the illustration is anything to go by, I’d say is ‘Burefields’ – the house adjacent to Horning vicarage;
Sleep forgotten, I read on – it’s a reasonably cheerful little book, until I reached page 54. Where I must admit I had to stop! Roman numerals had never been my strong point… I knew what I was reading.
Clipper IV or VI?
Clipper VI. CLIPPER VI! THAT’S MY BOAT! Even now, writing this I’m smiling. It forms one of many ‘awe struck’ moments that have happened to me in my ownership of ‘Corsair’.
I mean – I didn’t own this book, I routinely wouldn’t have access to this book – it’s not even in my house! Here I am, with 100’s of choices, and I select this book. The centre of the story, well it’s my little boat!
Needless to say – I now own 2 copies of ‘Cruise of the Clipper’, which coincidently was published in 1952. I can only guess that Arthur Morgan Derham was a very early hirer of ‘Clipper VI’, given her built completed in 1951.
Interestingly – A.M. Derham must have had some close links with Chumley & Hawke, as he also hired their yacht ‘Viking’. She is the star of his book ‘On the Trail of the Windward’ (circa 1949/1950).
The ‘Windward’ is I believe a substitute name for a large Broads ex-hire yacht, the ‘Westwards’ – which were built by Jack Powles in Wroxham.
From what I can tell – Arthur Morgan Derham was born in 1915, in Hertfordshire. By age 14 he had converted to an Evangelist, something which he later embraced quite fully.
As a young man, he was given warrant number 123990 in the Metropolitan police force, serving as a Constable between 1935 & 1938. It was during 1938 that he took on the role of Pastor, at the West Ham Baptist Tabernacle – which itself is a quite imposing 1903 chapel; https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3104634
West Ham was (is?) – a densely populated part of London, which took some awful damage in WW2. It’s noted that Derham continued his services, but underground until 1944. At this point, his writing increased and he was known to travel to churches in England.
Potentially, this may be the link to Horning… I know there’s a Baptist church in Neatishead, potentially Derham spent some time there. There is no doubt that he had sailed on the Broads, and definitely knew the area. He captures details sufficiently well to have been there himself.
A.M. Derham later rose to the position of General Secretary of the Evangelist Alliance. I’m not sure if they found out about his other published works… including “Love, Sex & Marriage (A Christian Guide)”…… !!!!!!!!!!
His earlier book, ‘On the trail of the Windward” I didn’t actually own until 2017. Although inside the cover of that book, I notice that it was presented to Peter Hamment, of Tunstead Chapel – so maybe Derham was there?
The publishers are C.S.S.M – the Children’s Special Service Mission, so maybe that’s just co-incidence it was awarded as a church prize (46 attendances in 1949)
I’m delighted to have found both books – as for my friends Damien & Julian who own ‘Viking’, it was lovely to introduce them to their boat, in print so to speak. Like ‘Cruise of the Clipper’ – “On the trail of the Westward’ has some excellent cover artwork.
Isn’t it great? Very much of the 1950’s, and if you can overlook the strong Christian subtexts with the stories – they are cracking little books about 2 very cherished C&H boats!
So yes. ‘Corsair’ is in a book. A book I only found, by chance, over 40 miles from where I live, in someone else’s house. Still amazes me, 10 years later.
Very opposite sailing at the moment. From sailing fully reefed in a near gale to a flat calm, on a beautiful, crisp day.
Personally – I think it’s worth keeping the boat in until December, Autumn does give some beautiful days, so I resolved to make the topsail work, with a proper spar.
I sailed ‘Corsair’ for the 1st time with her topsail this year, at Cantley Autumn Regatta with the Yare Sailing Club. Here’s a gratuitous photo;
Corsair with topsail.
I’m not going to pretend that’s set well. In face, given that it’s hanging off my quant pole, which is at least a metre too short, the yard is tangled the wrong side of the gaff, and the peak isn’t high enough I’m reasonably surprised we came 3rd in that race!!
Sticking to my principles, the rig should work, and it should look right. So I resolved to make the topsail set properly. I’ve previous experience of jackyard topsails, having spent a lot of my teenage years sailing a topsail rigged halfdecker;
Grace – my halfdecker. Topsail contrived from upside down BOD jib.
Unlike his counterparts though, I am unable to send a man or two afloat to stow the topsail – neither do I have a clue when he advises us to be mindful of “passing the weather earing”.
So – first hoist of the topsail, and it was apparent that the sheeting angle was wrong – with the sheet being too low on the yard. Even worse – on port tack the yard pulled away from the mast, allowing everything to ‘twist’;
I appreciate that topsails & mainsails are two separate sails. However, for the purposes of my simple brain – one is an extension of the other. And a ruddy great gap in the middle of it doesn’t help.
So down it all came again!
Rig adjustments are subtle. The sheet was moved by 3 inches, and an addition line was added, which held the topsail spar close to the mast, and ensured it would be parallel at all points of sail. This is tied loosely to the spar – so it just pulls ‘in’ to the mast, I don’t want it to impact on the downhaul, which you can see is caught up in the topping lift.
So next attempt revealed the sheet was wrong (by 1 inch) and the second halyard (for want of a better name) was also ‘out’ by about 4 inches.
Lowered again… Avoila!
Nicely set.
So, in my book, that’s not bad. Crease diagonally up and down the main from peak to tack. Topsail yard nicely vertical. Load on the jib & the topsail forestay.
Crucially – I’ve marked everything on the spars, and given that I was knee-deep in rope on the forepeak I’ve had some thoughts about extra cleats, and some rope bags to tidy everything.
I’m pleased with this. Just got to test it all over the next few Autumnal Days.
Bliss.
My ambition to have a rig that works well on ‘Corsair’ have been a constant process if I’m honest. During 2009, I made some alterations to the jib, effectively cutting it parallel to the luff, removing approximately 12 inches of sail up its length.
At that time, I had hoped to resolve some issues with occasional lee-helm, and soon reduced the length of the bowsprit to match. From this photo in 2009, you can see that the jib doesn’t quite ‘fit’ the foretriangle;
Small jib – big gap!
To be honest, this set-up worked beautifully for me, at that time. Sailing single-handed I wanted really positive weather-helm. If it all went wrong, I needed to know the boat would luff, and come to a halt.
This was the thinking behind the original hire-boat rig, keep a small jib, so that the boat will automatically luff and stop. Also, for hire-boats any bowsprit would only be a unnecessary damage making implement!
‘Corsair’ has had 4 rigs now throughout her 68 years. She started off a stem-head sloop. First with a self-tacking jib, then a loose footed jib. In 1961 she gained a small bowsprit with the Campbell family, with a larger, high peaked mainsail. In 1989 she gained the ‘large’ topsail rig whilst in the ownership of Joe & Julia(originally cut 1978 for ‘Sabrina’ s/n 71). Joe & Julia actually kept the old sails, and the original bowsprit – enabling them to have either a ‘big’ or a ‘little’ rig.
Finally in 2019 she got her current rig – the 2nd time in her 58 career as a private yacht that she’s received brand new sails, specifically for her!
So, will I keep the rig in its current form? If history repeats itself, she will probably end up carrying this suit of sails for 40 years or so – so who can say?!
I know that for now, the extra string, extra effort and space needed for a topsail is manageable – but I can’t say how I’ll feel about it in 5, 10 years with any accuracy really.
I am glad though, the rig now can be set properly, or as near to as I can get!
Taking a break – and jumbling the chronology of things, I wanted to add a postscript to the postscript. At the end of the 2009 cruise log, I mentioned how unobservant I was with the rivers.
Recently, I was reminded about this, whilst sailing the Yare. It was an Autumnal Day, and rarely – I had the opportunity to put 3 reefs in, set a storm jib and enjoy some proper heavy weather sailing.
I’m not being fool-hardy, it’s worth sailing in heavy weather, you should understand how your boat performs when fully rigged. I know that I’ve sailed ‘Corsair’ with 3 reefs on 3 occasions in 12 years. This was the first time with the new rig.
It was comfortable, and more importantly balanced – you should always match a jib to each reef you take in. ‘Corsair’ has 3 jibs of varying sizes, and as such, the rig always gives you the right power that’s manageable. And, keep it simple and straightforward – be able to manage the rig even on a breezy day.
Also, the remains of a fascinating, hidden Broadland feature are nearby.
I’m sailing past the ghost of a railway. Between 1922 & 1937 – Claxton Manor was occupied by John Samuel Pyke, and in 1926 he built a railway here.
Built on the cheap, it utilised ex WD ‘jubilee’ track, which was effectively a 2ft gauge Hornby train-set. Rolling stock was some tipper wagons, and the cargo… Norfolk Beet!
Each year – local farms produce a tremendous volume of sugar beet, and in the 1920’s, the roads between Claxton & the sugar factory at Cantley were poor, unmetalled – and to travel to Cantley factory you were dependent on Reedham ferry. 7ton limit. A 1920’s lorry would need to make several trips, and you’d pay each way on the ferry.
Not to mention – Beet season is through the winter, so the roads could be relied upon to be muddy (!) making for a slow journey.
Or you can use a wherry – upto 30ton at a time, and can moor directly outside the factory to load & unload.
Cantley sugar-beet factory. A wherry is bottom LH corner, just ahead of the handsome steamer. (circa 1913)
In fact, all of this serves as a useful reminder that the Broads were an industrial landscape. Don’t be fooled by the picturesque windpumps, the Dutch came and drained the marshes – the rivers were the transport network.
Anyway – Farmer Pyke’s railway was also used to help construct some reservoirs at Cantley in 1926 – such was its portability, 16ft pre-fab sections can be lifted at will and rerouted.
The route can be seen below, running from Staines Barn through Claxton manor farm to the river Yare.
Each train consisted of about 10 tipper wagons, each holding 1/2 ton (or so) of beet. This charming railway was the spirit of Heath Robinson himself!!
Although charming, the railway worked hard. Wherries initially carried 30tons of beet at a time, and by the late 1920’s steel lighters carrying upto 100 tons of beet at a time were used, being towed downstream by steam tug.
Loading certainly was done by hand, on the bankside of the Yare, during winter.
The locomotive was the star of the show. Locally made, it featured a recycled Model T Ford car (yes, really!)
The conversion was undertaken by John Keeler & Sons – agricultural engineers from nearby Thurton. To make a locomotive, you need only take one Model T, the frame of two skip wagon chassis’ & avoila!
For good measure, some sprockets and chains were robbed off a threshing machine and added to the mix.
Now – I won’t lie. I LOVE this. The ingenuity of it, the exposed chain drive to both axles, its all… well it’s excellent! Just imagine the noise!!
The loco is described as being ‘black and sort of rusty’ – with a spare engine being kept in reserve at the farm and readily swapped when overhaul was required.
Sadly – by 1936, despite an extension right upto Staines Barns, it was clear that the improved road network was causing both the wherries and the railway to sweat. Initially to cross the road, a simple solution was to bolt in the track piece across the roadway ‘as & when’…
As the local authority surfaced the road through Claxton – this makeshift crossing was frowned upon. Not to be deterred – the rails were brought VERY close to the edge of the road, and splayed slightly either side.
The entire train, loco & 10 loaded wagons then ‘lumped’ off the track, and drove across the road surface itself before re-railing itself on the opposite side!!
I have only one photograph of the loco working – on a Whit Monday holiday, circa 1928;
Driver Billy Mason at the wheel – circa 1928 with a unusual looking crop of Beet!!
But yes – by 1936, the writing was on the wall. Sadly the railway was no longer needed. Farmer Pyke’s cunning wasn’t done yet. He managed to sell the entire railway to the Ouse Catchment Board, for use in Cambridgeshire.
Quite what they’d do with a ‘sort of black & rusty’ loco I don’t know… (cherish it I hope!)
1936 – final journey for the loco.
In 2005 – I witnessed the conversion of Staines Barns into housing, and saw several lengths of rail removed from the concrete, the last fragments of the line. Today nothing really remains, hence – the forgotten railway.
Anyway – yes. I wanted to write this, as demonstration of my statement about looking and understanding the subtleties of the Broads landscape. What’s hidden away is usually interesting.
I’m lucky enough to love where I live.
Next time, I promise I’ll write more about the boat… (!)
A Broadsman 
