Thames sailing barges Reminder and Repertor competing in the Colne Barge March off Brightlingsea
S B Repertor was the first of a fleet of seven steel barges built for Horlocks of Mistley. Her name is a Latin word meaning “leader; discoverer; innovator”, possibly chosen because she was the first of this new all-steel fleet. When built, she relied purely on her sails for motive power; but in the 1930s she was fitted with auxiliary engines. Gradually over the following four decades her reliance on engines increased and her sailing rig was reduced, until eventually she became a motor tanker. In the mid-1970s she was sold out of trade, with her engines stripped out, and became, for a time, a houseboat; but later that same decade she was converted back to a sailing barge with an auxiliary engine. On deck, she now once again looked very much as she would have in her trading days under sail. In the late 1980s, she was bought by the present owners, David and Elaine Pollock of Whitstable, and reconverted for comfortable charter cruising and racing. Reminder was launched in 1929 from the F W Horlock yard in Mistley, Essex, for F W Horlock’s own fleet. One of the last spritsail barges built, REMINDER had a steel hull and large sail plan to increase her speed for racing, though this was reduced six years later to make her more manageable as a working barge. The main trade at Mistley when REMINDER was built was bringing barley to Brooks’ maltings and Free Rodwell’s maltings, usually from the Royal Albert Dock in London, but sometimes from ships unloading in Butterman’s Bay on the River Orwell, and carrying malt from the maltings to breweries. In addition, Horlock had a lucrative contract with local Brantham chemical factory, During the 1960s Remidner was still owned by Horlock and was in the ballast trade, taking sand, stone or ballast at Harwich. The Colne Barge Match, was the eighth and final match of the 2014 season. Eight barges contested a course from Bateman's Tower to the Colne Bar, Clacton Pier, the Spitways and back.
Size: 4288px × 2848px
Photo credit: © John Worrall / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: barge, barges, brightlingsea, coast, colne, creeks, essex, estuaries, match, north, reminder, repertor, river, sail, sailing, sea, thames, trade, traders, trading, uk
