One of my favourite books is Ramlin Rose, the Boatwoman’s Story, by Sheila Stewart. In the early 1990’s the author interviewed whatever boatwomen she could find in the Banbury area; women who were born and bred on horse-drawn boats. She then compiled these real life experiences into the life story of a fictional character ‘Rose Ramlin’.

As well as work life and family life the book describes the realities of cargo carrying on the canals through the Great War and the Second World War with fascinating detail. She describes how the ‘Number Ones’ flourished in the first war. After years of competing with the railways and then motor lorries, suddenly railways were needed for carrying soldiers. Motor fuel was expensive and horse drawn transport was cheaper. Sons of boatmen went off to the front line and the book describes boat families losing up to four or five sons.

Some families’ boats tried to avoid taking loads to places like Coventry or Birmingham as big cities attracted the zeppelins. Most boaters couldn’t read newspapers and didn’t have a wireless so at first they knew little about the war. Rose describes her “chap” going off to war for extended periods but never exchanging letters, because neither of them could write.

During the Second World War the book describes bombs falling in the Cut, and the danger of working the boats during the black out, when you could barely see what you were doing. Bridge arches and lock sides were painted white to help the boaters working at night, but it was still dangerous especially when lock gates were slippery with frost.

There was plenty of work and the government paid half the tolls to keep the canals working during the war effort. Lock keepers were also ARP wardens so during an air raid they’d be off away from the locks, and boats were held up until their return. There are some particularly frightening descriptions of taking the boats into London during the Blitz.

So this weekend, if you’re enjoying the canals remember the men and women who kept them working through the wars, and perhaps on Sunday, remember the boaters who left their boats behind and went to war.

If you like canal history and traditional boats we have a 62 foot historic boat listed at the moment and a good selection of narrowboats with trad sterns.

Peggy
www.narrowboatwife.com

You may also like:
Living on a Boat: The Boatshed Guide (free) / Tom and Dale Row the Grand Union / Memories of Tooley’s Boatyard / A slideshow of our boat of the moment./Blog Archive

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