Severn Trow - book (General)

by slowhands , proud of his ancient Dean Forest roots, Thursday, January 22, 2009, 12:35 (5856 days ago) @ BTPBATH

Severn Traders: The West Country Trows and Trowmen - Colin Green
ISBN 09533028 2 2

The complete history of commercial carrying on the Severn and the Severn Trow,
magnificently portrayed with large clear crisp historical photos. Five hundred years
of history of these vessels along the Severn and its estuaries, including the River Wye,
into the Somerset levels, the coast of Wales and the canals of Gloucestershire.
This is a magnificent book and undoubtedly, the definitive work on the subject.
180 pages. 220 x 282 mm. Hardback.
Black Dwarf Publications.

A trow was a type of cargo boat found in the past on the River Severn in Great Britain and used to transport goods. The mert could be taken down so that the trow could go under bridges, such as the bridge at Worcester and the many bridges up and downstream. The mast was stepped in a three sided frame open at the rear but closed with an iron pin or rope lashing. From the top of the mast a forestay ran down to the bow winch. To lower the mast the pin was removed and the winch slackened off to let the mast fall towards the stern. The reverse operation pulled the mast up. One such Trow, called "Joan", was owned by a timber merchant called Oliver Luff. He used her to bring timber from Tintern, Monmouthshire into 'The Back' now called 'Welsh Back' in Bristol's Floating Harbour, where he owned two timber yards. A pub, the Llandoger Trow is situated in Bristol. Trows were sea-worthy, as with an added keel they could take 90 tons of salt from Droitwich to France across the English Channel The flat bottomed Trows sailed on the sea by hauling a twenty foot log of wood under the hull strapped with chains to give 'grip' and stop the hull sliding sideways.

There are two traditional types of Severn Trow. Prior to the 1840s the River Severn was tidal up to Worcester. The trows that were used on the tidal portion of the River were called Downstream Trows whilst those that sailed north of Worcester were called Upstream Trows and were smaller. An example of a Downstream Trow, the Spry, is at the Blists Hill site of the Ironbridge Gorge Museums. During the summer the flow of water was often very low and so the trows were pulled over the resultant shallows. A rope was attached to the mast and the men who pulled the boats were called bow hauliers. The men would enter into a contract with the captain of the trow in the many pubs which were all along the Severn riverbanks and there was a right of way along the bankside.

If you find yourself in Jackfield , Ironbridge nr Telford be careful if you ask about the Severn Trow -
a public house / B&B takes its name from the boats that carried cargo along the river. From the 17th century it has catered for the needs of the boatmen and other travellers as an ale house, lodgings and until recently had cubicles upstairs for the ladies of the night!

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Ἀριστοτέλης A Gloster & Hereford Boy in the Forest of Dean ><((((*>