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Tuesday, 26 April 2011

Boatmen on the Kennet

 

The theme of the World Heritage Day celebrations this year was 'Water', so there was a particular focus on Saltaire's waterfront.  There were some very interesting talks and displays about the canal and the river and the part they have played in Saltaire's development.  One of the reasons Titus Salt chose this location for his mill was the proximity to water power from the river and transport links on the canal and railway.  The canal was opened in 1777 and the railway in 1847, so both predate the mill which was opened in 1853.

The Leeds and Liverpool Canal Society's boat, the Kennet, was moored in Saltaire over the weekend with an exhibition inside about local waterways.  Built in 1947, the boat is one of the last unconverted boats to have worked on the Leeds-Liverpool Canal and, typically, is a wide-bodied barge and not a narrowboat.  Boats carried all manner of cargo including alpaca wool from the Liverpool docks to Saltaire.  The early examples were towed by horses. (See also my post here).


9 comments:

  1. A great portrait of the boatmen. Also a very interesting post. I have learnt lots about my birthplace through your posts. Keeping the Kennet and using it that way is such a good idea. I applaud those volunteers. There is a similar story about a ferry called Blumlisalp on the lake of Thun where Bill comes from in Switzerland.The canal was built before Australia was settled.

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  2. I concur with Diane...great portrait and interesting post! Thank you, Jenny :)

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  3. Love that first image. Your photography is beautiful.

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  4. Nice portrait, Jenny. It is a natural-looking portrait of two men just going about their business on a normal day for them. And, as always, I learned more about your interesting city from the text. Have a good week.

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  5. That is a great photo! There's something about those boats on the canal that is so charming.

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  6. That is such a natural portrait of the two men. Super shot!

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  7. Again taking me back to Foxton Locks in Leicestershire. I enjoyed taking portraits of the boatmen there too. I did some interviews with them on video too. I wonder what they are saying to each other? Maybe we should get Friko to make up a short story for us!

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  8. Another attractive post; I could be tempted to invest in a canal boat.

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  9. I just love how your portraits always turn out Jenny. They are always so striking. ~Lili

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