Norfolk Wherry Trust - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Norfolk Wherry Trust is a waterway society

Waterway society

A Waterway society is a society, association, charitable trust, club, trust or "Friends" group involved in the restoration, preservation, use and enjoyment of waterways, e.g. a canal, river, navigation or other waterway, and their associated buildings and structures, e.g...

and registered charity 1084156 in Norfolk

Norfolk

Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, UK. based at Womack Water near Ludham

Ludham

Ludham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk, in The Broads, at the end of a dyke leading to Womack Water and flowing into the River Thurne...

, Norfolk Broads.

The Trust keeps afloat "Albion", an example of the Norfolk Trading Wherry

Norfolk wherry

The Norfolk wherry is a type of boat on The Broads in Norfolk, England. Three main types were developed over its life, all featuring the distinctive gaff rig with a single, high-peaked sail and the mast stepped well forward.-Development of the wherry:...

, so that she can be seen on the river

River

A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...

s and broad

Broad

Broad may refer to:* Broad Group, a manufacturing company based in Changsha, global leader in producing absorption chillers* Broad , English gold coin minted under the Commonwealth with a bust of Oliver Cromwell on the obverse...

s.

Albion was built in 1898 - unusually - as a carvel wherry in oak

Oak

An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...

on oak frames, by William Brighton, Lake Lothing

Lake Lothing

Lake Lothing is a saltwater lake located in Lowestoft in the English county of Suffolk. The lake, which is believed to be the remnant of medieval peat cutting, flows into the North Sea and forms part of the Port of Lowestoft...

, Suffolk

Suffolk

Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...

(between Oulton Broad

Oulton Broad

Oulton Broad refers to both the lake and the suburb of Lowestoft in Suffolk, England located 2 miles west of the centre of the town.-Oulton Broad:...

and Lowestoft

Lowestoft

Lowestoft is a town in the English county of Suffolk. The town is on the North Sea coast and is the most easterly point of the United Kingdom. It is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and south-east of Norwich...

) for Bungay

Bungay

Bungay is a town in Suffolk, East Anglia, England.Bungay may also refer to:* Bungay railway station* Frank Bungay , former professional footballer* Stephen Bungay , British management consultant, historian and author...

Maltsters WD and AE Walker. All other trading wherries in East Anglia

East Anglia

East Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...

were clinker

Clinker

Clinker may refer to:* Clinker , construction method for wooden boats* Clinker , waste from industrial processes* Clinker , a kilned then quenched cement product* Clinker brick, rough dark coloured bricks...

built. Albion's first load was coal

Coal

Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...

from Lowestoft to Bungay.

Albion was bought by the General Steam Navigation Company in the Thirties, and later she became a lighter

Lighter

A lighter is a portable device used to generate a flame. It consists of a metal or plastic container filled with a flammable fluid or pressurized liquid gas, a means of ignition, and some provision for extinguishing the flame.- History :...

until she was discovered by the Trust in 1949.

In February 1949, a letter in the Eastern Daily Press suggested the forming of a trust to preserve a wherry. The fifty year old wherry Albion was then owned by Colman's Mustard factory and was moored at the company's works at Carrow Bridge in Norwich

Norwich

Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...

. In October 1949, after restoration

Vehicle restoration

Vehicle restoration is the process of restoring a vehicle that is either partially scrapped or otherwise life expired back to its original working condition. Automotive restoration can be applied to many different eras of automobile. Heritage railways and railway museums aim to restore and operate...

work, Albion sailed regularly from Great Yarmouth

Great Yarmouth

Great Yarmouth, often known to locals as Yarmouth, is a coastal town in Norfolk, England. It is at the mouth of the River Yare, east of Norwich.It has been a seaside resort since 1760, and is the gateway from the Norfolk Broads to the sea...

to Norwich, carrying timber

Timber

Timber may refer to:* Timber, a term common in the United Kingdom and Australia for wood materials * Timber, Oregon, an unincorporated community in the U.S...

or grain

GRAIN

GRAIN is a small international non-profit organisation that works to support small farmers and social movements in their struggles for community-controlled and biodiversity-based food systems. Our support takes the form of independent research and analysis, networking at local, regional and...

, and sugar beet

Sugar beet

Sugar beet, a cultivated plant of Beta vulgaris, is a plant whose tuber contains a high concentration of sucrose. It is grown commercially for sugar production. Sugar beets and other B...

from Surlingham

Surlingham

Surlingham is a village and civil parish in South Norfolk situated on the Broads. It lies approximately 6½ miles south-east of Norwich on the south bank of the River Yare between Bramerton and Rockland St Mary. In the 2001 census it contained 266 households and a population of 637...

to Cantley

Cantley

Cantley could be :*Cantley, Norfolk, a village in the county of Norfolk, England*Cantley, South Yorkshire, a suburb of Doncaster, England*Cantley, Quebec, a town in the province of Quebec, Canada*Lewis C. Cantley, an American cell biologist...

.

However, freight alone could not sustain Albion, and from 1961, she carried passengers. In 1981 The Norfolk Wherry Trust acquired a base at Womack Water near Ludham. During 1997, the black-sailed ex-trader Albion carried 648 persons; she can carry 12 people plus skipper and mate.

External links

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See also

External links