Freer, Wendy (1991) Canal Boat People, 1840-1970. Phd Thesis, University of Nottingham
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Freer, Wendy (1991) Canal boat people, 1840-1970. PhD thesis, University of Nottingham. Access from the University of Nottingham repository: http://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/10946/1/281065_vol1.pdf Copyright and reuse: The Nottingham ePrints service makes this work by researchers of the University of Nottingham available open access under the following conditions. · Copyright and all moral rights to the version of the paper presented here belong to the individual author(s) and/or other copyright owners. · To the extent reasonable and practicable the material made available in Nottingham ePrints has been checked for eligibility before being made available. · Copies of full items can be used for personal research or study, educational, or not- for-profit purposes without prior permission or charge provided that the authors, title and full bibliographic details are credited, a hyperlink and/or URL is given for the original metadata page and the content is not changed in any way. · Quotations or similar reproductions must be sufficiently acknowledged. Please see our full end user licence at: http://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/end_user_agreement.pdf A note on versions: The version presented here may differ from the published version or from the version of record. If you wish to cite this item you are advised to consult the publisher’s version. Please see the repository url above for details on accessing the published version and note that access may require a subscription. For more information, please contact [email protected] by Vendy Jane Freer, B. A. ý .... w ^ Thesis submitted to the University of Nottingham for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, May 1991. Ea List of tables iii List of figures vii Abstract viii Abbreviations x Acknowledgements xi Mapof the inland waterwaysof Englandand Vales xii ChapterOne, 1,1 TheNature of Functionof CanalCarrying, 2 1,2 TheDecline of CanalCarrying, 6 1,3 TheContinuing Demand for CanalCarrying after 1840, 15 1,4 TheOrganisation of the CanalCarrying Trade in the NineteenthCentury, 19 1,5 CanalCarrying in the TwentiethCentury, 33 1,6 Numbersand Type of Boat, 39 1,7 Capital Investment 46 1.8 Entrepreneurs, 57 1,9 Conclusion 66 ChapterTwo, The Demographic Strurtgra of the 76 2,1 TheSize and Composition of the LabourForce, 77 2,2 TheAge Structure of the LabourForce, 100 2,3 Industrial Status, 105 2,4 FamilyStructure, 109 2,5 Conclusion, 127 Chapter Three,Bo atReople and the land based 132 commun it y. 3,1 Patterns of Residence, 133 3,2 TheStanding of BoatPeople in the Community, 148 3,3 Canal-sideCommunities: a, Brentford 158 b, Paddington 170 c, Braunston 184 d, Shardlow 191 e, Birmingham 199 3,4 Conclusion 209 ChapterFour, Living Conditions, 218 4,1 AccommodationAshore, 219 4,2 Accommodationon Boats, 228 4,3 CommunityAmenities: a, Shopping 242 b, Churchesand chapels 244 c, Schools 248 d, Medicalfacilities 260 e, Recreationalfacilities 266 4,4 Health, 267 4,5 Conclusion, 280 ChapterFive, V2rt 292 5,1 TheNature of CanalBoat York 294 5,2 Income, 311 5,3 Recruitmentand Training 328 5,4 Conclusions,' 330 ChapterSix, TheLabour Movement and the Canal 339 6,1 TheDevelopment of TradeUnions within the Inland WaterwaysIndustry, 341 6,2 UnionRecognition and the Developmentof Collective Bargaining, 358 6,3 TheEffect of UnionActivity on the Everyday Life of BoatPeople, 368 6,4 Reasonsfor the Failure of Unionist among BoatPeople, 372 6,5 Conclusion, 381 ChapterSeven. Part 1 1840- 1914.389 7,1 TheResponse of the State to the Condition of the BoatingPopulation before 1873,392 7,2 TheCanal Boats Acts of 1877and 1884,398 7,3 Central andLocal GovernmentAttitudes to the CanalBoat Population,1900-1914,407 7,4 TheAffect of Social Policy on the Boating Population, 417 7,5 Conclusion, 420 Chapter Eight, Social Policy and the Boating Population, Part 11 1914- 1970.430 8.1 The First World War, 432 8,2 The Interwar Years, 443 8,3 The SecondWorld Warand the Post-aar Period, 473 8,4 The Contribution of Voluntary Agencies, 481 8,5 Conclusion, 486 ChapterNine, Summaryand Conclusion. 501 Appendix1- CanalBoat Numbers, 1946 - 1941,523 Appendix2 Noteson the Useof CensusData, 527 Appendix3 Bargeand Boat People on Inland Boatsand Barges in Selected Counties,1851 - 1971 532 Appendix4 PeopleSleeping on Boatsand Bargeson Individual Canals, 533 Appendix5 List of TradeAssociations Affiliated to the Transport Yorkers' Federation, 548 Bibliography - 549 ti Lis t of Tables 1,1 Gross receipts and tonnagecarried by certain canals 1806-1919, 7 1,2 Ownershipof boats in Lancashire,Cheshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshireand Gloucestershire taken from the register of boats andbarges, 1795, 23 1,3 Numberand size of fly-boat carriers operatingbetween 1760-1850, 25/26 1,4 Canalcompanies operating tarrying concerns,1761-1948, 32 1,5 Canalcarriers, 1918, 35/36 1,6 Canalboat numbers1819-1947, 43 45 1,7 Canalboat numbers,1941 - 1,8 Fixed capital as a proportion of total assets for the carrier FellowsMorton 4 Clayton, 48 1,9 Extracts from the profit and loss accountof the carriers FellowsMorton I Claytonfor the eighteenmonths from 1,1,1889to 30,6,1840and for the year 1898, 53 1,10Profit andloss on a pair of boatscarrying goods from Warwickshire CroxleyMills, 56 2,1 Malesemployed as boatmenin Englandand Wales, 1851-1951, 78 2,2 Malesemployed as boatmenin various regions- percentageincrease or decrease,1851-1951, 81 2,3 Peoplesleeping on inland boats andbarges, 1851-1951, 84 2,4 Size and compositionof the canal boat populationresident on board, 1884, 86 2,5 Proportionof femalesin that part of the canal boat population whichlived on board, 88 2,6 Percentageof femalesin the boat populationliving on board, 1901-1951, 90 2,7 Annualreturns to the Boardof Educationfrom local attendanceofficers, Numberof canal boat children of schoolage seen 1905-1934, 93 2,8 Childrenseen working on canal boats by the N,S, P, C, C, inspector, 1920, 96 2,9 Numberof maleboatmen in various agegroups expressed as a percentage of the total malelabour force, 1851-1951, 102 iii 2,10Comparative increase and decrease in the numberof maleboatmen in various ageranges, 1851-1951,102 2,11 Industrial status of sen andwomen employed as boatmenand barge®en, 1891-1951,106 2,12 Percentageof corkersunemployed in the staple trades, 1929-1932,108 2,13 Details of the sampleused for the purposesof analysingthe family structure of the boating community,1861-1881,110 2,14 Percentageof fasilies containingpersons other than eenbersof the current nuclearWily of the headof the household, 113 2,1S Analysisof boat householdscontaining non-nuclear co-residing kin in Braunston, 116 2,16 Averageage of boat peopleat the birth of the first child 122 3,1 Boatmenliving on boardand without families, 1851-1931, Estimatesof highest possible proportion, 136 3,2 Boatmenliving on boardwith their families in variouscounties, 1901-1951,highest possible percentages, 138 3,3 Numberof children born on canal boats havingno shore-basedhome, 1920,146 3,4 Tonnagecharged on the GrandJunction Canal, 1828-1875,163 3,5 Birth placesof children sleeping on boats in PaddingtonBasin, 1861-1881,172 3,6 Cargoescarried by canal boats in PaddingtonBasin, 1861-1881,174 3,7 Proposedcargo for boats registered as dwellings at Paddington between1900 and 1919,174 3,8 Growthof populationin Paddington,1801-1851, - 178 3,9 Occupationsand places of birth of adults livings in North WharfRoad, Paddington,1881,181 3,10 Occupationsand places of birth of adults living in North WharfRoad, Paddington,1881,182 3.11 Populationin Braunston,1801-1881,187 3,12 Eeployoentin Braunston,1841-1881,187 3,13 Populationin Shardlov,1788-1881,194 it 3,14 Employientin Shardlow,1841-1881 194 . 3,15 Traffic in GasStreet Basin, 1821-1855, 203 3,16 Boatsregistered as dwellings at Birsinghae,January to August,1879,205 3,17 Peoplesleeping on boats at WorcesterWharf, Birsinghaa, 1841-1881,207 4.1 Overcrowdingin canal boats, 1861-1881,232 4.2 Canalboat children schoolattendance, 1917-20,258 4,3 Attendancesof canal boat boysat ArchdeaconSchool, Gloucester,1916-1919,261 4,4 Mortality aaongstthe vale populationaged 25 to 65 years, 1860-1900,270 4,5 Comparativeincidence of occupationalmortalities in occupied sales, 1890, 272 4,6 Occupationmortality, 1930-32, 273 5,1 Employmentof one boatman during the year, 1960, 297 5,2 MidlandCanal Boatmen's Wages Board agreement, 1922, 312 5,3 Agreementon trip and tonnagerates for canal boatmenemployed by the Severnand Canal Carrying Company, 1927, 313 5,4 Examplesof moneywages of boatmenin pounds,shillings andpence, 1771-1914, 317 5,5 Examplesof moneywages of boatmenin pounds,shillings andpence, 1914-1962, 318 5,6 Examplesof wageagreements for boatmenon larger boats, 1913-1946, 319 5,7 Indices of moneyand real wagesin the canal carrying trade, 1840-1940, 321 5,8 Movementof weeklywage rates in certain industries, 1914-1920, 322 5,9 Movementof boat captain's weeklyearnings, 1923-1938, 322 5,10 Movementof weeklyearnings in certain other industries, 1924-1938, 322 Y 5,11 'Normal' full-time moneywages in selectedoccupations, 1850-1935,322 6,1 Unions,trade associationsand societies of boatmen,lightermen, flatten andvatersen, 345 6,2 Somestrikes andlockouts involving canal boatmen,lightermen, flatten andvatermen, 1792-1938,352-355 6,3 Analysisof disputeswithin the inland waterwaysindustry, 1792-1938,357 6,4 Earliest collective agreementswith boatmenin the inland waterways industry, 1912-1943,362 8,1 Summaryof returns to the Boardof Educationfrom local education authorities concerningthe educationof canal boat children, 1914-1916,440 8,2 Analysisof