Tag: Editorial

  • News, December 2024

    News, December 2024

    It is that time of year when we look back and reflect, or look forward in anticipation of events planned, or speculate as to which scenario is most likely to unfold.

    Those of you who have closely followed the history of Gamecock will be saddened to learn of the death of Bill Coleman at the age of 95 (see Obituary in News page). Bill had not enjoyed good health since parting with the Gamecock but fortunately he lived long enough to see the care and craftsmanship with which she is being restored on the East Quay at Whitstable.

    2024 was also the year in which we took the decision to revive the Harbour & Boat Show in partnership with the Harbour Board. A cross-community planning team composed of Volunteers has made good progress and with a generous donation from the Whitstable Improvement Trust. We are now confident that we shall have a successful Show. The date is Saturday 9 August when there is a favourable High Tide. We have begun inviting folk to contribute to the exhibitions and displays. If you have not already done so, please find an application form for a pitch in the new dedicated section of this website: ‘Harbour & Boat Show’. If you are planning to arrive by boat and have not yet received an invitation from me, please get in touch direct: the berth is free and there is already a lot of goodwill so it promises to be a significant event in the maritime calendar.

    It is also worth recalling that Whitstable Maritime was 10 years old in October. It took us two years to find our way and of course approximately eighteen months was lost through lockdown. However, the Charity is now well established. The Board is pleased to have appointed Susannah as Chairperson and she has brought a fresh approach which bodes well for the future. Alex is driving the Coastal Trail – no pun intended – which is remarkably popular with visitors and has the potential for further development. The loyal team devoted to the restoration of the Gamecock have reached the reconstruction phase so progress is more evident with the planking of the hull and deck about to transform her appearance: see the diagrams in the ‘Heritage Centre’ section.

    The Charity’s aims remain as relevant as they were in 2014 so it is likely we shall continue to attract funds and able Volunteers, as well as generate a more sustainable income from trading. If you are intrigued but not yet committed then make 2025 the year to Volunteer for Whitstable Maritime. If you are already a loyal Supporter then we are very grateful for your contribution, whether in cash or kind.

    I like to think of us as a community with a common interest that is bedded in Whitstable but extends nationally. For me, relationships are at the core of our activities and I wish every one of you success and well-being in 2025.

    Gordon

    President

  • Obituary, Bill Coleman

    Obituary, Bill Coleman

    Having reached retirement age I knew that it would not be long before I would find myself with many spare hours. I was fortunate in being asked to continue working part-time and in the remaining two days of the week I began talking to Whitstable residents about boats, oysters, and the town’s maritime history. All conversations seemed to lead to the Gamecock and Bill Coleman.

    I tracked Bill down in Sydenham Street and there began a series of meetings with many cups of tea. I realised the historical significance of Gamecock as the last of its kind and learnt a great deal about oyster dredging and oyster yawls. However Bill’s health was failing and the Gamecock was on an open mooring at the mouth of the River Oare. Bill was very dismissive of institutions but when he was no longer able to scramble aboard he agreed to sell her to a group of us. We opened a bank account, registered ‘Whitstable Maritime’ with the Charity Commission, and had Gamecock listed as a National Historic Ship.

    Bill’s niece in America has written to say how grateful the family are to the Charity for ‘keeping the boat alive for the town’. However the credit should go to Bill. If he had not kept her afloat, on a very low income, Gamecock would have been lying on her side on a Faversham mud-bank being battered by incoming tides, long before the Charity was formed. Of course Whitstable Maritime now has broader economic and social aims, but I suspect that the restoration and operation of Gamecock will be a core activity for generations to come. Bill, it was a job well done.

    Gordon Vincent
    President, Whitstable Maritime

  • Size Matters

    The typical Whitstable Oyster Yawl was between 40 and 45 foot in length. There were exceptions, for example the Rosa & ADA (F105) was 47 foot and Thyra was only 36 foot. For the yards along Island Way these were relatively small. Much larger craft were built on the slipways and then let down in to the sea at a time when there was no sea-wall.

    If you are interested in learning more about the larger vessels, then the Merchant Ships of Whitstable by Wallace Harvey (Emprint Publications, 1993) is a good source. 

    Some larger sailing ships registered as Whitstable built

    NAMEBUILDERBUILTTYPETONS
    BELMONTWhitstable Shipping Co.1895Schooner139t
    EQUIVALENTJames Daniels1847Schooner187t
    FANNY GANNThomas GannSchooner97t
    GRATITUDEWhitstable Shipping Co.1875Barquentine298t
    HANNAHWilliam Blackman1841Schooner113t
    MARY ANN GANNThomas Gann1847Schooner177t
    NELLIE S.George Henry Gann1876Brigantine282t
    SUNSHINEWhitstable Shipping Co.1890Ketch119t
    TANKERTON TOWERGoldfinch Bros.1884Schooner118t
    ZEBRINAWhitstable Shipping Co.1973Schooner156t
    Mary Ann Gann

  • Money, Yawls & Oysters

    Gamecock is one of the finest examples of her type, but why build a boat dedicated to a single purpose – the dredging of oysters? The answer is money.

    Gamecock is a graceful boat with curved lines running from bow to stern but her design is very functional. The hull is lacking in space because she rarely worked overnight. Her single keel was protected by a metal gutter to avoid damage on the hard sea bed. Most of the work was undertaken on the deck so it was extended to the rear by a counter-stern. Her design was the result of her function and working environment.

    Gamecock was not built until 1906/7 when there were still over 70 Whitstable Oyster Yawls in the fleet. In 1862/63 The Company of Free Fishers and Dredgers of Whitstable sent 60 million oysters to market at a value today of £91,000, equivalent to £11.5 million today. Not every year was as bountiful but Allan Collard, writing just before Gamecock was built, reckoned that the Whitstable Company annually sent 10 to 15 million oysters to market: (quoted by Derek Coombe in Fishermen from the Kentish Shore, published by Meresborough Books 1989).

    With such a precious product lying on the sea bed there was more than one company interested in dredging the Swale, not to mention possible poachers. The main competitors were The Faversham Oyster Co, The Ham & Sea Salter Co, and The Whitstable Oyster Company. To mark their respective territories the oystermen agreed ‘transit lines’. David Roberts, Chair of Whitstable Improvement Trust, has recently researched these navigation aids which he explains as follows.

    The old iron post, now leaning over, situated at the end of Island Wall, on the edge of the Village Green at Saxon Shore, has been in this position since its installation in 1865. It can be safely assumed that there was a marker beacon of some kind in this location long before this date.

    This post functioned as the front marker (landmark) which could be lined up, by fishermen out at sea, with a back marker called the “Cross” (removed in the 1960’s) situated on higher ground just beyond the railway foot bridge at the end of West Cliff.  This line, called a transit line, defined the boundary between the beds owned by the Company of Free Fishers and Dredgers of Whitstable and the Seasalter Oyster Fishery Company.

    The Whitstable Improvement Trust assisted by Canterbury City Council, The Whitstable Oyster Company, The Whitstable Museum and Timescapes Kent considered it important to bring the existence of the last surviving oyster bed boundary marker to the attention of the public by recently making it more visible and installing two information boards to explain its significance. 

    It was one thing to mark out the territory, it was another to police it, especially at night. So the oyster companies employed ‘watchboats’ to guard their oyster beds. These were usually vessels too old for work and the crew were paid a bonus for being on duty overnight or at weekends.

  • Gamecock

    The sight and sound of Oyster Yawls being built on Island Wall is fast fading from the collective memory. Yet today in Whitstable Harbour you can see local Volunteers restoring a 42-foot Yawl built in 1906 and now registered as a National Historic Ship. Marine Surveyors predict that this iconic vessel will have a second working life of 60 to 80 years because of the high quality of workmanship.

    The Yawl known as Gamecock was built by Collars Alley by the Collars Brothers and worked all her life in the Swale. Three generations of the family watched the Gamecock being lifted on to the East Quay where Whitstable Maritime has created a boat-building yard with the help of the Harbour Board and Bretts.

    The current team of Volunteers is led by a master Shipwright trained by Alan Staley of Faversham, himself an apprentice of Anderson, Rigden & Perkins of Island Wall. The Charity is looking to have its own apprentice so that the traditional craft skills are retained in Whitstable.

    Picture copyright: Shepherd Neame/Countrywide Photographic

    Morgan Lewis with Gamecock on the East Quay in 2013 by when the oak frame had been restored along the length of the hull. Approximately 30% of the original timber was able to be retained. Morgan gained his skills as a Shipwright  with Alan Staley of Faversham who, in turn, was apprenticed to the last boat-builder on Island Wall. The protruding block of timber is the top of the new stern post built from laminated oak.

    The stern post is fixed to the bottom of the hull by 4 trunnels (long wooden pegs) and modern glues. The trunnels are made by the Volunteers from pieces of oak left after the curved frames had been cut. So waste is kept to a minimum. This traditional technique gives a very strong fixture and avoids the use of metal bolts which can corrode in sea-water over time.

    Gamecock being craned out of the water on to Whitstable Maritime’s temporary ‘boatyard’ on the East Quay of the Harbour prior to restoration. Although 43-feet long, the sleek lines of the hull help her sail well in a light wind. The counter-stern (over-hanging deck at the rear) increases the work  platform and is a distinguishing feature of a Whitstable Oyster Yawl.

    Faversham boat-owners were used to seeing the Gamecock moored at the mouth of the Oare. She was one of over 70 Whitstable Oyster Yawls that worked in the Swale.

    Thanks to Whitstable Maritime, this rare craft has been saved from a watery grave and is being fully restored in Whitstable Harbour by local Volunteers. You can help thousands of local folk enjoy sailing her by donating on this website.