I had to nip to Dublin (5 hour round trip from here!) yesterday to collect Mrs V.V. from a trip to the Greek Island of Poros, where she was there to witness the marriage of her best mate to a Faversham friend of mine, John W. John took as his holiday reading on this trip a “bunch of barge related books” which he knew I’d like, with the intention of passing them to Mrs V.V. when he’d finished them, who would then bring them ‘home’ to me. Thank you very much John, and Mrs V.V.. This little mystery gift proved to be made up of the book “Barge Builders of the Swale” by the late Don Sattin (pub 1990, Meresborough Books, ISBN 0948193 5 30), editions 40 (2006) and 41 (2007) of Topsail (magazine of the Society for Sailing Barge Research) plus a ‘Nutshell Guide’ of which more in a minute. The Sattin, I already have a copy of and have probably reviewed it here back in the day and I will peruse the Topsails in due course.
From all this treasure, it was the Nutshell Guide which caught my eye first. Nutshell guides are a series of photocopied / stapled A5 booklets in blue covers produced by the Faversham Society and written by local historians, in this case well know Faversham man, Arthur Percival who has many publications around the subject. They are for sale in the Fleur de Lis Information Centre. This edition was from 1987 (ISBN 0 900532 43 2). This guide gives a schematic map of all the wharves in the Creek including now defunct ones (Goldfinch’s Yard, for example, and Perry’s Brickyard). It details all the streams and headwaters flowing into the Creek and describes trade taking place in and around. I will read and digest this and report back to you on the fascinating history contained there-in.
Becalmed 2; another lovely Thames Match 2012 shot by Phillip Barnes Warden