Whitstable has a deep history of oysters and oyster farming, stretching back to the Roman times. And the town's rich maritime history draws visitors and residents here again and again, as people bask in the beautiful surroundings and wander through the historic (and now revitalissed harbour).
We spoke to several people working with some of the very special boats here in the harbour about their history and why it's important to see them in action!
Whitstable Maritime is a charity set up to help people experience and benefit from Whitstable’s maritime heritage, culture and environment. Follow the link to get involved and for more information www.whitstablemaritime.org.uk or email on whitstablem@gmail.com
Susannah Gooch from Whitstable Maritime about the restoration of the Gamecock
In the 1900s, there were over 100 Whitstable oyster yawls, unique to the area, dredging over 1 million oysters, which were sent to London annually. Today the last remaining local Whitstable Oyster Yawls remains: Gamecock. Registered as of ‘national significance’ by National Historic Ships, she is being lovingly restored in Whitstable Harbour.
Do you know that Traditional Shipbuilding is on the red list of endangered crafts and there are currently only approx. 21-50 professional traditional boat builders in the UK, and fewer trainees? Gamecock restoration is not just about the boat, it is about preserving the rich maritime heritage locally, e.g. planking, block making, rigging, sail making, etc.
Over 2 tonnes of ballast have been removed, approx. 60% of the frame restored or replaced, and an assessment of the planks ongoing. See if you can identify the ‘trunnels’ which have been used instead of metal fixings? Trunnels are ‘tree nails’ and the traditional way of fitting wood together. There was an extensive strength-testing programme recently: trunnels vs metal fittings (eg screws, nails). Guess which won?
Work is expected to be ongoing for a couple of years … so come and get involved!
Steve Norris, owner of the Sailing Barge Greta
Greta is a Thames Sailing Barge built in 1892 by Stones at Brightlingsea in Essex. She is 80ft in length with a 20ft beam, 3ft draft and displacement of 49 tons.
She started her career as a working barge transporting ammunition, beer, grain, malt and building supplies on the River Thames and around the Thames estuary. Greta was originally built for a barge sailmaker called Hibbs. She was sold on to Owen Perry and added to his fine fleet of working boats, a fleet noted for their smart turnout and racing success.
In 1918 Greta was sold again to The London Rochester Barge Company. She was chartered by the Ministry of Supply in WW11. She carried ammunition from the Army depot at Upnor in Rochester to Naval vessels anchored at the Nore in the Thames estuary.
Greta is also the oldest Dunkirk Little ship still working, having been involved with the Dunkirk evacuation in 1940. She is a proud member of the Association of Dunkirk Little Ships. And will be taking part in the 85th anniversary of Dunkirk in May.
This hard-working barge is listed (no.206) on the UK National Historic Ships fleet register. Greta no longer carries cargo but she still works hard providing the opportunity for fabulous day trips.
Steve’s involvement started from 1980 when he volunteered on the restoration team and never left. In 1986 the sails were fitted and it was finally able to get back on the water and at this time Steve bought a 50% share in Greta.
In 1990 he was able to obtain a loan to buy the other half so he was now the sole proud owner of Greta. At this time Steve was working in building maintenance at a private college so Greta was a weekend and holiday hobby, but in the year 2000 the opportunity owing to redundancy came up to consider boat charters and the Harbour Master agreed that Steve could call into the harbour to collect passengers and then sail to Faversham, this was a free arrangement but in 2005 the new Harbour Master Mike Weir introduced mooring fees, at this point the harbour was decaying and losing money and it was Mike’s determination to make the Harbour the thriving area it is now.
The introduction of fees led to the agreement of a permanent mooring making the Greta a key feature of the Harbour.
In January 2020, Steve was just about to take delivery of a new engine when the beginnings of COVID-19 brought the decision to put that on hold, which turned out to save Greta’s future. The engine company were happy to hold the engine until sailing was back up and running. When it was time to buy the £12,500 engine, post lockdown funds had dwindled, a Go Fund Me raised £8,000. One of the donors said their grandfather was rescued from Dunkirk on a sailing barge, and it was their way to thank Greta.
So, with the new engine fitted, Greta now provides sailing trips from 4 to 6 hours. They can include sailing out to see seals, the Red Forts and along the Thames Estuary. Bring your picnic and cold drinks, the crew will provide hot tea & coffee throughout the sailing.
You can also arrange a private hire for a group or special occasion so get in touch and look on the website for more information and all the important bits. The trips are of course weather dependent and usually begin in May, all details will be on his website and social media.
2025 will be Greta’s 25th anniversary as a charter boat so look out for celebrations this summer.
Steve is looking for enthusiastic volunteer crew for the Summer season, so get in touch and you could be part of this beautiful barge’s history, if you have any memories of Greta in her cargo days we would love to hear them. www.greta1892.co.uk
Sue & Richard are the owners of Whitstable Vintage Lifeboats and ‘The Chieftain’s
‘The Chieftain’ was built in 1948 at Groves and Gutteridge boatyard in Cowes , Isle of Wight.
One of 31 twin engine 35`6” Liverpool class Lifeboats built for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. Whilst most of these boats were launched from carriages, Chieftain was one of the few that launched down a slipway from her boathouse, which, rather unusually, was built into the embankment of the railway line running into her home town of Barmouth in Wales.
Taking up Service in 1949 she went on to have a very successful career spanning 33 years and was one of the last of this type in service anywhere in the country when she retired in 1982.
Her first call came shortly after her naming ceremony when she was launched in high winds and rough seas to a report of an aircraft crashed 6 miles offshore from Barmouth. She located the wreckage and brought the pilot safely ashore but unfortunately the navigator had already perished.
Chieftain went on to have a highly successful career saving a total of 132 lives as well as assisting many more people and vessels to safety. During her service she and her crew adapted to the change in the types of calls she was responding to as leisure craft became more and more popular in the sixties and seventies.
In 1982, she was replaced by the Rother Class Lifeboat “The Princess of Wales” and was present during the new boat's naming ceremony conducted in the presence of the Prince and Princess of Wales (Lady Di).
Many boats of her type which were sold at the end of their service were converted into commercial fishing vessels which resulted in their appearance changing significantly. Chieftain however was initially intended to become a museum exhibit which saved her from this fate.
When the museum plan eventually fell through Chieftain took up a new life offering trips around the bay in her hometown of Barmouth before being sold and moved to Wells-next the sea to carry on the same type of work.
By 2004, Chieftain was again up for sale but starting to show her age and had not had any major works carried out since she had retired from the RNLI.
Fortunately, her new owner, Tony Gatt, moved her to Monmouthshire and undertook a major restoration of her lasting nearly six years. During this time he replaced the decks, both her engines, updated her electrics and numerous other works whilst taking great care to preserve her outward appearance as she would have looked in service.
After over fifty years constant use, Chieftain again looked as good as new.
Tony went on to cruise extensively with Chieftain and supported many RNLI ceremonies around the coast as well as being selected to participate in the Queens Jubilee Pageant on the Thames in 2012. She also featured in the ITV series “All at Sea” with Ade Edmondson.
In 2019 she was back up for sale & Richard & I had been looking for a boat to run trips from Whitstable harbour and with Richard having been crew on the local Lifeboat for nearly forty years before retiring, “The Chieftain” was just the job.
In 2020 Whitstable Vintage Lifeboat Trips started operating from Whitstable harbour offering guests the chance to get afloat on this iconic and beautiful vessel and hear about her proud history whilst enjoying a leisurely cruise on our local waters.
Sue, Richard and The ‘Chieftain’ are available for 30 minute trips around the bay and a 90 minute Seal safari, it really is a beautiful vessel and you can also hire for a private group trip. There is a full stock of children’s lifejackets but they do suggest for smaller children booking the shorter trip.
Find out more www.vintagelifeboattrips.co.uk email on vintagelifeboat@outlook.com
