Birmingham Canal Navigations Society, the BCNS

Number 15

Made in 1879

kept at the Black Country Living Museum

Continuing from last edition when we featured Iceboat Ross it is my intention, with the help of Francis Stapleton to bring to your notice all the BCN working boats kept at the Black Country Museum. This boat known simply as No. 15, is owned by Francis and is to be seen at most of the gatherings on the BCN, not having a motor it depends on a tug, often Bittell(featured in BP 169)and sometimes Enterprise, owned by Bernard Hales & Company.

Built in 1879 by Thomas Bantock and Co at their Ettingshall Dock. This Mark 2 Bantock with a thick rounded stem and wrap around plate stern and built entirely of riveted wrought iron plates.
It was gauged / registered in January 1879 as BCN 10202. No further details are available until 1895 as the BCN registers for the period are no longer in existance. Recent research on similar Mark 2 boats suggest that it was originally a Thomas Bantock & Co / Great Western Railway Station Boat.

In 1895 it was owned by Jones & Fitz, (possible Jones & Fitzsimmons), of Rowley Regis. In 1896 the firm may have been renamed Jones & Fitzmaurice, as this name appears on one set of gauging sheets(MB), it also shows as Jones & Fitzsimmons(AF) on another, but Jones and Fitz on the other two(TWT)(BCNS). It was registered on 2.4/1895, at Tipton, as BCN 14115, as an Open Iron Boat to Jones & Fitz.
Later a cabin was fitted. It passed to W H Jones and Company and later still to the Rowley Regis Granite Quarries Ltd.

In due course, possibly about 1909, it was sold to the Birmingham Canal Navigations(BCN) and became their No 10; Walsall District Maintenance Boat. The front part of the hold was decked over to make a working platform. It was later transferred to the Birmingham District.

Eventually it passed to British Waterways, who sold it in the 1960's to T & D Murrell, who sold it on to the artist Alex Prowse who used it as the Cascade Art Gallery. The boat was converted with a full lenght boxy cabin. It later passed to the wrestler Pat Roach, who continued to moor it at Little Venice, London.
The boat was again sold in June 2001 to Francis Staplton, who has completely deconverted the boat, and rebottomed it, the work being done by the Stockton Dry Dock Company. A day boat cabin was also added at the same time, made to GWR plans.
The boat was repaired many times during its working career.

It was regauged, usually a sign of heavy docking, on 3/6/1902, 16/4/07, 9/12/09, 20/4/15, 24/4/16, 8/9/33, 9/7/34 and 26/11/41.
At some stage in its life the boat suffered serious front end damage, two large plates were rivetted either side of the bows. This possibly pre 1895, and could be a reason for the sale of a very young boat by the GWR or Thomas Bantock, most of their boats survived in their fleets for a very long time.

The boat is often missing from the museum being on display at waterways rallies and events.

No .15. at Titford 2005: Towed by Bittell

Francis Stapleton