Bessie was built in November 1895, the builder is unknown, but is most likely either to be either the Harts Hill Iron Works own dock or that of Noah Hingley at Withymore. It was supplied to Hingley & Smith the owners of the Hartshill Iron works as their No 17, an open unnamed boat. It was guaged by the BCN at Smethwick on the 28-11-1895, as no 14695.

It was made of wrought iron and was 71ft-6ins long by 6ft 11ins wide, with 5 cross beams. It would normally carry up to 30 tons of cargo, Coal, Coke, Iron Ore, Slag, and Limestone.

By 1897 the company was trading as the Harts Hill Iron Co Ltd, some time after this date the boat was renumbered. It aquired the new number 18 and the name "BESSIE", this name is most unusually stamped in to the gunwhale alongside the steering position on the left side of the boat. The boats identity is carried on a cast plate on the right hand side of the boat, about midway on the inside.
It reads "Harts Hill Iron Co Limited No 18 Owners".
The boat was repaired or altered in 1916 and 1926.

The Iron Co, ran a fleet of boats, which totalled at least 40 in the company's life. The Harts Hill Iron Works was located east of Canal Street Bridge on the Pensnett Canal, which ran from the Wallows Basin to Parkhead Junction on the BCN just outside the southern portal of Dudley Tunnel. The canal was privately owned by the Earl of Dudley and was not part of the BCN. it had been built in 1840. It is still in water outside the site of the ironworks, but filled in elsewhere.

At an unknown date before the mid 1930's Bessie passed to Stewarts and Lloyds at Halesowen, and moved to the Coombeswood Tube Works, where it became S & L, No 112, here it had 2 beams removed so that it could load long tubes into its hold for transporting to the GWR transhipment basin at Hawne.
The Bessie worked right through to the closure of the Coombeswood Tube Works in the 1970's, by now owned by British Steel, and was donated to the museum in 1976.

Bessie was re gauged on the 18/4/1916 and on the 9/1/1926, on the latter occasion she gained 26 cwt, so this was after a fairly heavy rebuild. The footings of the boat have been replaced, possibly in 1926, they were removed by the use of a gas cutting torch at the top of the old footing plate, above the original rivots.

The new footing plates were taller and re riveted to the old side plates above the cut line. Most likely at the same time wasted areas behind the knees were cut out, again by gas, and the new patches were riveted on.

The bottom could be original. When S & L removed the two beams they added two extra pairs of knees to the sides only, very close to where the beams had been, these were joined to the a knee tyoe girder riveted to the bottom by a gusset plate. One of these pairs of new knees is in angle iron section, as are all of the original knees, the other is in T section girder. There are signs of heavy repairs round the fore end.

The museum repaired Bessie by welding some patches on the thin bottom in the 1980's. In 2005 heavier repairs were caried out which included total replacement of the bottom plates, plus various other smaller repairs. These repairs enable the boat to make visits to local events outside the museum.