Birmingham Canal Navigations Society, the BCNS

Tale of Two Georges by Martin O'Keeffe

Part Three

In early 1913 Stewarts and Lloyds and Noah Hingley approached the BCN with their concerns about the delays to their traffic through Gosty Hill Tunnel, the only other route would lead them through the long and equally narrow Lapal Tunnel and onto the Worcester and Birmingham Canal. There was planned to be an increase of traffic from Hingley's Coombes Wood Colliery to 160 boats per week as it was coming into production at the time. Following on from these representations the BCN committee investigated the possibility of introducing a tug and the cost was estimated to be Ł500 for one tug and Ł800 for two tugs. Subsequently an arrangement was made with carriers, but charges were calculated at 1/- for a boat containing 25 tons or more, 9d for less than 25 tons and 6d for an empty boat to be tugged through the tunnel.

In October an approach was made by the BCN to various engine suppliers. Thornycroft could supply a 46hp engine and wooden tug for Ł946, Perman could supply an iron boat and a 26hp Kromhout engine for Ł900 whilst Rennie Forrest could supply a wooden boat with a 22hp Kromhout engine for Ł650. James Pollock Sons & Co advised that they could supply two 15hp Bolinder engines with proppers and stern gear for Ł492 and could also prepare a design for the tug for the sum of 25 guineas, the tug being constructed at the BCN workshops at Ocker Hill. Pollocks also offered to supervise the installation of the engine. The total cost of one tug would be Ł800.

Pending the completion of the tug a boat would be hired to work the traffic through the tunnel. At a meeting of the BCN committee in December, following discussions with the marine department of the London & North Western Railway, Commander Holland advised the purchase of one Bolinder engine at a cost of Ł412 rather than the two 15hp engines. The LNWR under the terms of the 1846 agreement guaranteeing the BCN dividend at 4% had to give approval for all capital expenditure. In addition it owned a fleet of steam ships used on the various Irish Sea routes that it operated and thus was well equipped to advise on matters relating to the design of vessela. In June 1913 they approved the consent to purchase two tugs, total cost Ł1800 and an order was placed with Pollock's. The design they perpared was for a 45' long double ended tug with a breadth of 7' and draught of 4' 1 1/2", it was given the hip number 614 in Pollock's records.

In the first instance an agreement was made with Mr Millin (the Lessess of Rotten Park Reservoir) for the hire of a tug. However this was not found to be suitable. On 9th February 1914 a steam driven barge was hired from Fellows Morton Clayton Ltd at a cost of Ł3/11/0 a week and it was soon reported to be working the traffic to the approval of Stewarts and Lloyds and Noah Hingley.

On the 11th May 1914 the new tug 'George' was put into service and was working satisfactorily. By July it was felt that a secong tug be supplied and authority was given for a similar tug to be built at a cost of Ł750 (Ł412 for the engine and Ł330 for the tug). The price of the engine was increased in August due to war insurance. However the boat was not built because of uncertainty following the start of the war.

In October 1915 due to problems encountered by Lord Dudley and other firms with the Dudley Tunnel leggers, the traffic through the tunnel would be worked by running down and pumping up water at Parkhead locks to create a current through the tunnel to assist the legging. Atrail was also made with the Gosty Hill tug but the men could not endure the smoke and fumes.

At the beginning of 1916 a report was prepared for the BCN committee by the engineer to the BCN committee on mechanical haulage through Dudley Tunnel. Electric haulage as used in Harecastle Tunnel on the Trent and Mersey Canal was considered but owing to te bends and obstructions in the Dudley Tunnel, this wasot considered to be suitable. The most suitable method was considered to be a double ended tug driven by a motor provided with a current from an accumulator placed in the tug or in a tender. The tug could be charged with current supplied at the Dudley Road canal bridge at Tipton.

At its meeting on the 25th February 1916 the results of investigations into tugging in Dudley Tunnel were reportedand a means had been devised to make the fumes of the Gosty Hill tug less objectionable and it was recommended that two tugs with Bolinder or Ailsa Craig paraffin engines be bought at an estimated cost of Ł3100. If the atmosphere in the tunnel became worse as a result of their introduction then it may be necessary to install a fan in the tunnel. Permission of the LNWR was to be sought. Subsequently at the committee meeting on the 31st March the question of the Dudley Tunnel tugging scheme was discussed and a charge of 4/- per loaded boat and 1/- per empty boat was proposed. This would result in an income of Ł2000 and a cost of Ł1800.

Then on 28th April 1916 the consent of the LNWR was produced for an expenditure of Ł3500 for the construction of two tugs. A test in Lapel tunnel with the Gosty Hill tug had taken place to ascertain if there would be any problem with fumes but no inconvenience was caused. An order for two 20hp Bolinder engines had been placed with Pollocks and work would commence at Ocker Hill on the first tug shortly. Also at the meeting of the BCN committee on the 31st March 1916 it was reported that Stewarts and Lloyds Ltd had placed into use a tug for hauling loaded and empty boats between Combs Wood works and the Holly Bank Colliery. It was agreed that during the duration of the war that they would be allowed to pass on the level canal free of charge, but that a charge of 3/- for a tug towing loaded boats would be made for passing through locks, when towing empty boats they could pass without charge. They would also have to comply with regulations regarding speed.

In August 1916 one of the two engines ordered from Pollocks was delivered at Ocker Hill to be fitted in one of the new tugs, however the other engine was lost at sea between Stockholm and Hull and a second engine had been ordered.
On the 24th November 1916 it was agreed that tugging would start through the Dudley Tunnel on the 1st January 1917, one tug was complete and until the seconded tug on order was completed that a tug would be hired in and that The Shorpshire Union Canal would supply the steam tug "Rocket" at the rate of Ł3 a wek to act as a standby. On the 1st January service through Dudley Tunnel using the new tug the "Dudley" commenced. "Dudley" was another double ended tug 40' long with a breadth of 6'-3" and a draught of 4'-1 1/2", Pollock's number 864. Four of the leggers were employed by the BCN to assist two of the company's men in working the boats through the tunnel. However this was interrupted by the action of the remainder of the leggers who complelled their mates to cease work.
Other BCN men were brought in and on the 3rd the former leggers returned to work. The only other problem experienced was an awkward bend in the tunnel requiring the boats to be shafted. It was planned to ease the bend by removing some of the rock on one side of the tunnel. In March 1917 the second Bolinder engine arrived and once installed in the tug it would be ready for trial in a few weeks. By April these trials of what was the "Phyllis" (identical to the 'Dudley' and numbered 865 in Pollock's records) had been completed and the tug would be kept in reserve for use in Gosty or Dudley Tunnels as required. The 'Rocket' would be returned to the SUC, this taking place during May.

The operation of the tug in Dudley Tunnel was not without incident. In June 1917, Mr J Ketley of 2 Castle Mill, Tipton complained about the fumes escaping from Dudley Tunnel, however no action was taken. On the 13th of June, John James (26years old and with 7 years service paid 5/10 per day) a tug driver working the tug in Dudley Tunnel slipped and fell injuring his back and requiring 3 days off work.

At their meeting on the 28th October 1921 it was reported to the BCN committee that due to the eduction in trade that the use of tugs had been discontinued on the 15th July 1921 and that leging had resumed. At that time the average number of loaded and empty boats working through the tunewl was only 8.
On the 11th April 1924 the sale of one of the tugs was approved, although there is no clear evidence that a tug was sold at that time. In a ledger of BCN boats on the page for the 'George' is the remark that the hull was sold to C W Mitchard (the Tipton coal merchants) for Ł5 but this entry is in pencil and may not have been made at the time. Certainly a tug was sold to C W Mitchard and converted into their tug 'Jubilee' by Peter Keay. This has often been referred to as orginally having been 'George II' but I have not found any evidence in the BCN records to that effect, just to add to the confusion the shape of the hull is very different to that of 'George'. It was however definitely converted from a double ended tug.

On the 17th December 1926 an explosion took place whilst a mechanical bilge pump was being tested in one of the BCN tugs at Ocker Hill. An engineman C Mason and Foreman Fitter H G Kinnerley were injured requiring hospitalisation for a time.

Whilst we have a clear date for the cessation of the Dudley Tunnel service I have been unable to find when the service through Gosty Hill tunnel finished. It may be that the requirement for the tug became less and less and it fell out of use through lack of demand. If anyone knows I would be interested to hear when it was.
I must add that a tug house was completed at the Old Hill end of the tunnel early on. And as to the other George well the engineer during the period of the introduction of the tugs was of course George Jebb.
George Robert Jebb (to give his full name) was appointed as engineer to the BCN on the 1st March 1875 at a salary of Ł250. He had a long and distinguished career, having in addition to hiswork for the BCN been an engineer to the Shropshire Union Railway and Canal Company. He was a friend of Frank Webb the LNWR locomotive engineer who ruled Creww locomotive works for a long period of time. George was President of the Institution of Civil Engineers.
He died on the 16th February 1927. He had been engineer and consultant for 39 years and a BCN committee member for 13 years. He was born in Baschurch in Shropshire in 1839, his father was the station master at Baschurch station on the LNWR. Later in his life when working on the BCN he was living in Fairyfield House in Newtown Road, Great Barr.