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The Bosun's Watch
The Bosun's Bookshelf
A Good Read For Those Off Watch
After years of trying to find original copies of the "Thrills of the Northern Trawl" book, Albert "Hurricane" Hutchinson's family have had a limited number of hardback versions of his 1938 book reprinted, staying very true to the original book and adding his poem "the wreck of the Howe".
First published in 1938, "Thrills of the Northern Trawl" is an excellent insight into the dangers faced by trawler men on a daily basis. Tinged with his sea-faring dialect, this book was one of the first to give a dramatic insight into the harshness and exhilaration of life at sea on the pre-war coal burners. A good historical record which, is still as relevant today.
£10.99 plus P & P
Contact sonia.turner@oracle.com
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This is the story of the submarines that failed to make it home in both war and peace .They will remain for eternity as the silent warriors of the British coast.
In two World Wars submarine warfare transformed British coastal waters into a pitiless arena where a secret life or death struggle was played out between U-boats trying to close the sea lanes and allied warships determined to keep them open.
Over 150 submarine wrecks litter British coastal waters and this book brings their stories to life, using previously unseen archive material. Combining years of international archival research and expert analysis with discoveries made by divers, this trilogy tells how these submarine wrecks came to be here. These stories are told, wherever possible, in the words of those who were present.
In Volume One Ron Young and Pamela Armstrong describe the submarines lost along the east coast of England, from Northumberland to Kent and around to Beachy Head. These range from J6, victim of a dreadful *friendly fire' incident in 1918, to the amazing escape of Kplt. Wenninger of ÜB 55, seemingly trapped without hope on the bed of the English Channel. Then there is the unassuming heroism that lies behind the accounts of HM S/Ms Utrity, Umpire and Truculent. Surely destined to become the definitive record of these submarine wrecks, this series will have a ready appeal to anyone with an interest in British maritime history.
£19.99 plus P & P
ISBN 0 7524 3876 Available from Amazon
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PRESS RELEASE
NEW FISHING INDUSTRY DVD LAUNCHED
A NEW DVD, filmed at sea onboard various fishing vessels, from inshore crab boats to deep sea trawlers, which is sure to be of interest to local fishermen has just been launched.
Craig Taylor from Orkney has released his 8th volume of the 'At the Fishing' series this week.
The latest DVD runs for more than two hours and includes footage from the 1960's to the present day, featuring fishing vessels ranging from inshore creel boats to deep sea trawlers.
As with the other DVD's in the series the compilation is not filmed by professional cameramen, but by fishermen themselves while at work on various trips at sea.
Included in the compilation is the following footage:
Galilean GY 603 - short cine film recorded onboard the Grimsby trawler off the coast of Iceland in the mid 1960's;
cine film of north east Scotland boats, including footage of the launch of the Progress BF1 in 1967, as well as other vessels fishing, including taking a haul of sprats in the Beauly Firth;
Rivo K 391 - converted cine film recorded in the late 1970's and early 1980's mainly shows the Rivo. As well as the Westray based trawler there is also some footage of Pierowall, in Westray in a gale. Other boats on show are the Our Catherine, Bon Ami and the Monica Croan;
Seagull BF 83 and Osprey BF 500 shown pair trawling off the west coast of Scotland in the 1980's;
Seagull BF 74 - launch of the 68 foot fishing boat in MacDuff in 1990 and filmed on a fishing trip;
Vandal LK 337 fishing in deep water in the Atlantic close to St Kilda, west of Scotland, in the late 1990's;
Vandal LK 337 and Harvest Reaper III PD120 carrying out experimental fishing trials for tuna off the cost of Spain in the late 1990's;
Mizpah LK 173 shown fishing in 2000 and onwards. Also featured are fishing boats from Orkney and Shetland as well as from ports on mainland Scotland;
Boy Shane WK 673 pictured hauling and shooting creels in 2000;
Adeina D 665 filmed leaving Killybegs in 1999 on a trip to Rockall, before returning to Killybegs to land;
Orkney Reiver K49 and Rivo K391 pair-trawling in 1988, filmed fishing as well as taking shelter at St Kilda, off the west coast of Scotland;
Keila K 121 filmed on a trip to Rockall in 1991 and landing at Scrabster. Also shown is a short clip of the boats home port of Pierowall, Westray.
The new DVD, as well as the other seven compilations can now be ordered directly from the website at
www.fishingboatvideos.co.uk
They are also available from Craig Taylor, 11 Hatston Park, Kirkwall, Orkney, KW15 1UB, priced at£18.99.
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Talk to most people about Cod Wars and they will be under the impression that there was only one. Between 1958 and 1976 there were actually three.
The Royal Navy had the most unenviable task during these conflicts as they were fighting not only the indecision of their political masters, but also the belligerence of the Icelandic gunboats, the intransigence of bloody minded trawler skippers, and the ferocious Icelandic weather systems that could overwhelm a vessel in no time at all.
The frigates, tugs and support vessels spent weeks on patrol through some of the worst weather that could be imagined, suffered damage from rammings and were vilified in the Icelandic press and yet still managed to complete an almost impossible task.
Captain Andrew Welch RN has written a fascinating account of the Royal Navy's excellent job of protecting Britain's fishing vessels during the conflicts.
£29.99 plus P & P
Published by MARITIME BOOKS Lodge Hill Liskeard Cornwall
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The book includes 38 stories and one nearly one hundred photos of stories about the sea, including groundings, disappearances, collision, harrowing experiences, sinking and two life stories of well known Newfoundland fishermen. It dates from 1890's to the 1980's. The vessels involved are seiners, trawlers, longliners, schooners and commercial ships as well. It also includes the wreck of the St .Leonard with photos and a story about the Zarp( sister ship to the St .Leonard) and also the Storm of 1964 which includes the loss of the Acadia Seahawk (former Boston Side Trawler).
$18.00 Canadian plus postage
ISBN # is 1-89-4463-97-8
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The Loss of the Hull trawler Gaul. A riveting and well researched book. Mr Wyatt takes his readers through spying, government cover-ups and the obvious contempt that was felt by trawlers owners towards the men who gave their lives to generate their fortunes.
Published by The Memoir Club
Available from Stanhope Old Hall
Stanhope, Weardale County Durham
ISBN 1-84104-131-9
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The long awaited 2004 edition of Peter Brady's Fishing Industry Handbook. Over a year in the making this publication contains hard hitting editorial comments and reports from ports around the UK. As before there is a comprehensive list of fishing vessels in the UK fleet with most of the photographs taken by the editor himself. New in this year's edition is an article on SAR and a section devoted to "Yesteryear" with pictures taken by Peter over the last 40 years with many previously unpublished pictures taken during the "Cod Wars". There is news from Ireland and a section devoted to a Buckie vessel that has been operating at Greenland.
Published by Fishing Communications Ltd
Available from POB 36, Fleetwood, Lancs, FY7 6GB
www.fishcom.co.uk peter@fishcom.co.uk
ISBN 0-9539907-2-9
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'THE PURSE SEINERS' - An excellent record of modern purse seiners and purse seine fishing, illustrated with many colour photographs. The book begins by tracing the history of UK purse seining which became a feature of the UK fishing industry in 1966.
The book charts the growth of the pursing fleets through the boom years and the gradual decline and closure that followed as the herring diminished.
There is an illustrated list of seine vessels together with a potted history of each of the vessels mentioned.
Written by Sam Henderson and Peter Drummond
Available from most book stores
Published by Krohn Johansen Forlag AS Larvik, Norway
ISBN 82-90528-38-8
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'OFF SCOTLAND - A Comprehensive Record of Maritime and Aviation Losses in Scottish Waters'
A truly remarkable book, the result of 30 years research. Here will be found the basic detail of nearly 18,000 losses round the coast of Scotland. From the well documented losses such as HMS ROYAL OAK, HMS HAMPSHIRE, BRAER and BREDA, to the small fishing boats operating out of the bays beside small crofting communities in the Western Isles. The author has scoured Shipping Registers and Fishing Boat Registers as well as contemporary newspapers to provide the information on losses that in many instances were not reported by Lloyds of London.
The apparently quirky ordering of the two main chapters which cover the East and West coasts respectively take a while to get used to but anyone with an understanding of Latitude/Longitude will soon cotton on to what the author was trying to achieve.
The book also has two smaller chapters. One deals with vessels that had left a Scottish port or were heading for a Scottish port and simply disappeared. Certainly some of these losses should be in the area covered by the book, e.g. 'left Dysart for Orkney', whereas 'left Halifax Nova Scotia for Oban and the Clyde' could equally be on either side of the Atlantic. The second small chapter contains references to losses where the place name seem to suggest a Scottish connection but searching maps has not revealed where they are.
The book contains two indices, The first by name and the second by date of loss. Just in case you are researching a common name e.g. ELIZA, the name index has duplicate names sorted by year of loss. The name index also has previous names indexed.
I can understand a cargo of 'ice' but what is 'coffin furniture' and what was 'a valuable cargo'. Not a book for bedtime reading but definitely one to dip into, find something that looks interesting and go on to do your own further research.
http://www.sol.co.uk/i/iangwhittaker/book.html
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 The follow up to Volume 1 deals with trawlers that were requisitioned into the RN, some for 2 wars. This second volume is an A - B listing of vessels and contains the index to both volumes.
Published by Maritime Books Lodge Hill Liskeard Cornwall www.navybooks.com
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 The use of trawlers in two world wars as minesweepers, patrol vessels, escorts, boom defence vessels and more. This book lists the various classes including the familiar Mersey, Castle and Strath vessels that formed the backbone of the fishing fleets for many years, as well as the lesser known such as Kiwi, Tree and Axe trawlers, some of which were built abroad.
Published by Maritime Books Lodge Hill Liskeard Cornwall www.navybooks.com
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The fifth of a series of indexes detailing all known wrecks around the British Isles. Richard and Bridget Larn have catalogued wrecks from Cumbria down to the Welsh Coast, Bristol and the Severn Estuary from the 1600's onwards. At £50 for volume 5 it is money well spent.
Available from Amazon
www.amazon.co.uk
ISBN 1 900839 61 x
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Sailing With Hunters
Charlie Gregory's first hand account of Arctic trawling.
Sailing as "Sparks" on board Carthusian and Milyna, Charlie tells it like it was in this excellent story.
Download a zipped version
here
for off-line reading.
Note: If you are using Netscape, RIGHT CLICK and choose "Save Target As..."
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The video contains an account of the lives of trawlermen at sea during the Second World War. The usual hardships of life at sea are made worse by the ever present threat of mine, bomb and torpedo. Life and work aboard a trawler in 1943 is shown as are the families of the seamen, carrying on with their normal lives. The on board shots were taken on the Fleetwood trawler Hondo, tragically lost not long after the film was made. This and many other videos are available from....
Contact
Panamint Cinema
Abercorn Schoolhouse
Whitequarries, Broxburn
West Lothian
Scotland EH52 6PZ
Tel: 01506 834936
Email: cinema@panamint.co.uk
www.panamint.co.uk
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A CD of songs celebrating Fleetwood's fishing heritage. In the same mould as "The Final Trawl" there are 28 songs including some old favourites such as "Cook's Tatie Pie", "Blue Flamingo" and "Flowers of the sea". The cover is a dramatic picture of Boston Phantom leaving the Vjestmann Islands and this CD will bring a smile to your face and a tear to your eye.
Contact
David Ryan
Fleetwood 01253 876351
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Fishing Industry Handbook for Britain and Ireland
Edited by Peter Brady
A comprehensive look at the fishing industry today. The book includes an overview of the political aspect of the industry, features on the various prey species and their viability, technological advances in design and development of vessels and machinery and a port by port examination of the state of the various fishing communities today. There are also many pictures of current vessels of varied design, together with specifications and registrations. All this and much, much more is to found between the covers of this book so make room on your bookshelf for it.
The 2002 version is expected to be published at the end of April.
Published by Fishing communications Ltd.,
POB 36,
Fleetwood, Lancs FY7 6GB
Tel: + 44 (0) 1253 872219
Fax: + 44 (0) 1253 876802
email: office@fishcom.co.uk
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Alistair McIntosh's book contains the article that he was good enough to allow me to re-produce on the Articles page. Some of the recent accolades are......
At this time in history, everywhere on earth, we must redeem our relationship with the earth if we are to survive as a species. This Scottish-based work is vividly useful to people everywhere who care about reclamation in the full spiritual and practical sense of the word.
- Professor Robert Greenway, Olympic Ecopsychology Institute, USA..
Alastair McIntosh's Soil and Soul leads me on from my first reading of Paulo Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed. The same thirst for justice, the same identification of the eloquent bard with the voiceless ones rekindles poetry and revolution in the readers heart and thunders forth "alarm! alarm!" as deep as any Biblical prophesy.
McIntosh is able to leave one foot firmly planted in the old ways of a native Celtic people and the other slap bang in the middle of scholarly argumentation thereby bridging the great divide between poetry and science. He helps us to come to terms with our broken hearts and understand the dysfunctional power behind the carnage.
Soil and Soul is a major work which stretches us from the psychohistory of colonisation as seen through the lens of Hebridean culture to inspiring, empowering and entertaining case histories of community empowerment and cultural healing in which the author has played a pioneering part: read it!
- John Seed, Australian ecological activist and author of Thinking Like a Mountain.
Published by Arum Press, London. ISBN 1 85410802 £17.99 in hardback.
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A Comprehensive Guide to Shipwrecks of the North East Coast
By Ron Young
In these two volumes 1 & 2 of "A Comprehensive Guide to Shipwrecks of the North East Coast", covering the periods from 1740 to 1917 and 1918 to 1999, Ron Young, an experienced diver of over 25 years, catalogues the histories and rescues associated with 369 shipwrecks still to be found on the seabed between Berwick and Robin Hood's Bay. He also assesses them for sport diving and boat angling, giving GPS positions, depths and details of the wreck's actual conditions and marine life to be found around the wrecks.
The book includes details from the wrecks of several Fleetwood trawlers. A must for the modern adventurous diver and boat angler. Available from most major bookstores.
Published By Tempus Publishing Ltd, Stroud
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Dictionary of Shipwrecks off the Isle of Man
By Adrian Corkill
"The culmination of a lifetime's work, the author has collected together the story of some 1,163 total losses in the seas surrounding the Isle of Man. Dating from 1644, many of the wrecks have been forgotten, others generally unknown to the general public. It is a fascinating collection. This CD is likely to be a sell-out, as indeed the book version was. Using the latest technology this CD is sure to become a major source of information to all the countries bordering this Celtic Kingdom. Researchers from even further afield will also find it invaluable. Offered in an easy to use format, with search and edit facilities, it is also supported by a photo image library. Once your computer is "booted up", it is very hard to switch off. Definitely a leader in its field. Professionally done and good value."
Sea Breezes Magazine June 2001
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Cook Welton & Gemmell
By Michael Thompson
Dave Newton
Richard Robinson
Tony Lofthouse
A complete overview of the major Yorkshire shipbuilders that constructed so many of the vessels that sailed from Fleetwood. Through good times and bad, when the company was in receivership, this book covers the period from 1883 until 1963 and has an index of all the vessels built together with some of their history.
Published By Hutton Press Ltd ISBN 1-902709-02-2
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Boston Deep Sea Fisheries
By Mark Stopper & Ray Maltby
A well researched book that examines the origins of the Boston Deep Sea Fisheries Co and reveals the reason that Boston, and east coast company, originally came to Fleetwood. There are many photographs from the earliest days until the company left Fleetwood. This is accompanied by a comprehensive list of vessels owned and/or operated by the company and is a must for the serious trawling historian or those of a nostalgic nature.
Published by Hutton Press, 130 Canada Drive, Cherry Burton, Beverley HU17 7SB
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Trawling With The Lid Off
Written by John 'Snacker' Nicklin
John Nicklin takes you on a journey that starts , for him at least, during the war. It was then that he first sailed as 'Brassie' aboard the Strathblair. He tells the tale of his thirty years of experience as an Arctic fisherman as he worked his way up to skipper. From there he moved on to a 12 year career as Chief Navigating Officer on survey vessels. Currently he is acting as a national tutor in Marine Law. A supremely readable book that is bound to stir the memories of those who have been there.
Published by Aurora Publishing, Unit 9, Bradley Fold Trading Estate, Radcliffe Moor Road, Bradley Fold, Bolton BL2 6RT:ISBN 1 859260 77 2
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The Marr Story
Compiled by Michael Thompson
Joseph Marr moved to Fleetwood in 1898 with three trawlers. From those humble beginnings the firm was built into one of the largest trawler operators in Fleetwood. This book chronicles the fortunes of the company and includes many fine photographs and a list of the Marr vessels. Make room on your bookshelf for this one.
Published By J. Marr Ltd, St Andrews Dock, Hull HU3 4PN, ISBN 1 872167 69 1
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Argyll Shipwrecks
By Peter Moir & Ian Crawford
The first of these books, 'Argyll Shipwrecks' is the only one of the two that I have read. The authors, Peter Moir and Ian Crawford, in producing a book aimed largely at the sub-aqua fraternity have done a great service to the marine historian. Not only is the location of each wreck meticulously plotted but there are facts and figures to go with each item. The book mentions several Fleetwood trawlers and it is obvious that a great amount of research has gone into this book and the Bosun recommends that you buy it even if it is just for the forlorn looking image of the Wyre Majestic ashore on Rubha a Mhill in the Sound of Islay. I hope that the second book is as good.
Published By
Moir Crawford, 1 Cedar Walk, Wemyss Bay,Inverclyde PA18 6BP 4PN,ISBN 1 872167 69 1
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Lancashire's Unknown River
By George Mould
An old publication this one and, to be honest, I don't know if it is still in print. If it is though, it is well worth reading. Not totally concerned with trawling the book contains some fishing content but mainly charts the course of the Wyre from its twin sources on Marshaw and Tarnbrook on the Bleasdale Fells. There are fascinating snippets of information including the old charge board that stood at the entrance to Shard Toll Bridge and lists, amongst others, the charge for taking across the bridge an ass (laden or unladen) at one penny.
Published By
Terence Dalton Ltd, SBN 900963 15 8
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Fleetwood in old Photographs
By Catherine Rothwell
Pictures and articles from the old days until recently. From pictures taken in the town in the 1800's to the wreckage of the bomber that just missed The Mount and crashed into the sea and pictures of the RoRo boats, it is all in this book.
Published By, Alan Sutton Publishing, Phoenix Mill, Far Thrupp, Stroud, Gloustershire: ISBN 0-7509-0732-0
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The Lancashire Coast
By Catherine Rothwell
Pictures and articles from the old days until recently. From pictures taken in the town in the 1800's to the wreckage of the bomber that just missed The Mount and crashed into the sea and pictures of the RoRo boats, it is all in this book.
Published By, Alan Sutton Publishing, Phoenix Mill, Far Thrupp, Stroud, Gloustershire: ISBN 0-7509-0732-0
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Fishing Boats of the World 2
By J.Traung
This
congress, based on the Food and Agriculture Organization Fishing Boat
Congress held in Rome, resulted in another remarkable volume, now
reprinted for the third time, which surveys different aspects of
commercial fishing. The approach here is to supplement the papers
presented with knowledgeable discussions which are one of the most
important parts of the book. The subject areas in this volume are tactics,
construction, sea behaviour, and productivity with numerous sub-headings
such as fishing methods and deck arrangements, scantlings, fish hold,
propulsion systems for motor trawlers, stability, short, medium and long
distance fishing and many others. The world's leading naval architects,
gear manufacturers, scientists and fishing operators contributed papers,
making this book one of the most concentrated and unique sources of
information on the subject covered. Summaries in English, French and
Spanish are given.
Order from here
800 illustrations, 782 pages, September 1989. Hardback ISBN
0852380755: Price £60.00
Pair Trawling and Pair Seining
The Technology of Two-boat Fishing
By D.B.Thomson
149 illustrations, 168 pages, September 1989. Hardback ISBN
0852380879
Price £32.50
Introduction;
Conversion tables;
Net twine sizes
used in pair trawls;
Details of some cod pair trawlers;
Details of
some Scottish pair teams using the cod trawl;
Details of some Irish
midwater pair trawlers;
Details of some Scottish midwater pair
trawlers;
Details of some Scottish ring net vessels;
Landings by
ring net vessels: Scotland 1961 -1975;
Two-boat midwater trawlers:
Scottish catches landed 1972-1975;
Catches and trip grossings by some
cod pair trawlers operating from Grimsby 1976.
Order from
here
Other books from the same source
More Scottish Fishing Craft
Author:
Gloria
Wilson
19 illustrations, 170 pages, September 1989. Hardback ISBN
0852380488
Price £22.50
Contents
The growth of great lining; Small dual purpose boats;
Three purpose craft - lining, seining, drifting; Versatile seine netters;
New ideas built into sister-ships; Changes wrought in ten years; Seiners
at work; Wooden trawlers and seiners; Notable wooden trawlers; Aberdeen as
a fishing port; Building in steel; Where fifties were built; Story of the
buckie yard; List of boats built since 1945.
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Definitely out of print but available in the reference section of Fleetwood Library is John Porter's "History of the Fylde of Lancashire". He puts some fascinating theories forward concerning Morecambe Bay including the one that the Wyre was once a tributary of the Lune.
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