Issue 37 Aug 2019

Newsletter August 2019

Newsletter No. 37

The IMT Image Archive comes to town!

An invitation for the IMT to be the first organisation to put on an open-air display on sixteen newly commissioned ‘Cubes’ for the Cornhill was too good an opportunity to miss. Created by a group of organisations led by Ipswich Central with funding from the ‘New Anglia’ Local Enterprise Partnership, the specially built panels were finally erected on site on 6th August.

Stuart Grimwade takes up the story - When I was first approached in July by Emma Lightfoot of Ipswich Central to provide the artwork for the display, ostensibly with a view to publicising the forthcoming Maritime Festival, my first question was how to position four separate four-panelled cubes in such a way as to make an interesting exhibition? Sixteen historic images from our Archive viewed one at a time would hardly be likely to grab viewers’ attention.

The answer came while I was drawing them on the computer as a guide for the benefit of the printer, Hudson’s. Why not place the cubes in a diamond formation allowing two complementary panels to be viewed from the same point? This then led me to wonder whether a ‘then and now’ theme might work, using a few of the images recently commissioned by Birketts for their new offices in Princes St. and taken by Roger Barcham of BMSimaging to exactly match those in our Image Archive.

Very little time was left to resolve all the necessary copyright and consent issues, although I have to admit to vague concerns that might arise if we are challenged by people who recognise themselves and claim ‘breaches of personal privacy’!

No sooner was the display erected than the Borough Council decided that the fears of the then impending week-end storm required its removal! It then transpired that it was possibly blocking the highway – at least in the eyes of the County Council. Oh, the politics of ’elf ‘n safety’! At the time of writing, however, and as shown in these two photographs taken on 14th August, the display is back in place for a second week and seems to be attracting an interested public, resulting in a series of appreciative messages

including one from ABP’s Director Andrew Harston who kindly offered publicity for it in ABP’s Old Custom House display during the Maritime Festival week-end.

A number of people have suggested that, rather than it being dismantled at the end of the Festival (as planned by IBC), it should be re-erected somewhere on the Waterfront, and so prolong its usefulness. It certainly seems a pity for so much time and effort, not to mention cost, to be viewed for such a short time. We shall have to wait and see what opportunities arise, although I have to admit that battling with the ‘powers-that-be’ has already bitten rather too hard into this year’s sailing season for my liking!

[If you are in town this weekend please take a look before it disappears as it is an impressive display! – Ed]

The continuing saga of St. Peter’s Dock and Wharf

Last year, at the invitation of Suffolk County Council, IMT offered ideas to embellish their proposed access enhancement scheme with suitable artefacts. At the same time we also (successfully) sought to persuade the local authority to change the name of the roadway to ‘St. Peter’s Wharf’, which historically had been used up until the last half-century.

For the enhancement scheme we suggested the installation of a seabird sculpture created in the 1960s by a renowned Ipswich artist, but never placed in the dock area as had been his wish. Failing that, we proposed the relocation of two bronze west European city, town and village direction plaques which the Trust had saved in store since their removal from under the Lloyds Avenue ‘arch’ on the Cornhill, together with a new information panel describing the history and unique national maritime importance of this long neglected dock.

The County Council’s scheme is now complete, but regrettably does not appear as successful as we had hoped in that the information plaque is far too small and insignificant to be read and appreciated properly. At the time of writing we are hoping to secure SCC’s goodwill in remedying this. It had also been hoped that we could repeat last September’s successful rally of barges and historic vessels at Stoke Bridge to emphasise the ‘Heritage Harbour’ potential of the dock. For this of course, we are very much at the mercy of skippers and owners prepared to use their time in this way, and this year no positive responses were received. We shall continue to try, perhaps following any publication by ABP of their future plans for the island site, its redevelopment and access.

(Stop press! – SCC have agreed that the IMT can replace the existing information panel with one of a larger format with a more appropriate image, and better presentation of the information).

Stuart Grimwade

Window Museum News

The 19th Window Museum Display

The Last Grain Race

This display focuses on the Ipswich and the Australian Grain Trade and the many sailing ships that brought their cargo to Cranfield’s Flour Mill at the head of the Wet Dock on the site of this Window Display.

It is now 80 years since the Abraham Rydberg brought a cargo of grain from Australia to Ipswich on what was to be termed the ‘Last Grain Race’. This display celebrates Abraham Rydberg’s final visit, along with the many other great sailing ships that carried their precious cargo around the globe to Ipswich before the Second World War. By using the power of wind and ocean current alone, the crews of these magnificent square-rigged ships competed to be the winner of the ‘Great Grain Race’ by completing their course to the UK in the fastest overall time.

Don't miss….

A model of the 4 masted Barque the Herzogin Cecilie is displayed with a brightly painted white hull, it was kindly donated by the National Maritime Museum. Herzogin Cecilie was the most triumphant vessel during the Grain Races recording 6 victories.

Andy Parker

IMT Website changes

In November 2018 I approached the Committee with a proposition to redevelop the IMT website, which also coincided with our previous website designer retiring. I wanted to focus on helping bring our website up to date with current trends online and on social media. As we have no permanent physical presence apart from our Window Museum it is even more important for us as an organisation to focus on our digital presence. We have spent time redeveloping our events page, pages on our window museum displays, and our Image Archive. As well as all of this we will be adding monthly blog posts on a whole host of topics which you can receive regularly into your inbox. We are adding the finishing touches and will unveil it to you all soon. I am sure both our members and the wider public community will enjoy another way in which we are working hard to promote the rich maritime heritage of Ipswich and Suffolk. I for one cannot wait. Andy Parker

Our apologies to anyone who has been looking at our current website and finding that the information is slightly out-of-date. The new site will be launched very soon.

Future Events – Exhibitions

Ipswich Maritime Festival – 17th and 18th August

In the Old Custom House will be a display which will include 5 images which have the original Harry Walters photographs from the 1890s merged with modern photographs taken by his relative, Ian Cutting.

You will also be able to see our model of Cliff Quay which is on permanent display in the Old Custom House.

Outside on the quayside we will be encouraging people to participate in the making of baggywrinkle. There will also be the opportunity for children to dress up as a pirate and be photographed alongside our own ‘Ben the Pirate’.

Details of the festival can be found at www.ipswichentertains.co.uk/ipswichmaritimefestival

Heritage Open Weekend - 14th and 15th September There will be a maritime themed exhibition in the Quay level of the Old Custom House.

Future Events - Talks

Wednesday 2nd October 7.30pm

The ‘Mary Rose’

by Dr Philip Roberts

Wednesday 6th November 7.30pm

The Loss of the Truculent: the Lack of a Seaman’s Eye? by John Johnson-Allen

Wednesday 4th December at 7.30pm

Shipbuilding in Ipswich

by Chris Turland

Full details are on page 10 of this newsletter. Reminders for the talks will be sent out closer to the time, but please make a note of the dates in your diary.

We will be providing tea, coffee and biscuits after the talks; this has proved very popular and has provided the opportunity for members to meet and chat amongst themselves and with some IMT Council members.

Future Events - Barge Trips Thames Spritsail Barge Trips 2019 IMT Thames Barge all-day sailing trips

There is only one more all-day sailing barge trip organised by the IMT this year on 5th September. There is more information on the form at the end of the newsletter, but due to the closeness of the date, please contact Bob Pawsey direct on 01473 252893 if you wish to make a booking.

Full details are on the booking form at the end of the newsletter.

Past Events - Spring 2019 talks

We had yet another series of interesting and varied talks in the Spring this year.

Wednesday 6th February

‘Ipswich Tidal Barrier – the Environment Agency’s Project Engineer on the construction of this £70m scheme. by Andrew Usborne, Project Manager

The first of the spring series of IMT talks saw some 75 members and

guests gathered at the University’s Waterfront centre. The subject was

the newly-completed Ipswich Tidal Barrier, and the speaker was the the Project Engineer, Andrew Usborne.

The barrier is situated at the southern end of New Cut. Its purpose is to

prevent flooding upriver from a ‘300 –year event’; it is estimated to give

protection to some 1600 homes.

Major legal formalities and works were needed before the construction of the barrier itself could start. Two 132 kv cables had to be diverted; the legal agreement and the funding took longer than the diversion. The cables were almost entirely renewed, being laid underground just inside the existing flood wall and then in a tunnel beneath the lock gates.

In 2013 the tender was awarded for the barrier, under a design and build contract. October 2015 saw work started, with the installation of a substantial coffer dam. By May 2017 the base for the barrier had been completed. The steel barrier itself was built in Holland and barged over. The span is 20 m, and the clearance to the base an incredible 2 mm. The weight of the barrier is some 200 tonnes. It is moved by hydraulic rams, capable of lifting the barrier clear of the water for maintenance purposes.

Everything about the scheme is impressive.The main power source has a back-up, and the back-up has a back-up. The Ipswich Tidal Barrier Act was the principal enabling act, but a Marine Order was also needed, as was a Flood Defence Consent. The cost will probably come out to some £67 000 000.

As a post-script, we were shown photos of the IMT images on the doors of the control building.

Wednesday 7th November 7.30pm

‘The River Gipping Trust’

by Spencer Greystrong, Treasurer and a founding member

The second talk of our spring series was given by Spencer

Greystrong, the treasurer of the River Gipping Trust.

The Trust was formed in 2007 from the Ipswich branch of the

Inland Waterways Association. Its aim is the preservation of the

heritage and structures of the Stowmarket Navigation and the care

of the flora and fauna of the Gipping Valley.

Joan Blaeu’s 1646 map of Suffolk shows a number ofsettlements, but a modest road network. Things were not much better by 1790, when there was published notice of ‘An Intended Navigation from Stowmarket to Ipswich. The length of the canal was to be just over 16 miles, with a rise of 90 feet. That rise eventually involved 15 locks.

Most barges were towed, but sail was also used. The main trades were wool and locally-manufactured goods downstream and coal, wine etc. up. The canal did well, but could not compete with the speed, capacity and network of the railways. The canal inevitably went into decline.

The locks were first disused, and then not maintained. The Trust’s most visible work is the restoration of these locks; often, the work goes beyond the obvious. Creeting lock by 1996 was derelict. Before work could begin on the lock itself, the bywash had to be cleared and repaired. The lock itself could then be cleared of silt (and worse); the repairs extended to the accommodation bridge over the lock.

The Pipps Ford lock repairs included the restoration of the wooden ‘Mathematical Bridge’. By 1993 Bosmere Lock was almost derelict;by 1996 it had been largely rebuilt, bar the gates.

There were curiosities. Hawks Mill was ‘haute mylle’ in 1542, and ‘haute mill’ in 1623. Spencer had an image of the result of an explosion in August 1871 at the Patent Safety Gun Cotton Co’s factory by the side of Stowupland lock; little was left standing.

About 75 members and guests were very appreciative of Spenser’s talk, and of the work of the River Gipping Trust.

Wednesday 5th December 7.30pm

Henry VIII and the Ownership of the Orwell

by Andy Parker, IMT member and local historian

A very good audience of about 100 members and guests gathered for IMT Director Andy Parker’s talk on Early Tudor Ipswich; Henry VIII and the Ownership of the Orwell. The talk followed the Trust’s Annual General Meeting; completed with no blood on the floor.

Medieval Suffolk had many towns but few roads. From 1066, the Bigods ensured Dunwich was the main port for the county. This was not a good long term choice, and Ipswich came to be dominant. This dominance was rewarded in 1200 by King John’s Charter, which established Ipswich Corporation and its control by Portmen, Bailiffs, etc. – some 64 men in all. The town effectively controlled trade on behalf of the Crown.

Over the next decades, more rights and privileges years were given. For example, in the 1460s Edward IV granted the right to hold Admiralty Courts. The docks were the heart of Ipswich, and the base for its prosperity. At its peak, more than 60 % of the country’s wool exports went through Ipswich, with finished goods and wine from Rhineland and Bordeaux coming in. The power of the town probably reached its peak in the 1519 , with the grant of the Patent of Henry VIII. This gave the Corporation ‘jurisdiction of admiral within the town’. The town’s Bailiffs and Burgesses now had the right to make and alter ordinances governing trade. Their jurisdiction was said to extend 5 miles north to south, and 4 miles east to west. The grant included the Orwell to high water mark down to a point now marked by a stone on the southern bank just upstream from Shotley marina.

But should we thank Henry, or Thomas Wolsey? The Patent was signed at Hampton Court – Wolsey’s palace, not Henry’s. Wolsey by then had considerable interests in Ipswich, including his proposed college. The shrine of Our Lady of Grace, promoted by Wolsey, was then second in popularity only to Walsingham. Whatever the truth, Wolsey’s fall from power in 1530, pretty much brought to an end the hitherto steady rise in the power of Ipswich.

Andy concluded his talk with a brief look at the town’s subsequent history. and was warmly thanked by the audience.

Geoffrey Dyball

Past Events - Thames barge trips

This year we have taken a slightly different tack with some of our Thames barge trips and combined the river trip with a short visit to historic sites in Harwich led by guides from the Harwich Society. These trips have proved to be very popular and may be expanded and repeated next year.

IMT Image Archive News

We are continually adding to the Image Archive and now have over 2100 images accessible on-line. Over recent months we have been fortunate to be able to scan many images from the ABP archives and have added images of the construction and opening of the ‘new’ lock. There is also a complete new album of images of Pin Mill and some of its well-known characters from earlier days, and contained in the Ipswich Dock Commission album are images of the construction of the lock swing bridge by Ransomes and Rapier.

The Image Archive can be accessed via the IMT website or directly at

www.flickr.com/photos/imt_image_archive/albums

IMT Membership news

We currently have 315 members and it is satisfying that the membership has consistently remained above the 300 mark for several years; thank you all for your support. Our membership fees have not changed since they were introduced in 2005, but thanks to most of our members choosing to receive IMT communications by email we are still able to cover the membership administration costs.

If you are still receiving our communications by post and would like to change to email, please either send me an email to membership@ipswichmaritimetrust.org.uk , or call 07531 083576 and leave a message and I will call you back.

It really does help if we can communicate by email with our members.

Fraser Yates

New Members

Bernard & Victoria Waples

Chris Turland

David Sparrow

Phil Roberts

Ken Dyke

Richard & Nadzeija Askew

Jan Lowe & Stephen Scotcher

IMT 2019 Autumn talks

Wednesday 2nd October at 7.30pm

The Mary Rose

by Dr Philip Roberts

In 1545 during a battle with an invading French fleet in the Solent, the Mary Rose capsized and tragically sunk killing about 500 of its crew members. As it was King Henry VIII’s favourite ship it was a national disaster.

437 years later the ship was raised from the seabed with over 19,000 Tudor objects and many skeletons.

The story of the Mary Rose has made history in underwater archaeology and still is teaching us so much of everyday Tudor life, ship and contents conservation methods and is making outstanding scientific and maritime cutting edge breakthroughs. maryrose.org

Dr Philip Roberts was born in Ipswich and has always lived here. He has been a lecturer for the Mary Rose Trust for over 17 years and has a PhD in History. He has often been a guest historian on BBC Radio Suffolk, has 2 books published and is privileged to be a member of the Ipswich Maritime Trust.

Wednesday 6th November at 7.30pm

The Loss of the Truculent: the Lack of a Seaman’s Eye? by John Johnson-Allen

HMS Submarine Truculent was in collision with a coastal tanker in January 1950. The tanker was sailing from Purfleet to Ipswich; the collision occurred off Southend, near the Oaze bank. Truculent was ripped open and sank to the bottom. Sixty three men lost their lives. The last survivor, Fred Henley, was on the bridge at the time. Now age 95 and living in Clacton, he was extensively interviewed for the book ‘They Were Just Skulls: the Naval Career of Fred Henley’.

The book’s author and our speaker, John Johnson-Allen, has written a number of books on naval history, and is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.

Wednesday 4th December at 7.30pm

Shipbuilding in Ipswich

by Chris Turland

Chris Turland’s talk is on the history of shipbuilding in Ipswich; the ships,

the people who built them, and the development of the shipyards

around the docks.

Chris is a freelance teacher, artist and photographer, having previously spent many years at sea, and has previously given a talk to the IMT on the Harwich-continent ferries.

All are welcome to our lectures at the Waterfront Building, University of Suffolk. The cost for attending a talk is £3.50 for members and £4.50 for guests. Free tea and coffee provided after the talk and the chance to chat with the speaker and other members and guests.

Sailing trips on ‘Victor’

Join IMT on a full day trip on the rivers Orwell and Stour

~~Thursday 13~~th ~~June 2019 at 9am~~

~~Thursday 25~~th ~~July 2019 and~~ Thursday 5th September 2019 at 9am

A great chance to get the best views of the rivers Orwell, Stour, and the

Walton backwaters depending on the weather, and to help with the

sailing of an iconic boat.

Victor was built in 1895 by Shrubsalls at Ipswich for Owen Parry of

Colchester, mainly for use in the linseed oil trade. In 1947 she was the

last sailing barge to be decommissioned. She was converted to a motor

barge in the 1950s but restored in 1974 and refurbished in 2005/7.

Victor was the National Maritime Historic Ships Register official Suffolk representative for the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant in 2012.

Leave from her usual berth in front of the Old Custom House about 09.00.

- Bacon roll and coffee breakfast

- Mid-morning coffee and biscuits,

- Two course lunch with wine, and

- Afternoon cream tea.

Return about 17.30, depending on wind and tide.

Parking available on the Island site by prior arrangement, courtesy of ABP.

The cost is £60 per head.

Book through Bob Pawsey on 01473 252893

Booking Form

Barge Trip on Victor – 13th June/25th July/5th September** ** delete as appropriate

Please reserve .…… places at £60 per head, cheque made payable to ‘IMT’, enclosed for £…………. Name: ………………………………………………………………………………………………

Address: ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………….…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. Phone number and/or email address for confirmation of reservation, and in case of need to contact:

Phone number: …………………………………………………………..

Email address: ……………………………………………………………………………………

Is a car parking space is required on the Island Site - NO/YES (please write car Reg No on reverse) Please return form and cheque to B Pawsey, 82 Westerfield Road, Ipswich, IP4 2XN

Visit ‘Historic Harwich’ all day trips

~~Thursday 4~~th ~~July 2019 at 9am~~

~~Thursday 15~~th ~~August 2019 at 9am~~

Leaving from outside the Old Custom House, Ipswich at 9am and returning approximately 5.30pm, ‘Victor’ will motor/sail to Harwich Ha’penny pier. Passengers will leave the Victor at approx. 10.45/11.00 for a conducted tour of Historic Harwich Town by two guides from the Harwich Society. The tour will last approx. 90 minutes and the passengers will return to the Victor at 12.30 for drinks and lunch at 13.00 (two-course meal with wine). Victor will then leave Harwich at 15.00 to sail/motor back to the Old Custom House with a tea on the way.

The cost per head will be £65 which includes a donation to the Harwich Society.

Victor was built in 1895 by Shrubsalls at Ipswich for Owen Parry of Colchester, mainly for use in the linseed oil trade. In 1947 she was the last sailing barge to be decommissioned. She was converted to a motor barge in the 1950s, but restored in 1974 and refurbished in 2005/7.

Book through Bob Pawsey on 01473 252893, or complete the form below and send with cheque. Parking available on the Island site by prior arrangement, courtesy of ABP.

Booking Form

Harwich Trip on Victor – 4th July/15th August **

** (delete as appropriate)

Please reserve .……. places at £65 per head, cheque made payable to ‘IMT’, enclosed for £…………. Name: ………………………………………………………………………………………………

Address: ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Phone number: …………………………………………………………..

Email address: ……………………………………………………………………………………

Is a car parking space is required on the Island Site - NO/YES (please write car Reg No on reverse) Please return form and cheque to B Pawsey, 82 Westerfield Road, Ipswich, IP4 2X