''Maud'', along with ''

Albion Albion is an alternative name for Great Britain. The oldest attestation of the toponym comes from the Greek language. It is sometimes used poetically and generally to refer to the island, but is less common than "Britain" today. The name for Scot ...

'', is one of only two surviving Norfolk trading wherries to be found on the

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

Broads. ''Maud'' was built in 1899, and served as a sailing wherry and later as a

lighter A lighter is a portable device which uses mechanical or electrical means to create a controlled flame, and can be used to ignite a variety of flammable items, such as cigarettes, butane gas, fireworks, candles, or campfires. A lighter typic ...

before being sunk in the mid-1960s as protection for part of the banks of Ranworth Broad. In 1981, she was refloated and taken to Upton where she was restored over a number of years, finally returning to the water in 1999. As of 2010, ''Maud'' is active on the Norfolk Broads. She is listed on the register of

National Historic Ships National Historic Ships UK is a government-funded independent organisation that advises UK governments and others on matters relating to historic ships.

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, as part of the

National Historic Fleet The National Historic Fleet is a list of historic ships and vessels located in the United Kingdom, under the National Historic Ships register. National Historic Ships UK is an advisory body which advises the Secretary of State for Culture, Media ...

Description

''Maud'' is

clinker-built Clinker-built, also known as lapstrake-built, is a method of boat building in which the edges of longitudinal (lengthwise-running) hull (watercraft), hull planks overlap each other. The technique originated in Northern Europe, with the first know ...

. She is long, with a beam of and a depth of . She is assessed as 20 GT.

History

''Maud'' was built by D S Hall of Reedham for Walter Bunn, a builder's merchant of

Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth ( ), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside resort, seaside town which gives its name to the wider Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. Its fishing industry, m ...

. She carried general cargo and timber in connection with Bunn's business. In 1911, she was sold to the Yare and Waveney Lighter Co Ltd, of

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. The population of the Norwich ...

and then in 1918 ''Maud'' was sold to Hobrough's of Norwich. During Hobrough's ownership, she was dismasted and used as a barge in connection with

dredging Dredging is the excavation of material from a water environment. Possible reasons for dredging include improving existing water features; reshaping land and water features to alter drainage, navigability, and commercial use; constructing d ...

operations. In 1940, Hobrough was taken over by May, Gurney & Co Ltd. They used ''Maud'' as a lighter until after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, when she was fitted with a

Kelvin The kelvin (symbol: K) is the base unit for temperature in the International System of Units (SI). The Kelvin scale is an absolute temperature scale that starts at the lowest possible temperature (absolute zero), taken to be 0 K. By de ...

engine. In the early 1950s, ''Maud'' was damaged in an accident whilst loading

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other Chemical element, elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal i ...

at Norwich Power Station. Following this, she was replanked from the waterline up, with a new deck also being provided. May Gurney replaced their wherries with modern lighters in the early 1960s. ''Maud'' was sunk as a breakwater on Ranworth Broad in the mid-1960s, along with the wherry ''Bell''. In 1976, ''Maud'' was moved elsewhere within Ranworth Broad and was resunk. In 1981, it was decided to pile the riverbank where ''Maud'' lay, and she was given to

millwright A millwright is a craftsman or skilled tradesman who installs, dismantles, maintains, repairs, reassembles, and moves machinery in factories, power plants, and construction sites. The term ''millwright'' (also known as ''industrial mechanic'') ...

Vincent Pargeter, and his wife Linda, on the understanding that the boat would be restored. ''Maud'' was taken to Upton, where she restored over a period of 18 years, being returned to the water in her centenary year. Restoration was assisted by grants from the

Broads Authority The Broads (known for marketing purposes as The Broads National Park) is a network of mostly navigable rivers and lakes in the English counties of Norfolk and Suffolk. Although the terms "Norfolk Broads" and "Suffolk Broads" are correctly used ...

and an appeal via the Transport Trust. In 1996, she was added to the register of National Historic Ships in the United Kingdom.

References

External links

Boats of the Norfolk Broads

WHERRY YACHT CHARTER CHARITABLE TRUST

Wherry Maud Trust
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maud 1899 ships Ships built in England Individual sailing vessels Merchant ships of the United Kingdom Sailing ships of the United Kingdom World War I merchant ships of the United Kingdom World War II merchant ships of the United Kingdom History of Norfolk Norfolk Broads Ships and vessels of the National Historic Fleet