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Horses on the canals

Phil said:
A few more canal/horse based images that I have collected over the years trawling the web. I have no other information with them other than I set out below,

The first one is at Lifford Lane, Cotteridge, the second just states Birmingham canal, the third is the Navigation Offices on Paradise Street Wharf and the last is at the Fountain Pub Tipton.
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second pic
Phil said:
View attachment 137130
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This was taken in 1958 it shows Ben the boat horse towing a, T&S Elements of Farmers Bridge, day boat loaded with slack for GEC Witton loaded at Hollybonk basin in Willenhall. They are just passing the bungalows at Willenhall Lane bridge, Bloxwich on the Wyrley and Essington. On board are Charlie Foster and his son Horace, both boatmen working for Elements, also on board are Margaret and Jennifer, Charlies youngest daughters on a day off from school, possibly summer holidays.
Ben was a good 'oss and would backa away on his own on the trip, once when they loaded from Anglesey basin he took a 'wrong turn' at a bridge where someone was selling veg and had a good feed before Charlie or H could get off the boat to him. He also terrorised my nan, sticking his head in the back door and refusing to move until she gave him a slice of bread. As you can probably tell from that I'm Charlies grandson, I have this photo and the other three in the series in my collection.
 

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Working boats said:
second pic

This was taken in 1958 it shows Ben the boat horse towing a, T&S Elements of Farmers Bridge, day boat loaded with slack for GEC Witton loaded at Hollybonk basin in Willenhall. They are just passing the bungalows at Willenhall Lane bridge, Bloxwich on the Wyrley and Essington. On board are Charlie Foster and his son Horace, both boatmen working for Elements, also on board are Margaret and Jennifer, Charlies youngest daughters on a day off from school, possibly summer holidays.
Ben was a good 'oss and would backa away on his own on the trip, once when they loaded from Anglesey basin he took a 'wrong turn' at a bridge where someone was selling veg and had a good feed before Charlie or H could get off the boat to him. He also terrorised my nan, sticking his head in the back door and refusing to move until she gave him a slice of bread. As you can probably tell from that I'm Charlies grandson, I have this photo and the other three in the series in my collection.
Click to expand...

Nice piece of history, thanks for sharing.
 
Working boats said:
second pic

This was taken in 1958 it shows Ben the boat horse towing a, T&S Elements of Farmers Bridge, day boat loaded with slack for GEC Witton loaded at Hollybonk basin in Willenhall. They are just passing the bungalows at Willenhall Lane bridge, Bloxwich on the Wyrley and Essington. On board are Charlie Foster and his son Horace, both boatmen working for Elements, also on board are Margaret and Jennifer, Charlies youngest daughters on a day off from school, possibly summer holidays.
Ben was a good 'oss and would backa away on his own on the trip, once when they loaded from Anglesey basin he took a 'wrong turn' at a bridge where someone was selling veg and had a good feed before Charlie or H could get off the boat to him. He also terrorised my nan, sticking his head in the back door and refusing to move until she gave him a slice of bread. As you can probably tell from that I'm Charlies grandson, I have this photo and the other three in the series in my collection.
Click to expand...
My goodness, just think about howhard that work must have been everyday!
 
Strawberry Hunter said:
I've just bought this book. My family were blacksmiths and had forges in Birmingham. Hopefully I can learn more about the working horses. I doubt if I'll be lucky enough to get any pics of the forges or my family.
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One of my relatives was a blacksmith's striker not sure i fthat was industrial or for horses or maybe they did both then? Probably in the Black Country I would think. I have just seen a site on the web about work horses. The picture shows a dray horse with sacking tied around it's feet to stop it slipping on the ice. I never knew they did that.
 
This picture has been posted before, but from The Warwick Canals by Faulkner, Alan H. Gives a date and a bit more info.

The horsedrawn rubbish boat owned by Birmingham Corporation Refuse and Salvage Department below Camp Hill second lock in March 1964 on its way back to Bordesley depot. The rubbish traffic - to the Small Heath tip - finished in March 1965.


5BB66915-5F7E-4FA4-833D-F0829C0752E2.jpeg
 
Pedrocut said:
This picture has been posted before, but from The Warwick Canals by Faulkner, Alan H. Gives a date and a bit more info.

The horsedrawn rubbish boat owned by Birmingham Corporation Refuse and Salvage Department below Camp Hill second lock in March 1964 on its way back to Bordesley depot. The rubbish traffic - to the Small Heath tip - finished in March 1965.


View attachment 176793
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That looks a beautiful animal. Long legs. My Nan as a little girl so circa 1912 or before remembers a barge horse drop dead with a heart attack whilst towing the barge. She cried all the way home. Really upset her. Her dad told her they work till they dropped dead. I thought of this as I watched the film Cow. We haven't progressed at all.
 
DCE6B88D-D2A0-4EEC-AEDA-3C8100C5A1E2.jpeg

“Galton Bridge spanning the cutting, 71 ft deep, on the improved line of the Birminghan Canal. This was one of the few lengths of canal with double towpaths. The boat appears to be a horse-drawn spoon dredger. By the date of this photograph, the majority of traffic on the Birmingham Canal Navigations was local.” (Ware Collection/Boat Museum)

Hadfield's British canals by Boughey, Joseph (1994)
 
Janet Hunt said:
This article describes a not so pleasant side for the horses working on canals. I hate to think that many horses suffered so much.

Waterways World | Tales of Whoa Your Waterways

The people and places that make the canals and inland waterways special. The Waterways World Podcast, photographs of favourite places, interviews and waterside pubs
waterwaysworld.com waterwaysworld.com
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It’s very said when we look back at how the horses were abused but people were treated not too differently in mines and factories. I remember starting my apprenticeship ship the “normal” work week had just been reduced to 44 hours, most of us worked as much overtime to make a living wage. Horses never had that option, they worked until they dropped!
 
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