in early 2009, james morley acquired a box of magic lantern slides at a house sale in london
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In early 2009, James Morley acquired a box of magic lantern slides at a house sale in London.
These turned out to be a collection of hand tinted images of a North Sea Boxing Fleet.
What were the Boxing Fleets?
What were the Boxing Fleets?They were an early form of intensive mechanised fishingFour fleets worked out of Hull around the time these images were taken.
Fleets of trawlers that worked together far out in the North Sea.
Serviced by steam cutters which ran their catches into Billingsgate
The Boxing Fleets had their origins in the sail trawling eraThis image from the 1880s is taken from Nor’ard of the Dogger by E.J. Mather
(London, 1889).
Sailing trawlermen had become accustomed to keeping the sea in all manner of weather
The fleets were permanently at sea
As one vessel ran low on fuel and provisions another would be voyaging out to join the fleet. In this way the fleets retained a permanent presence on the grounds.
Called boxing fleets because the catch was stowed in boxes
A typical day
Three six hour trawlsTrawls hauled at 6pm,
midnight and 6am
The Cod End.
Catch sorted and boxed
No of Voyages
Days at Sea
Days in Port
Av. Length of Voyage
1907 8 317 48 39 days
1908 8 321 45 40 days
1909 9 329 36 36.5 days
Vessels were worked hard
Analysis of the Running Logs of the Steam Trawler Viola 1907 - 1909
Crews also worked hard
John Hill age 46: Mate on Boxing Fleet Trawlers
1st August 1904 to 10th January 1905
4 voyages
140 days at sea
21 days at home
Source: Steam Trawler Running Logs
John Hill is Robb Robinson’s great grandfather
Each boxing fleet consisted of up to fifty trawlers that more or less worked together under the guidance of an experienced skipper – the admiral
Skipper John Glanville.
Boxing Fleet Admiral
1923
290 days at sea
75 days ashore
1924
312 days at sea
54 days ashore
Source: Skipper John Glanville’s Fishing Log Book
One of the best known and most experience Boxing Fleet Admirals was Admiral Foot
Photographs of Admiral Foot courtesy of Pam Dennison his great grandaughter.
The most difficult dask was transfering fish on a daily basis from the trawler to the cutter
This had always been a perilous task as these 1880 images from E.J. Mather’s book show.
The open boats generally needed replacing after about 18 months
Unloading the fish boxes onto the cutter.
A Mission Ship accompanied the fleets to provide medical care and wider spiritual and material support
Steam Cutters such as the New Zealand had to run for Billingsgate with the boxes in order to catch the market.
Through all weathers in their dash to
Billingsgate
The Cutter Canada coaling on the River Thames
Collection particularly remarkable because of the
informal images
and the animal life
Who took these wonderful photographs and why were they taken?
A Large Number were used in Toilers of the Deep, the magazine of the Royal National Mission for Deep Sea Fishermen
What happened to the boxing fleets?
Large losses of ships to enemy action whilst fishing and on war service: 1914 – 1918. Fleets reduced in size afterwards
North Sea less productive during inter-war period
Hull owners concentrated investment on highly profitable distant water sector
The last boxing fleet trawlers called back in from the North Sea and laid up in early 1936, almost exactly 75
years ago.
Boxing Fleets:The last survivor
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