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117-720: A waterman is a river worker who transfers passengers across and along city centre rivers and estuaries in the United Kingdom and its colonies. Most notable are those on the River Thames and River Medway in England, but other rivers such as the River Tyne and River Dee, Wales , also had their watermen who formed guilds in medieval times. Waterman can also be a person who navigates a boat carrying passengers. These boats were often rowing boat or boats with sails. Over

234-543: A royal proclamation by King Charles I that "The great number of Hackney Coaches of late ... are not only a great disturbance to his Majesty ... but the streets themselves are so pestered and the pavements so broken up that the common passage is thereby hindered and made dangerous and the price of hay and provender & thereby made exceeding dear wherefore we expressly command and forbid that no Hackney or hired coach be used or suffered in London Westminster or

351-689: A book, ask for contributors, and write it when he had enough subscribers to undertake the printing costs. He had more than sixteen hundred subscribers to The Pennylesse Pilgrimage; or, the Moneylesse Perambulation of John Taylor, alias the Kings Magesties Water-Poet; How He TRAVAILED on Foot from London to Edenborough in Scotland, Not Carrying any Money To or Fro, Neither Begging, Borrowing, or Asking Meate, Drinke, or Lodging , published in 1618. Those who defaulted on

468-494: A halt. The British Tugowners Association was founded in 1934. It allowed watermen to use their qualifications and skills, particularly in close quarter maneuvers, in ports overseas; skills that in recent years with the use of newer technology especially the introduction of bow thrusters have seen a decline in use. In the late 1930s speed trials took place on the Thames for Armed high speed launches some of which would later form

585-541: A large part of south-eastern and a small part of western England; the river is fed by at least 50 named tributaries . The river contains over 80 islands . With its waters varying from freshwater to almost seawater, the Thames supports a variety of wildlife and has a number of adjoining Sites of Special Scientific Interest , with the largest being in the North Kent Marshes and covering 20.4 sq mi (5,289 ha). According to Mallory and Adams,

702-485: A merry Greek; At Primifisto , Post and Payre , Primero , Maw , Whip-her ginney, he's a lib'ral hero; At My-sow-pigged : but (reader never doubt ye) He's skilled in all games except Looke about ye. Bowles, Shove groat , Tennis , no game comes amiss, His purse a nurse for anybody is; Caroches, Coaches and Tobacconists, All sorts of people freely from his fists, His vaine expenses daily suck and soake, And he himself sucks only drink and smoake. And thus

819-508: A network of creeks. Lying below sea level, it is prone to flooding at exceptional tides, but has nevertheless been inhabited since Roman times. The usually quoted source of the Thames is at Thames Head (at grid reference ST980994 ). This is about 1.5 mi (2.4 km) north of the village of Kemble in southern Gloucestershire , near the town of Cirencester , in the Cotswolds . However, Seven Springs near Cheltenham , where

936-494: A new Act of Parliament in 1827 restored an oligarchical form of government. London's lack of bridges and rolling marshy landscape to the south and east were perfect for access by boat and the Thames was the main thoroughfare for all kinds of traffic. In the 15th and 16th centuries the narrow spans of the Old London Bridge restricted the flow of the slow moving and meandering river Thames allowing it to freeze during

1053-791: A number of English sailors who had participated in the American War of 1812 settled in the Chesapeake Bay area, in the United States and became watermen in the small waterside communities on Tangier Island and Smith Island in Virginia and Tilghman Island, Maryland that have retained a unique character and dialect to this day. The first Africans arrived in the Chesapeake Bay area on a Dutch ship at Old Point Comfort in 1619; they and their descendants have had roles in

1170-417: A poet now survives Or else their lines had perish'd with their lives. Old Chaucer, Gower, and Sir Thomas More, Sir Philip Sidney, who the laurel wore, Spenser, and Shakespeare did in art excell, Sir Edward Dyer, Greene, Nash, Daniel. Sylvester, Beaumont, Sir John Harrington, Forgetfulness their works would over run But that in paper they immortally Do live in spite of death, and cannot die. He

1287-399: A popular area for watermen to ply their trade. Totally redesigned or embanked, it routed sewage away from the river but also removed the stairs and sloping incline to the river, replacing the access points with piers. It prevented flooding; but it cut many waterfront houses and buildings off from boat access via their watergates . An 1859 Act of Parliament abolished many privileges held by

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1404-465: A river and canal system with waterway access to the Midlands and Bristol. The port provided London with its great wealth and relied heavily on the transshipping skills of watermen and lightermen to run smoothly. This was the boom time for lighterage and fortunes were made by the captains of the distinctive red sailed Thames sailing barges at this time. Thames watermen in times of war were always

1521-426: A river transport arm, London River Services , to regulate and promote travel on the Thames as a public transport service. New legislation that came into force in 2007 set up a new national licence system, covering all inland waterways. Rather than a five-year apprenticeship, it enables anyone to become a captain after a less onerous qualification period of just two years plus six months of "local knowledge" training on

1638-414: A seven-year apprenticeship in order to gain an encyclopaedic knowledge of the complex water currents and tides on the Thames. Watermen freeman were now required to pay quarterage , or paid quarterly contributions. This was a constant source of grievance and dispute with company rulers who were frequently accused of taking bribes to "free" apprentice watermen. A twenty-year campaign by the rank-and-file of

1755-639: A summer venue for organised swimming, which is prohibited on safety grounds in a stretch centred on Central London . After the river took its present-day course, many of the banks of the Thames Estuary and the Thames Valley in London were partly covered in marshland , as was the adjoining Lower Lea Valley . Streams and rivers like the River Lea , Tyburn Brook and Bollo Brook drained into

1872-483: A week ; But now I think a man may daily see, More than the wherrys on the Thames can be. When Queen Elizabeth came to the crown, A coach in England then was scarcely known, Then 'twas as rare to see one, as to spy A Tradesman that had never told a lie. Taylor was also the first poet to mention the deaths of William Shakespeare and Francis Beaumont in print, in his 1620 poem, "The Praise of Hemp-seed". Both had died four years earlier. In paper, many

1989-471: Is a landmark on the Boat Race course, while Glover's Island forms the centre of a view from Richmond Hill . Islands of historical interest include Magna Carta Island at Runnymede , Fry's Island at Reading, and Pharaoh's Island near Shepperton. In more recent times Platts Eyot at Hampton was the place where Motor Torpedo Boats (MTB)s were built, Tagg's Island near Molesey was associated with

2106-402: Is an important water source, especially in the drier months, so maintaining its quality and quantity is extremely important. Groundwater is vulnerable to surface pollution, especially in highly urbanised areas. Brooks, canals and rivers, within an area of 3,842 sq mi (9,951 km ), combine to form 38 main tributaries feeding the Thames between its source and Teddington Lock . This

2223-649: Is believed that Tamesubugus' name was derived from that of the river. Tamese was referred to as a place, not a river in the Ravenna Cosmography ( c.  AD 700 ). The river's name has always been pronounced with a simple t /t/ ; the Middle English spelling was typically Temese and the Brittonic form Tamesis . A similar spelling from 1210, "Tamisiam" (the accusative case of "Tamisia"; see Kingston upon Thames § Early history ),

2340-610: Is familiar with the watermen's disputes of 1641–42, in which an attempt was made to democratize the leadership of the Company. He details the uprisings in the pamphlets John Taylors Manifestation ... and To the Right Honorable Assembly ... (Commons Petition) , and in John Taylors Last Voyage and Adventure of 1641. Taylor discusses the watermen's disputes with the theatre companies (who moved

2457-604: Is formed for much of its length for shipping and supplies: through the Port of London for international trade, internally along its length and by its connection to the British canal system. The river's position has put it at the centre of many events in British history, leading to it being described by John Burns as "liquid history". Two broad canals link the river to other rivers: the Kennet and Avon Canal ( Reading to Bath ) and

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2574-697: Is found in Magna Carta . The Thames through Oxford is sometimes called the Isis . Historically, and especially in Victorian times, gazetteers and cartographers insisted that the entire river was correctly named the Isis from its source down to Dorchester on Thames and that only from this point, where the river meets the Thame and becomes the "Thame-isis" (supposedly subsequently abbreviated to Thames) should it be so called. Ordnance Survey maps still label

2691-452: Is responsible for managing the flow of water to help prevent and mitigate flooding, and providing for navigation: the volume and speed of water downstream is managed by adjusting the sluices at each of the weirs and, at peak high water, levels are generally dissipated over preferred flood plains adjacent to the river. Occasionally, flooding of inhabited areas is unavoidable and the agency issues flood warnings. Due to stiff penalties applicable on

2808-892: Is shared by many other river names in Britain, such as the River Tamar at the border of Devon and Cornwall , several rivers named Tame in the Midlands and North Yorkshire , the Tavy on Dartmoor , the Team of the North East, the Teifi and Teme of Wales , the Teviot in the Scottish Borders and a Thames tributary, the Thame . Kenneth H. Jackson proposed that the name of

2925-558: Is sometimes called the Isis), Reading , Henley-on-Thames and Windsor . The Thames also drains the whole of Greater London . The lower reaches of the river are called the Tideway , derived from its long tidal reach up to Teddington Lock . Its tidal section includes most of its London stretch and has a rise and fall of 23 ft (7 m). From Oxford to the estuary, the Thames drops by 55 metres (180 ft). Running through some of

3042-404: Is the usual tidal limit ; however, high spring tides can raise the head water level in the reach above Teddington and can occasionally reverse the river flow for a short time. In these circumstances, tidal effects can be observed upstream to the next lock beside Molesey weir , which is visible from the towpath and bridge beside Hampton Court Palace . Before Teddington Lock was built in 1810–12,

3159-680: The River Isis , is a river that flows through southern England including London . At 215 miles (346 km), it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom , after the River Severn . The river rises at Thames Head in Gloucestershire and flows into the North Sea near Tilbury , Essex and Gravesend , Kent, via the Thames Estuary . From the west, it flows through Oxford (where it

3276-564: The Amalgamated Society of Watermen, Lightermen and Bargemen was hastily formed in 1893 eventually merging with the Transport and General Workers' Union in 1922. Many watermen patriotically turned their barges over to government use during World War I . The transport of coal and goods was of particular importance during wartime, however, during the 1920s worsening conditions and industrial action again brought London's docks to

3393-546: The American Meteorological Society in Weather, Climate, and Society says, "The village of Bellevue was founded in the early twentieth century by African Americans working in the seafood industry as shuckers of oysters, pickers of crabs, or as watermen "working the water." A seafood-processing factory that employed and housed African Americans sold part of the adjoining land to African Americans. By

3510-811: The Berwyn Mountains in North Wales . About 450,000 years ago, in the most extreme Ice Age of the Pleistocene , the Anglian , the furthest southern extent of the ice sheet reached Hornchurch in east London, the Vale of St Albans, and the Finchley Gap . It dammed the river in Hertfordshire , resulting in the formation of large ice lakes, which eventually burst their banks and caused

3627-541: The British Geological Survey from the banks of the tidal River Thames contain geochemical information and fossils which provide a 10,000-year record of sea-level change. Combined, this and other studies suggest that the Thames sea-level has risen more than 30 m during the Holocene at a rate of around 5–6 mm per year from 10,000 to 6,000 years ago. The rise of sea level dramatically reduced when

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3744-570: The Churn (which feeds into the Thames near Cricklade ) rises, is also sometimes quoted as the Thames' source, as this location is farthest from the mouth and adds some 14 mi (23 km) to the river's length. At Seven Springs above the source is a stone with the Latin hexameter inscription "Hic tuus o Tamesine pater septemgeminus fons", which means "Here, O Father Thames, [is] your sevenfold source". The springs at Seven Springs flow throughout

3861-684: The Grand Union Canal (London to the Midlands). The Grand Union effectively bypassed the earlier, narrow and winding Oxford Canal which remains open as a popular scenic recreational route. Three further cross-basin canals are disused but are in various stages of reconstruction: the Thames and Severn Canal (via Stroud ), which operated until 1927 (to the west coast of England), the Wey and Arun Canal to Littlehampton , which operated until 1871 (to

3978-615: The Great Plague of London . In 1700 watermen combined with their colleagues in cargo to form the Company of Watermen and Lightermen . The free water clause , introduced by the West India Dock Act of 1799 and the gradual construction of a greater number of bridges, especially Westminster Bridge in 1750, forced great change on the river trade during this period of Industrial Revolution . Freight could now be moved along

4095-468: The House of Commons had specifically exempted them from land service—the use of watermen in land armies—as a direct result of the group pressure exerted by watermen and it is clear that these spectacular early victories redefined the way they negotiated with those in power. The absence of an effective police force meant that watermen often died prematurely in a city prone to riots and mob violence. Apart from

4212-489: The River Lea can be considered another boundary. Most of the local riverside was also marshland. The land was drained and became farmland; it was built on after the Industrial Revolution . Canvey Island in southern Essex (area 18.45 km , 7.12 sq mi; population 40,000 ) was once marshy, but is now a fully reclaimed island in the Thames estuary, separated from the mainland of south Essex by

4329-662: The Royal Academy , London , in 1785. They are now on show at the River and Rowing Museum in Henley). Richard Coates suggests that while the river was as a whole called the Thames, part of it, where it was too wide to ford, was called * (p)lowonida . This gave the name to a settlement on its banks, which became known as Londinium , from the Indo-European roots * pleu- "flow" and * -nedi "river" meaning something like

4446-504: The Thames Barrier , which protects central London from flooding by storm surges . Below the barrier, the river passes Woolwich , Thamesmead , Dagenham , Erith , Purfleet , Dartford , West Thurrock , Northfleet , Tilbury and Gravesend before entering the Thames Estuary near Southend-on-Sea . The sea level in the Thames estuary is rising and the rate of rise is increasing. Sediment cores up to 10 m deep collected by

4563-549: The Thanetian stage of the late Palaeocene epoch. Until around 500,000 years ago, the Thames flowed on its existing course through what is now Oxfordshire , before turning to the north-east through Hertfordshire and East Anglia and reaching the North Sea near present-day Ipswich . At this time the river-system headwaters lay in the English West Midlands and may, at times, have received drainage from

4680-603: The Watermen's Company ; further, it set up the Thames Conservancy creating two bodies with responsibilities for the Thames. In 1871 the Labour Protection League gave lightermen in particular the ability to negotiate better terms from their employers. Early thinkers interested in social reform, such as Charles Dickens , chose to study river workers, before vividly describing their grim lives in

4797-503: The 1500s, solidified his career and public image, and his travels were often funded through bets made by the public as to whether he would complete his journey. He entertained no gout, no ache he felt, The air was good and temperate where he dwelt; While mavisses and sweet-tongued nightingales Did chant him roundelays and madrigals. Thus living within bounds of nature's laws, Of his long-lasting life may be some cause. [REDACTED]   This article incorporates text from

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4914-466: The 1830s these ferrymen were known as "watermen" in official records and the term continued to be used until the last licensed watermen retired in the 1940s. The heyday of Hobart Town's watermen was from the 1840s to the mid-1850s, when over 200 licences were issued to different individuals, but with improved steam ferry services the numbers declined and in 1896 only 21 were licensed. By this stage they mostly operated water taxi and excursion services around

5031-517: The 1930s, the Bellevue Seafood Company was African American owned and operated, and up until the 1970s there were many African American watermen who worked the same areas as white watermen, often on the same boats, and sold their catch to the same processors, with apparently little racial discrimination present." River Thames The River Thames ( / t ɛ m z / TEMZ ), known alternatively in parts as

5148-418: The 1980s. Some watermen encouraged by Festival of Britain 1951 set up river cruise companies in the late 1940s others in the 1980s but by careful consolidation of ownership and concentrating on passenger comfort, some offering night cruises, have successfully dominated the sector on into the new millennium. In the lighterage sector Cory Environmental , originally an amalgamation of eight companies, bucked

5265-493: The 19th century many of them found work as river workers. Traditional white watermen shied away from the considerable risks such as boiler explosions or fires that often occurred on early steamboats. African American watermen went on to gain financial success and freedom by specialising in the crewing of these boats within the Mississippi River Steamboat economy of the 1840s. An article published by

5382-664: The 8-oared, 28-foot Admiral built in 1865 by Thomas Morland, was restored by the Admiral Restoration Group in 2006-09 and has been rowed at the Australian Wooden Boat 2011-2017 as the last known surviving 19th century Tasmanian waterman's boat. During the 20th century motor launches up to 15 meters in length were licensed as waterman's boats, although the term has now slipped from common usage in favour of "excursion boats" or, incorrectly, "ferries." In 2018 about ten vessels offer excursions out of

5499-472: The Most-at-thrice. At Irish , Tick tackle , Doublets , Draughts , or Cheese , He flings his money free with carelessnesse: At Novum, Mainchance, Mischance (chuse ye which), At One-and-Thirty , or at Poor-and-Rich, Ruffe , Slam , Trump , Whisk , Hole, Sant , New Cut. Unto the keeping of four knaves he'll put His whole estate at Loadum or at Gleeke , At Tickle-me-quickly, he's

5616-736: The North Sea, and the Thames Barrier was built in the 1980s to protect London from this risk. The Nore is the sandbank that marks the mouth of the Thames Estuary , where the outflow from the Thames meets the North Sea . It is roughly halfway between Havengore Creek in Essex and Warden Point on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent. Until 1964 it marked the seaward limit of the Port of London Authority. As

5733-460: The Port of Hobart, but none in the "hire boat" tradition of the watermen. The main base for watermen in Hobart from the 1830s to the 1940s was at Waterman's Dock at the end of Murray Street in front of Parliament House. Watermen's licences were also issued for boatmen operating elsewhere in south-eastern Tasmania including Port Arthur and the D'Entrecasteaux Channel . Some evidence suggests that

5850-528: The Prodigall himself alone Gives sucke to thousands and himself sucks non. He achieved notoriety by a series of eccentric journeys: for example, he travelled from London to Queenborough in a paper boat with two stockfish tied to canes for oars, described in "The Praise of Hemp-Seed", which was re-enacted in 2006. From his journey to Scotland in 1618, on which he took no money, Taylor published his Pennyless Pilgrimage . ( Ben Jonson walked to Scotland in

5967-605: The River Thames on the Tideway include the rivers Crane , Brent , Wandle , Ravensbourne (the final part of which is called Deptford Creek ), Lea (the final part of which is called Bow Creek ), Roding (Barking Creek), Darent and Ingrebourne . In London, the water is slightly brackish with sea salt, being a mix of sea and fresh water. This part of the river is managed by the Port of London Authority . The flood threat here comes from high tides and strong winds from

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6084-416: The Thames Estuary), the river is subject to tidal activity from the North Sea . Before the lock was installed, the river was tidal as far as Staines, about 16 mi (26 km) upstream. London, capital of Roman Britain , was established on two hills, now known as Cornhill and Ludgate Hill . These provided a firm base for a trading centre at the lowest possible point on the Thames. A river crossing

6201-739: The Thames and other waterways , including the river Medway, as working rivers. TOW has organised The Thames Barge Driving Race which has taken place annually in June, since 1974. More than 2,000 commuters a day now travel by river which added up to three million people in 2002. Ken Livingstone 's Transport Strategy for London 2005 states that: The safe use of the Thames for passenger and freight services should be developed. Passenger services will be encouraged, particularly services that relate to its cultural and architectural excellence and tourism. Use of London's other navigable waterways for freight, consistent with their roles for leisure use and as ecosystems, will be encouraged. Transport for London now has

6318-470: The Thames as "River Thames or Isis" down to Dorchester. Since the early 20th century this distinction has been lost in common usage outside of Oxford, and some historians suggest the name Isis is nothing more than a truncation of Tamesis , the Latin name for the Thames. Sculptures titled Tamesis and Isis by Anne Seymour Damer are located on the bridge at Henley-on-Thames , Oxfordshire (the original terracotta and plaster models were exhibited at

6435-439: The Thames is not Indo-European (and of unknown meaning), while Peter Kitson suggested that it is Indo-European but originated before the Britons and has a name indicating "muddiness" from a root *tā- , 'melt'. Early variants of the name include: Indirect evidence for the antiquity of the name "Thames" is provided by a Roman potsherd found at Oxford, bearing the inscription Tamesubugus fecit (Tamesubugus made [this]). It

6552-511: The Thames, from Middle English Temese , is derived from the Brittonic name for the river, Tamesas (from * tamēssa ), recorded in Latin as Tamesis and yielding modern Welsh Tafwys "Thames". The name element Tam may have meant "dark" and can be compared to other cognates such as Russian темно ( Proto-Slavic * tĭmĭnŭ ), Lithuanian tamsi "dark", Latvian tumsa "darkness", Sanskrit tamas and Welsh tywyll "darkness" and Middle Irish teimen "dark grey". The origin

6669-456: The Woolstaple, New Palace Yard, Westminster. An Act of Parliament in 1555 formalized the trade by setting up a company to govern tariffs and reduce accidents. The new company had jurisdiction over all watermen plying between Windsor (in Berkshire) and Gravesend (in Kent). The Act empowered the London mayor and aldermen to yearly choose eight of the "best sort" of watermen to be company rulers, and to make and enforce regulations. It also specified

6786-423: The case of the Colne ), and man-made distributaries such as the Longford River . Three canals intersect this stretch: the Oxford Canal , Kennet and Avon Canal and Wey Navigation . Its longest artificial secondary channel (cut), the Jubilee River , was built between Maidenhead and Windsor for flood relief and completed in 2002. The non-tidal section of the river is managed by the Environment Agency , which

6903-425: The central stretch of the Thames. The licence brings UK regulations into line with EU licensing standards. Critics claimed it would make the Thames, a tidal river below Teddington lock, more hazardous to travel on. Under the old licence system approximately 23 per cent failed their first year apprenticeship exam. It is estimated that 600 Watermen and Lightermen currently work the Thames. As well as in Britain itself,

7020-529: The coachmen, in his tract An Arrant Thief (1622); recent development of horse-drawn carriages with spring suspension, and use of them for hire on land, had taken much trade away from the watermen. An Arrant Thief says: All sorts of men, work all the means they can, To make a Thief of every waterman : And as it were in one consent they join, To trot by land i' th' dirt, and save their coin. Carroaches, coaches , jades , and Flanders mares, Do rob us of our shares, our wares, our fares : Against

7137-423: The confluence, the overall length of the Thames measured from Seven Springs, at 229 mi (369 km), is greater than the Severn's length of 220 mi (350 km). Thus, the "Churn/Thames" river may be regarded as the longest natural river in the United Kingdom. The stream from Seven Springs is joined at Coberley by a longer tributary which could further increase the length of the Thames, with its source in

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7254-413: The development of the region's economically dominant marine industries and naval presence. The Bay's waterways provided transportation for the slave trade that fed the plantation system, but also provided the means for them to escape to freedom. African American watermen became expert fishermen in the Chesapeake Bay area and border state of Maryland 's Eastern Shore, but with the arrival of steamboats in

7371-468: The drier parts of mainland Britain and heavily abstracted for drinking water, the Thames' discharge is low considering its length and breadth: the Severn has a discharge almost twice as large on average despite having a smaller drainage basin . In Scotland , the Tay achieves more than double the Thames' average discharge from a drainage basin that is 60% smaller. Along its course are 45 navigation locks with accompanying weirs . Its catchment area covers

7488-502: The early 1590s, after his attempt at grammar school he moved from his home to south London, probably Southwark , to begin an apprenticeship as a waterman . His occupation was one deemed unpopular by the literary elite of London. Watermen were known to be drunkards, and often gossips and liars, who attempted to cheat patrons into a higher wage for their service. This occupation would be crafted into an image for Taylor later in his career. After his waterman apprenticeship he served (1596) in

7605-430: The educated elite and the urban working class, bridging a gap in early modern readership that valued quality over quantity. This "cultural amphibian" of a poet struggled with his own cultural identity, remaining on the sidelines of the educated elite, but firmly tied to his occupation as a waterman, which defined his career in literature. This struggle highlights for scholars the gap in readership and literary culture between

7722-424: The elite and working classes in early modern London. Despite his poor grasp of Latin, John Taylor aspired to be like his idols Thomas Nashe and Ben Jonson, and was heavily criticised by Jonson throughout his career for his lack of grace in his language. Despite failing to enter fully into the world of London's literary elite, Taylor developed a sense of authorial personality which survives his work, and may have been

7839-542: The first to be enlisted, and until 1814 pressed , to crew on royal naval or merchant marine vessels and acted as a reserve of skilled mariners. After the American War of 1812 many decided to settle in the United States at the cessation of hostilities. The arrival of steamboats in 1819 and steam launches rendered the small Wherry, with its limited capacity, obsolete for mass public transport use, often heavy wash from steamers rocked or sank small wherries and frightened potential passengers away. The Woolwich Steam Packet Company

7956-479: The fleet of boats used in Air Sea Rescue piloted by watermen during the 1940s. 400 barges or Thames lighters were turned over to military use as bumboats or simply beached during the Normandy landings of 1944. Bombing during the Blitz of World War II severely damaged the docks, and by the 1960s, newer container technology and relocation to Tilbury had made the lightermen's trade, lighterage, obsolete. In terminal decline most up-river docks had been abandoned by

8073-418: The fleet of the Earl of Essex , and participated in the Capture of Cádiz in that year, and in a voyage to the island of Flores in the Azores in 1597. He spent much of his life as a Thames waterman , a member of the guild of boatmen that ferried passengers across the River Thames in London , in the days when the London Bridge was the only passage between the banks. His occupation was his gateway into

8190-412: The flowing river or the wide flowing unfordable river. The river gives its name to three informal areas: the Thames Valley , a region of England around the river between Oxford and West London; the Thames Gateway ; and the greatly overlapping Thames Estuary around the tidal Thames to the east of London and including the waterway itself. Thames Valley Police is a formal body that takes its name from

8307-535: The genesis of the "celebrity" of author, as he carefully crafted his public image throughout his career, beginning with his reworking of his otherwise frowned-upon occupation as a waterman into a name for himself as the King's "Water-Poet". Taylor provided a style of writing that was not bound by the constructs of classical learning, as most poets of the time would have been products of their grammar school education, whether they intended it or not. John Taylor's development of travel literature, which came into popularity in

8424-457: The ground, we stand and knock our heels, Whilst all our profit runs away on wheels ; And, whosoever but observes and notes, The great increase of coaches and of boats, Shall find their number more than e'er they were, By half and more, within these thirty years. Then watermen at sea had service still, And those that staid at home had work at will : Then upstart Hell-cart-coaches were to seek, A man could scarce see twenty in

8541-663: The grounds of the National Star College at Ullenwood . The Thames flows through or alongside Ashton Keynes , Cricklade , Lechlade , Oxford , Abingdon-on-Thames , Wallingford , Goring-on-Thames and Streatley (at the Goring Gap ), Pangbourne and Whitchurch-on-Thames , Reading , Wargrave , Henley-on-Thames , Marlow , Maidenhead , Windsor and Eton , Staines-upon-Thames and Egham , Chertsey , Shepperton , Weybridge , Sunbury-on-Thames , Walton-on-Thames , Molesey and Thames Ditton . The river

8658-457: The history and economy of the Chesapeake Bay ever since. The enslaved Africans had engaged in oystering, crabbing, fishing, sailing, boat building and net making in their homeland, and many of them took up the same occupations in the Chesapeake Bay. In the following centuries, their descendants helped build the communities and the culture that formed around the Bay, and their labor contributed greatly to

8775-512: The ice melt nearly concluded over the past 4,000 years. Since the beginning of the 20th century, rates of sea level rise range from 1.22 mm per year to 2.14 mm per year. The Thames River Basin District, including the Medway catchment, covers an area of 6,229 sq mi (16,130 km ). The entire river basin is a mixture of urban and rural, with rural landscape predominating in

8892-579: The impresario Fred Karno and Eel Pie Island at Twickenham was the birthplace of the South East's R&B music scene. Westminster Abbey and the Palace of Westminster (commonly known today as the Houses of Parliament ) were built on Thorney Island , which used to be an eyot . Researchers have identified the River Thames as a discrete drainage line flowing as early as 58 million years ago, in

9009-474: The literary society of London, as he ferried patrons, actors, and playwrights across the Thames to the Bankside theatres. In 1620, Taylor claimed almost 20,000 men lived by this trade, including dependents and servants, and in 1641, he believed there were over 40,000 in the company itself. He became a member of the ruling oligarchy of the guild, serving as its clerk; it is mainly through his writings that history

9126-544: The movement of cargo. The Company of Watermen and Lightermen is a City Guild without Grant of Livery and licenses Thames Watermen. Its ancient apprenticeship index is a unique resource to genealogical research however despite its mediæval guild roots it is an active lobbying force today. Working alongside The Passenger Boat Association, it consults and negotiates with national and local government and its agencies on behalf of its members. In 2003 funds were made available via CWL using government grants, to assist apprentices from

9243-426: The non-tidal river, which is a drinking water source before treatment, sanitary sewer overflow from the many sewage treatment plants covering the upper Thames basin should be rare in the non-tidal Thames. However, storm sewage overflows are still common in almost all the main tributaries of the Thames despite claims by Thames Water to the contrary. Below Teddington Lock (about 55 mi or 89 km upstream of

9360-500: The novel Our Mutual Friend in 1865 and watermen in a short essay entitled Silent Highwaymen in 1879, both works that sparked a new social conscience. In 1878 the sinking of the Princess Alice with loss of 600 lives profoundly shocked and changed public opinion within Victorian era society. In 1889 following the lead taken by stevedores , watermen and lightermen joined the successful The Great London Dock Strike and

9477-502: The obstruction of the River. Structures that had been built out into the river for fishing and milling purposes made the river difficult to navigate and lent to it an unregulated chaotic mix of boats. In 1510, Henry VIII granted a licence (a form of licensed public transport) to watermen, giving exclusive rights to carry passengers on the river. In 1545 almshouses for watermen, called "The Hospital of St. Stephen" were built by Henry VIII in

9594-552: The obvious occupational risks of the trade, death by drowning , watermen were particularly susceptible to bronchial diseases caught from working and living close to waters of the Thames. The invention of the flush toilet in the 1840s quickly turned the Thames into a giant sewer causing typhoid and cholera outbreaks and the Great Stink of 1858. It forced a redesign of the city's sewage system in The Embankment area,

9711-485: The port. They were held to be distinct in official records from other categories of maritime workers such as the "boatmen", "craftsmen" or "bargemen" who operated sailing vessels in the river trade, and those men operating on the steam ferries and river steamers that also operated out of the port. Tasmanian watermen's boats varied widely in size and style, from small dinghies for hire up to large sailing-rowing excursion boats around 28 feet in length. The largest of these,

9828-585: The river passes Pimlico and Vauxhall , and then forms one of the principal axes of the city, from the Palace of Westminster to the Tower of London . At this point, it historically formed the southern boundary of the medieval city, with Southwark , on the opposite bank, then being part of Surrey . Beyond central London, the river passes Bermondsey , Wapping , Shadwell , Limehouse , Rotherhithe , Millwall , Deptford , Greenwich , Cubitt Town , Blackwall , New Charlton and Silvertown , before flowing through

9945-464: The river to divert onto its present course through the area of present-day London. The ice lobe which stopped at present-day Finchley deposited about 14 metres of boulder clay there. Its torrent of meltwater gushed through the Finchley Gap and south towards the new course of the Thames, and proceeded to carve out the Brent Valley in the process. John Taylor (poet) John Taylor

10062-439: The river was tidal at peak spring tides as far as Staines upon Thames . In descending order, non-related tributaries of the non-tidal Thames, with river status, are the Churn , Leach , Cole , Ray , Coln , Windrush , Evenlode , Cherwell , Ock , Thame , Pang , Kennet , Loddon , Colne , Wey and Mole . In addition, there are occasional backwaters and artificial cuts that form islands, distributaries (most numerous in

10179-596: The river, covering three counties . In non-administrative use, the river's name is used in those of Thames Valley University , Thames Water , Thames Television , publishing company Thames & Hudson , Thameslink (north–south rail service passing through central London ) and South Thames College . An example of its use in the names of historic entities is the Thames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Company . Marks of human activity, in some cases dating back to Pre-Roman Britain , are visible at various points along

10296-456: The river, while some islands, e.g. Thorney Island , formed over the ages. The northern tip of the ancient parish of Lambeth , for example, was marshland known as Lambeth Marshe , but it was drained in the 18th century; the street names Lower Marsh and Upper Marsh preserve a memory. Until the middle of the Victorian era, malaria was commonplace beside the River Thames, even in London, and

10413-432: The river. Thames watermen played an important part in the very early movements that ultimately led to the creation of modern trade unionism in the United Kingdom, most notably in the writings of pamphleteer John Taylor (1580–1653) and later with the use of petitions or "petitions of grievances" in particular the petitions supporting the curtailment of the growth of hackney coaches in the 17th century. As far back as 1644,

10530-519: The river. These include a variety of structures connected with use of the river, such as navigations, bridges and watermills , as well as prehistoric burial mounds . The lower Thames in the Roman era was a shallow waterway winding through marshes. But centuries of human intervention have transformed it into a deep tidal canal flowing between 200 miles of solid walls; these defend a floodplain where 1.5 million people work and live. A major maritime route

10647-403: The riverside east London boroughs of Tower Hamlets and Newham . The Doggett's Coat and Badge , which was first raced in 1715, is the oldest continuously run river race and is now claimed to be the oldest continually staged annual sporting event in the world. In 1975 a charity called Transport On Water (TOW) was founded by watermen and lightermen and people in public life. It aims to maintain

10764-411: The same year.) He is one of the few credited early authors of a palindrome : in 1614, he wrote "Lewd did I live, & evil I did dwel". He wrote a poem about Thomas Parr , a man who supposedly lived to the age of 152 and died visiting London in 1635. He was also the author of a constructed language called Barmoodan . Many of Taylor's works were published by subscription ; i.e., he would propose

10881-611: The sandbank was a major hazard for shipping coming in and out of London, in 1732 it received the world's first lightship . This became a major landmark, and was used as an assembly point for shipping. Today it is marked by Sea Reach No. 1 Buoy. The River Thames contains over 80 islands ranging from the large estuarial marshlands of the Isle of Sheppey and Canvey Island to small tree-covered islets like Rose Isle in Oxfordshire and Headpile Eyot in Berkshire. They are found all

10998-541: The south coast), and the Wilts & Berks Canal . Rowing and sailing clubs are common along the Thames, which is navigable to such vessels. Kayaking and canoeing also take place. Major annual events include the Henley Royal Regatta and the Boat Race , while the Thames has been used during two Summer Olympic Games : 1908 ( rowing ) and 1948 ( rowing and canoeing ). Safe headwaters and reaches are

11115-476: The subscription were chided the following year in a scathing brochure entitled A Kicksey Winsey, or, A Lerry Come-Twang , which he issued in the following year. By wondrous accident perchance one may Grope out a needle in a load of hay; And though a white crow be exceeding rare, A blind man may (by fortune) catch a hare. — A Kicksey Winsey , part VII Taylor died in London in December 1653 aged 75. He

11232-588: The suburbs thereof except they be to travel at least three miles out of the same". Two years later he cancelled this ban. During the English Civil War watermen were free from impressment and could negotiate higher rates of pay from the navy. Samuel Pepys , who commuted by water from his home to his job at the Admiralty, refers to the death of his waterman in his diaries of 1665 revealing the particular vulnerability of Thames watermen to infection during

11349-623: The term "watermen" was used to describe boatmen performing essentially similar duties on coastal waterways in the British colonies. This was especially the case on Sydney Harbour and in Van Diemens Land , on the River Derwent around Hobart and the River Tamar around Launceston . Regular ferry services across the Derwent existed by 1810, and the first known licensed ferryman were Urias Allender and John Nowland in 1816. By

11466-399: The theater. The arrival of the horse-drawn coach in 1630, sedan chairs , and most London theatres and pleasure gardens moving from Bankside on the south bank to the north bank, drastically reduced the trade available to watermen and caused financial hardship, as described by "water poet" John Taylor . In 1635 appeals from watermen against (then horse-drawn) hackney carriages led to

11583-579: The theatres from the south bank to the north in 1612, depriving the ferries of traffic) in The True Cause of the Watermen's Suit Concerning Players (written in 1613 or 1614). The move of theatres from the south bank to the north took a huge toll on Taylor's income, and despite at that time being in the company of the King's Watermen, he could not sway the king to prevent the move. He also addresses

11700-431: The trend of this traditionally fragmented industry by capitalizing on an opportunity and used its empty coal barges, on return trips, to transport rubbish from London's streets generating enough extra revenue to buy up surplus barges from smaller lighterage companies as they sold up. Between 1967 and 1976 over 40 lighterage firms closed down. Regular and fairly well paid work for Thames watermen in times of economic downturn

11817-417: The use of marine resources. In 1999 Thames Clippers began operating a water-bus commuter service between eastern and central London. In 2003 a subsidy was made available by local government looking for the greener solution that reusing waterways provide. Passengers traveling by boat or river buses and the removal of London's rubbish by Lighter mean less traffic on London's streets and almost zero vibration from

11934-411: The watermen, to introduce a more representative government in their company, resulted, on the eve of the English Civil War in 1642, in the introduction of a form of indirect democracy. The watermen at the 55 "leading towns and stairs" were empowered to each year choose representatives, who would in turn propose candidates to become company rulers. This form of government survived, with vicissitudes, until

12051-705: The way from Fiddler's Island in Oxfordshire to the Isle of Sheppey in Kent. Some of the largest inland islands, for example Formosa Island near Cookham and Andersey Island at Abingdon, were created naturally when the course of the river divided into separate streams. In the Oxford area the river splits into several streams across the floodplain ( Seacourt Stream , Castle Mill Stream , Bulstake Stream and others), creating several islands ( Fiddler's Island , Osney and others). Desborough Island , Ham Island at Old Windsor and Penton Hook Island were artificially created by lock cuts and navigation channels. Chiswick Eyot

12168-412: The western part. The area is among the driest in the United Kingdom. Water resources consist of groundwater from aquifers and water taken from the Thames and its tributaries, much of it stored in large bank-side reservoirs . The Thames itself provides two-thirds of London's drinking water, while groundwater supplies about 40 per cent of public water supplies in the overall catchment area. Groundwater

12285-400: The winter months complete with frost fair so that Londoners were able to simply walk across the frozen river. The Oxford-Burcot Commission , appointed by James I in an Act of Parliament in 1605, was an attempt to manage the river. In 1630 the commission built the first of three locks on the Thames. A large proportion of watermen's income came from the ferrying of passengers across river to

12402-580: The year, while those at Thames Head are seasonal (a winterbourne ). With a length of 215 mi (346 km), the Thames is the longest river entirely in England. (The longest river in the United Kingdom, the Severn , flows partly in Wales .) However, as the River Churn, sourced at Seven Springs, is 14 mi (23 km) longer than the section of the Thames from its traditional source at Thames Head to

12519-407: The years watermen acquired additional skills such as local pilotage , mooring vessels at berths, jetties, buoys, and docks, and acting as helmsman aboard large vessels. Watermen or wherrymen were an essential part of early London. Using a small boat called a wherry or skiff they would ferry passengers along and across the river. With bad rural roads and narrow congested city streets, the Thames

12636-683: Was a prolific poet, with over one hundred and fifty publications in his lifetime. Many were gathered into the compilation All the Workes of John Taylor the Water Poet (London, 1630; facsimile reprint Scholar Press, Menston, Yorkshire, 1973); augmented by the Spenser Society's edition of the Works of John Taylor ... not included in the Folio edition of 1630 (5 volumes, 1870–78). Although his work

12753-602: Was born in the parish of St. Ewen's, near South Gate, Gloucester on 24 August 1578. His parentage is unknown, as the parish registers did not survive the Civil War . He did, however, attend elementary school and grammar school there. His grammar school education may have taken place at the Crypt School in Gloucester, however Taylor never finished his formal education due to difficulties with his Latin studies. In

12870-479: Was built at the site of London Bridge . London Bridge is now used as the basis for published tide tables giving the times of high tide . High tide reaches Putney about 30 minutes later than London Bridge, and Teddington about an hour later. The tidal stretch of the river is known as "the Tideway ". Tide tables are published by the Port of London Authority and are available online. Times of high and low tides are also posted on Twitter. The principal tributaries of

12987-690: Was buried on 5 December at the church of St Martin-in-the-Fields . His widow, Alice, died in January 1658. Despite having been one of the most widely read poets in Stuart England, there is a disparity between Taylor's contemporary acclaim and his modern obscurity. His volume of work was immense, resulting in almost 220 titles by 1642. The reach of his work had been broad, due to its use of the vernacular and his many genres, including satires, moral essays, funeral elegies (including an elegy for James I), and travel literature. Taylor ferried himself between

13104-480: Was established in 1834 and soon amalgamated with the Watermen's Steam Packet Company creating the London Steamboat Company which emerged as the leading carrier. In the latter part of the 1870s-1890s the growth of railways increased the use of the river for pleasure boating. Villages outside London such as Maidenhead and Pangbourne flourished as people came to hire skiffs and punts for a day on

13221-463: Was frequently lethal. Some cases continued to occur into the early 20th century. Draining of the marshes helped with its eradication, but the causes are complex and unclear. The East End of London , also known simply as the East End , was the area of London east of the medieval walled City of London and north of the River Thames, although it is not defined by universally accepted formal boundaries;

13338-475: Was not sophisticated, he was a keen observer of people and styles in the seventeenth century, and his work is often studied by social historians. An example is his 1621 work Taylor's Motto , which included a list of then-current card games and diversions: The prodigall's estate, like to a flux, The Mercer, Draper, and the Silkman sucks: The Tailor, Millainer, Dogs, Drabs, and Dice, Trey-trip, or Passage, or

13455-503: Was on the so-called Bovril Boats , which continued as they had done since 1887, to take London's sewage from Crossness and Beckton to the Thames Estuary at Black Deep , where the sludge was discharged. This practice continued until the 1990s when new EU legislation prevented the dumping of sewage at sea and forced this process to stop. It also corresponded with a fundamental change in public opinion on environmental issues and

13572-617: Was subject to minor redefining and widening of the main channel around Oxford, Abingdon and Marlow before 1850, when further cuts to ease navigation reduced distances further. Molesey faces Hampton , and in Greater London the Thames passes Hampton Court Palace , Surbiton , Kingston upon Thames , Teddington , Twickenham , Richmond (with a famous view of the Thames from Richmond Hill), Syon House , Kew , Brentford , Chiswick , Barnes , Hammersmith , Fulham , Putney , Wandsworth , Battersea and Chelsea . In central London ,

13689-583: Was the most convenient highway in the region. Until the mid-18th century London Bridge was the only Thames bridge below Kingston upon Thames . In 1197, King Richard I sold the Crown's rights over the Thames to the Corporation of the City of London, which tried to issue licensing to boats on the river. It remained under royal prerogative until 1350 when King Edward III passed an Act of Parliament prohibiting

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