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River Severn Trading Vessels

Although the River Severn is Britain's longest river, it remains one of the most difficult to navigate. For most parts, the river above Gloucester was, at normal summer level, just a series of deep pools, separated every few miles by rock bars.

These rock bars had only a depth of 18 inches above them.

DID YOU KNOW THAT........

• In 1796 work was started on building the Gloucester & Sharpness Ship

  Canal. It was not to be opened until 1827.

• A barge is anything from 100 feet long and 17 feet wide.
• Whereas a narrowboat is 70 foot long and only 7 foot wide. Many people make

  the mistake of calling a narrowboat a barge.

• On the Severn narrowboats are referred to as longboats.
• The final decline for commercial carrying narrowboats on our narrow canal

  system was due to the big freeze up of 1963. The canals were frozen over for 3

  months which put the majority of operators out of business.