View source for SB Centaur

{{Short description|British wooden Thames sailing barge}}
{{good article}}
{{EngvarB|date=April 2018}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2017}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin
| display title = SB ''Centaur''
}}
{{Infobox ship image
| Ship image =File:Thames barge parade - in the Pool - Centaur - Reminder 6705.JPG
| Ship caption = ''Centaur'' at the [[Pool of London]] in 2017
}}
{{Infobox ship career
| Ship country = United Kingdom
| Ship flag ={{shipboxflag|United Kingdom|civil}}
| Ship name = ''Centaur''
| Ship owner = *Charles Stone of [[Mistley]] (1895-1903)
*George Langley (1903-1906)
*William Rogers (1906-1911)
*Edward Hibbs of [[Brightlingsea]] (1911- ~1919)
*Ephrain “Chick” Cripps (~1919-1933)
*Francis & Gilders Ltd. of [[Colchester]] (1933-1951)
*London & Rochester Trading Company Ltd. (1951-1955)
*Brown & Son of [[Chelmsford]] (1955-1965)
*Richard Duke of [[Maldon]] (1965-1974)
*[https://www.bargetrust.org/ Thames Sailing Barge Trust], originally Thames Sailing Barge Club (1974-present)
| Ship operator =
| Ship route =
| Ship ordered =
| Ship builder = J & H Cann ([[Harwich]])
| Ship yard number =
| Ship way number =
| Ship laid down =
| Ship launched =
| Ship commissioned = 1895
| Ship status = Private use and private charter ship
| Ship notes = 99460
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
| Ship tonnage = 61
| Ship length = {{convert|85.6|ft|m|abbr=on}}
| Ship beam = {{convert|19.55|ft|m|abbr=on}}
| Ship height = {{convert|80|ft|m|abbr=on}} <small>to top of [[topmast]]</small>
| Ship draught = {{convert|6.2|ft|m|abbr=on}} <small>distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull (keel)</small>
| Ship draft =
| Ship depth =
| Ship decks =
| Ship ice class =
| Ship sail plan =
| Ship power =
| Ship propulsion = Sails and auxiliary diesel engine
| Ship capacity =
| Ship crew =
| Ship troops =
| Ship notes = Wood
}}
|}

'''SB ''Centaur''''' is a wooden [[Thames sailing barge]], built in [[Harwich]], Essex, England in 1895. She was used to carry various cargoes, mainly grain, for the next 60 years. During the First World War she carried food and coal to the French Channel ports. During the Second World War Centaur was damaged when sailing to assist with the Dunkirk Evacuation. She did war work for the duration of the conflict.

In 1945 she returned to the [[grain trade]] until 1955, when she was derigged. Between 1955 and 1966 she was used as a [[Lighter (barge)|lighter]] until bought in 1966 by Richard Duke to re-rig as a charter barge. She was sold in 1973 to the charity Thames Barge Sailing Club (now the Thames Sailing Barge Trust). Restored between 1984 and 1993, and further in 2013, she now berths at Hythe Quay, [[Maldon, Essex|Maldon]].

==Description==
[[Thames sailing barge]]s were  commercial [[sailing boat|sailing vessels]] once common on the [[River Thames]] in [[London]]. The [[Flat-bottomed boat|flat-bottomed]] barges with a shallow draught and [[leeboard]]s, were well adapted to the shallow, narrow waters of the [[Thames Estuary]] and [[East Anglia]]. The larger barges were seaworthy vessels, and were the largest sailing vessel to be handled by just two men.{{sfn|Underhill|1955}} The average size was about 120 tons and they carried from {{convert|3000|-|5000|sqft|m2}} of canvas sail in six working sails. The [[mainsail]] was loose-footed and set up with a [[spritsail|sprit]], and was [[brail]]ed to the mast when not needed. It was sheeted to a [[Glossary of nautical terms (A-L)#horse|horse]], as were the [[foresail]]s, so needed no attention when going about (except that the foresail is held back by the mate when tacking to help the vessel come about). The [[topsail]] was usually the first sail on and last sail off, being fixed to the [[topmast]] by hoops. In the upper reaches of the rivers and constricted harbours it reached into clear air, to catch wind when the air was still at water level. When approaching a berth casting off the [[Halyard|halliard]] would drop the topsail immediately, killing any forward motion. The mizzen boom was sheeted down to the long shallow [[rudder]], which helped the vessels through the wind when [[Tacking (sailing)|tacking]]. The sails were made of [[flax]]; their rust colour came from the traditional waterproofing solution; a mixture of ochre, fish oil and urine. The masts were mounted in tabernacles so they could be lowered to pass under bridges without losing headway, with the [[anchor windlass]] used to lower and raise the gear via triple blocks. This took considerable effort and to aid in the process "hufflers" were often used; they would come on board to help with raising the gear (for a fee). The [[bowsprit]], where fitted, could be "topped" – raised –  where space was limited.{{sfn|Underhill|1955}}{{sfn|Thomson|1995|p=}}
[[File:Sail names on Thames sailing barge (en).svg|thumb|left|{{center|Sails on a Thames barge}}]]
The barges were wooden [[hull (watercraft)|hulled]], between {{convert|80|-|90|ft|0|abbr=on}} long with a [[beam (nautical)|beam]] of around {{convert|20|ft|abbr=on}}. The hull form was  flat-bottomed with a degree of flare to the sides and plumb ends. To prevent unwanted (sideways) passage to the lee, there was a massive pivoted, retractable, winch operated [[leeboard]] on each side.{{sfn|Thames Sailing Barge Trust|2013}} On the ''Centaur'' each weighed {{convert|1.5|LT|t}}.{{sfn|Lusher|2013}} The stern was a [[Transom (nautical)|transom]], fitted with a large rudder. The hull was mainly a hold with two small living areas in the bow and stern, and access was through two large hatchways, the smaller before the main mast and a much larger aperture behind.  These barges required no [[ballast]]. No auxiliary power was used originally but many barges were fitted with engines in later years. When no wharf was available, the barge could use the ebbing tide to stand on the mud close to shore, and offload its cargo into carts.{{sfn|March|1948|p=15}} A barge with no topsail – or top [[Mast (sailing)|mast]] – sailing ''stumpy-rigged'' required a smaller crew. With a shallow [[Displacement (ship)|draught]], they could penetrate deep into the back waters. Not needing ballast reduced their turn-round time. They could be berthed on a flat mud bank, against a camp-shed, on a barge bed or in a held tide dock.{{sfn|Thomson|1995|p=}}{{sfn|March|1948|p=11}}

In good conditions, [[Thames sailing barge|sailing barges]] could attain speeds of over {{convert|12|kn|lk=in}}, and their [[leeboard]]s allowed them to be highly effective windward performers.  The unusual [[spritsail]] [[rigging|rig]] allowed any combination of sails to be set: even the topsail on its own could be effective in some conditions.{{sfn|Thomson|1995|p=}}

===Uses===
[[Thames sailing barge]]s were the [[heavy goods vehicle]]s of their time, moving {{convert|150|LT|ST}} of loose cargo at a time from outside the capital to the city. They brought in coal for the furnaces, bricks to construct mills and houses, and hay for the horses. Barges were used to transport rubbish from various cities out to the brickfields where it was used as fuel; it was only for the last mile of the trip to the brickfields that road transport had to be used.{{sfn|March|1948|p=1}} In 1900 there were over 2,000 privately owned [[Thames sailing barge]]s in operation.{{sfn|Lusher|2013}}

==History==
[[File:Thames Barges-Canthusus.jpg|thumb|320px|right|{{center|Thames sailing barges, with typical red-brown sails, in the East Swin<ref group=note>East Swin is a deep channel to the east of [[Foulness|Foulness Point]], Essex: Admiralty Chart SC5606, April 2004</ref>}}]]

===Early life===
SB ''Centaur'', wood built, probably [[pitch pine]] on [[oak]], was constructed for Charles Stone of Mistley to be used for the coastal trade.{{sfn|Benham|1986|p=97}} She was large compared with the average sailing barge and had a "generous sheer and shapely transom" making her more seaworthy. She was {{convert|85.6|ft|m|abbr=on}} long, with a beam of {{convert|19.55|ft|m|abbr=on}} and a draught of {{convert|6.2|ft|m|abbr=on}}. Her capacity was {{convert|61|LT|ST}}.{{sfn|Thames Sailing Barge Trust|2017}} When loaded she could have as little as {{convert|9|inch|cm}} [[Freeboard (nautical)|freeboard]], and hurried loading meant that she frequently [[Angle of list|listed]].{{sfn|Thomson|1995|p=}} Construction took six weeks{{sfn|Carr|1951|p=245}} and she was launched on 15{{nbsp}}February 1895 by John and Herbert Cann at the Bathside yard, Gashouse Creek, [[Harwich]].{{sfn|WW1 Survivor|2017}} Her first master was James Stone, and she had a crew of two: a mate and a boy.{{sfn|Thames Sailing Barge Trust|2017}} There was another Thames sailing barge named ''Centaur'', based in Rochester and built in 1899. She sank in 1930 after colliding with ''Aspbodel''. Records referring to "SB ''Centaur''" are not always clear as to which is meant.{{sfn|March|1948|p=170}}

In 1898 ''Centaur'' won the Harwich Barge Race.{{sfn|National Historic Ships|2018}} In 1899 an "SB ''Centaur''", probably her Rochester-based namesake, won the Medway Barge Race, passing over the finishing line at Upnor {{frac|2|1|2}} minutes ahead of second placed SB ''Giralda''.{{sfn|March|1948|p=153}} The Mistley barges worked the ports of north east France, Belgium and the Netherlands, from most of the English ports between Southampton and Goole.{{sfn|WW1 Survivor|2017}} There are records of her carrying wheat, [[hydrochloric acid]], sugar, [[linseed oil]] and raw linseed. In April 1902 her steering gear was damaged while sailing from Shoreham and she was towed into Newhaven. In January 1905 she had to be towed into Portland. Both anchors were lost off the Netherlands in December 1906.{{sfn|Thames Sailing Barge Trust|2017}}

Her sailing qualities have been described as: {{blockquote|Centaur was a satisfying barge to sail. She went well to windward and was quite handy in narrow waters. Until the last year or two of her trading days, unlike today, she carried a bowsprit. As a result she was better balanced, needing very little helm. She sailed best on the sheet, with a freeish sprit. On the bowsprit, she could carry both a jib and a topmast staysail, but it was usual only to set the former. She-would carry full sail (i.e. without the staysail) in a Force 5 wind, although in associated sea conditions offshore the skipper would be looking for shelter if deep-laden. When reducing sail due to weather the jib came in first, followed by the topsail and then if necessary the first few cloths of the mainsail. A Force 6 wind was generally considered to be the overall limiting condition.|Peter Thomson{{sfn|Thomson|1995|p=}}}}

===World War I===
[[File:SB Edme 4836.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|left|{{center|SB ''Edme'', a similar barge to ''Centaur'', under full sail<ref group=note>The staysail and the jib are white, not red-brown, because they were stowed below deck and so did not require the ultra-violet protection provided by adding ochre to the waterproofing solution which results in the distinctive colour of the other sails.</ref>}}]]
In the [[First World War]], SB ''Centaur'' joined her sister barges taking foodstuffs and large quantities of coal, coke, and pitch to the French ports of [[Le Treport]], [[Calais]] and [[Boulogne-sur-Mer]]. Commonly there were 180 barges discharging at Le Treport. They sailed over enemy [[Naval mine|mines]] due to their shallow draught, and were too small to attract enemy [[U-boats]]. These were profitable runs as carriage was charged at £6 a ton.{{sfn|WW1 Survivor|2017}} On one crossing, the date is not recorded, in thick fog, the ''Centaur'' was struck amidships by a coastal motor boat (CMB), a small, motorised, military vessel,<!--date not given in source--> which mounted her deck and settled on her main hatch. Both boats were undamaged and the Centaur returned home and safely unloaded both the CMB and her cargo.{{sfn|WW1 Survivor|2017}}{{sfn|Carr|1951|p=245}}

===Inter-war years===

After the war, ''Centaur'' resumed the coastal trade. She made a number of voyages to France and Belgium carrying pitch and coal.{{sfn|Thames Sailing Barge Trust|2017}} Ephraim Cripps was her skipper for twenty years and kept records of each voyage. [[Colchester]] was her main port from 1928 to 1930, and she worked the East Anglian coast.{{sfn|WW1 Survivor|2017}} In 1933 she joined Francis and Gilders Ltd which managed a large fleet of sailing barges out of Colchester, transporting grain from Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex into London.{{sfn|Thomson|1995|p=}}

===World War II===
[[File:SB Centaur 3853.jpg|thumb|{{center|SB ''Centaur'' in 2017 at Hythe Quay, Maldon}}]]
The first major civilian maritime event of the [[World War II|Second World War]] was the [[Dunkirk evacuation]] where hundreds of [[Little ships of Dunkirk|small ships]] rescued allied soldiers from the beaches. Like many of the sailing barge fleet ''Centaur'' sailed down to the assembly point at Dover, where she collided with a [[Tugboat|tug]] and so was unable to make the crossing. The rest of the conflict was spent under government charter, carrying much the same cargos as she always had around the south and east coasts of England.{{sfn|Thames Sailing Barge Trust|2017}}{{sfn|National Historic Ships UK|2018}}

===Post-war===

After the war ''Centaur'' returned to working the grain trade. In January 1952, in [[Beaufort scale|force 6–7]] winds with seas breaking across her hatches, her rudder broke and she was towed into [[Brightlingsea|Colne]] by the [[SB Saxon|SB ''Saxon'']]. Francis and Gilders Ltd were the last "seeker barges", barges that sought any cargo; the London and Rochester Trading Company merged with them in 1951. The new owners were intent on selling on these barges, and ''Centaur'' took her last cargo in 1955. During her last year in the carrying trade, as well as grain she transported timber, sugar beet, ballast, cement and oil drums. ''Centaur'' and the other three remaining working sailing barges, [[SB George Smeed|''George Smeed'']], [[SB Kitty (1895)|''Kitty'']] and [[SB Mirosa|''Mirosa'']] were deregistered and disposed of to Brown & Son of Chelmsford. There they were de-masted, de-registered and used as [[barge|timber lighters]]. Between 1955 and 1966 she was used as a lighter to tranship timber from ships in the Blackwater estuary to canal lighters headed for Chelmsford.{{sfn|Thames Sailing Barge Trust|2017}}

In 1966 she was purchased by Richard Duke and re-rigged as a charter barge with four four-berth cabins. In 1968 she was class winner at the Blackwater Sailing Barge Match.{{sfn|National Historic Ships|2018}} She was sold in 1973 to the Thames Barge Sailing Club (now the Thames Sailing Barge Trust), a [[Charitable organization|registered charity]]. She was restored between 1974 and 1993, with most frames and planks replaced and a new auxiliary motor, a Bedford six-cylinder truck engine fitted with a marine gearbox, installed.{{sfn|Thames Sailing Barge Trust|2017}} In 1993 she won the Inter-match Trophy. In 1995 the sacrificial planking was replaced in [[iroko]] and [[Nauclea diderrichii|opeipi]].{{sfn|National Historic Ships|2018}} In 2013 a [[Heritage Lottery Fund]] grant of £100,000 was obtained which contributed to further restoration work, including redoubling the bottom timbers. She now berths at Hythe Quay, Maldon and {{as of|2018|lc=on}} is available for charter during the summer months. She is still traditionally rigged, as she was in 1895,{{sfn|Thames Sailing Barge Trust|2017}} currently with {{convert|2600|sqft|m2}} of sail.{{sfn|Lusher|2013}}

==Owners==
* 1895 Charles Stone.
* {{circa}} 1900 Dolly Rogers.
* 1911 Ted Hibbs.
* 1915 John Sawyer.
* 1933 Francis & Gilders.
* 1951 London and Rochester Trading Company.
* 1955 Brown & Co. Derigged for use as a timber lighter.
* 1965 Richard Duke Used as a charter barge.
* 1973 Thames Barge Sailing Club,{{sfn|Thames Sailing Barge Trust|2017}} now the [https://www.bargetrust.org/ Thames Sailing Barge Trust].

The dates are when ''Centaur'' came into ownership of its various owners.

==See also==
* [[SB Pudge|SB ''Pudge'']]

==Notes==
{{Reflist|group=note}}

==Footnotes==
{{Reflist|20em}}

==References==
* {{cite book|last1=Benham|first1=Hervey|last2=Kershaw|first2=Philip|last3=Finch|first3=Roger|title=Down Tops'l: Story of the East Coast Sailing Barges |date=1986|publisher=Harrap|location=London|isbn=978-0-245-54487-3|edition= 3rd|ref={{sfnref|Benham|1986}}}}
* {{cite book|last1=Carr|first1=Frank|title=Sailing Barges|date=1951|publisher=Peter Davies|oclc=906638925|location=London}}
* {{Cite web|url=https://www.nationalhistoricships.org.uk/register/193/centaur|title= Centaur, National Historic Ships|website=www.nationalhistoricships.org.uk|language=en|access-date=2018-09-09|ref={{sfnref|National Historic Ships|2018}}}}
* {{cite book|last=March|first=Edgar|title=Spritsail barges of Thames and Medway|date=1948|publisher=Percival Marshall|location=London|oclc=474835836}}
* {{Cite web|url=http://www.bargetrust.org/our-barges/centaur|title=Centaur|website=Thames Sailing Barge Trust|access-date=2018-09-08|language=en-GB|date=2017|ref={{sfnRef|Thames Sailing Barge Trust|2017}}}}
* {{cite journal|last=Thomson|first=Peter|journal=The Mariner's Mirror|volume=81|number=4|title=Working a Thames Sailing Barge circa 1950|date=November 1995|issn=0025-3359|pages=457–462|doi=10.1080/00253359.1995.10656572}}
* {{cite web
|url=https://www.nationalhistoricships.org.uk/register/193/centaur
|title=Centaur: History
|date=2018
|website=National Historic Ships UK
|access-date=14 January 2019
|ref={{sfnRef|National Historic Ships UK|2018}} }}
* {{cite book |last=Underhill |first=Harold A. |title=Sailing Ship Rigs and Rigging |date=1955 |orig-year=1938 |publisher=Brown, Son & Ferguson |location=Glasgow|oclc= 503848667|edition=2nd }}
* {{cite web|title=Centaur -delivering the goods|url=http://www.ww1britainssurvivingvessels.org.uk/vessels/centaur.html|website=First World War: Britain’s surviving vessels|access-date=13 May 2017|ref={{sfnRef|WW1 Survivor|2017}}|language=en}}
* {{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/lifestyle/wellbeing/outdoors/10262769/Sailing-barge-racing-a-slow-boat-to-a-past-century.html|title=Sailing barge racing: a slow boat to a past century|last=Lusher|first=Adam|journal=The Daily Telegraph|date=2013-08-24|access-date=2018-09-21|language=en-GB|issn=0307-1235}}
* {{cite web|title=Development of Sailing Barges|url=http://www.bargetrust.org/historical/development-of-sailing-barges|website=Thames Sailing Barge Trust|access-date=18 April 2018|ref={{sfnref|Thames Sailing Barge Trust|2013}}|date=24 December 2013}}
* This article incorporates text taken from the article [[Thames sailing barge]].

==External links==
* [https://www.bargetrust.org/barges/centaur/ Centaur's page on the Thames Sailing Barge Trust's site (current owners)]
* [https://www.nationalhistoricships.org.uk/register/193/centaur Centaur's entry] in the [[National Historic Ships]] register

{{commons category|SB Centaur (ship, 1895)}}
{{National Historic Ships}}
{{Thames barges}}
{{Oldest surviving ships (pre-1919)}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Centaur}}
[[Category:Thames sailing barges]]
[[Category:1895 ships]]
[[Category:Individual sailing vessels]]
[[Category:Ships built in Harwich]]
[[Category:Transport on the River Thames]]
[[Category:Sailing ships of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Ships and vessels of the National Historic Fleet]]
[[Category:Little Ships of Dunkirk]]