Great guess - you're right! To maintain a fast pace, vessels like the 'Duchess Countess' on the Bridgewater Canal featured a sharp iron blade fixed to the bow. This knife sliced cleanly through the tow lines of any barge blocking the channel. thelymmarchive.co.uk/archive/wate...
Drawing of Leonardo Da Vinci
Did you know that Leonardo da Vinci invented the mitre lock gate? Next time you watch a narrowboat passing through a lock on the Regent's Canal, you're watching a 500-year-old design in action. Happy birthday, Leonardo.
Born #OnThisDay in 1452
Regents Park Time Bank
We love posts like this ❤️ Children from the Regents Park Time Bank joined us recently for one of our Family Fun Days - check out some great pics and a write up in their Easter newsletter - thanks RPTB for visiting and glad you enjoyed! https://f.mtr.cool/xbgotvvtjn
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...some operators fitted an aggressive attachment directly to the bow.
What do you think they attached to the front to clear the way? Comment your guesses below! 🔍
An engraving from the museum's collection of a Paddington packet boat, a fast passenger boat, on the Grand Junction Canal in the early 1800s. The boat is crowded with people and pulled by two horses.
It's #MysteryMonday. Early 19th-century 'packet boats' like this one at Paddington were the express passenger vessels of the canal network. Horses pulled them at a continuous trot, and they held absolute right of way.
To guarantee slow cargo barges never delayed their strict timetables...
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The narrowboat Long Tom leaving Battlebridge basin on a sunny day
Perfect boating weather today 😎☀️
Book your canal adventure at: www.lcm.me.uk/bt
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You can still visit St Peter’s Italian Church and Terroni’s delicatessen next door."
Pick up your copy of Little Italy in our museum bookshop 📚
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...fortune tellers, gangsters and hokey-pokey men, as well as Carlo Gatti, whose ice warehouse is now home to the London Canal Museum.
The lively text is complemented by evocative old photographs and drawings. The legacy of Little Italy remains today.
Volunteer Alan holding a copy of Little Italy: The Story of London’s Italian Quarter by Tudor Allen
April's book recommendation is from Alan - Little Italy: The Story of London’s Italian Quarter by Tudor Allen.
"This is a vivid account of the Italian community that thrived around Clerkenwell from the 1800s to the mid-20th century. Settlers included skilled craftsmen, organ grinders...
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A person holding a mobile phone displaying the London Canal Museum digital guide
Visiting us soon? Try our free digital guide, including our 'Top ten things to see' and 'Family Fun' tours.
📲Simply scan the QR codes at the museum for Bloomberg Connects, and our guide will show in your browser.
🎧 Remember your headphones to take advantage of our audio and videos.
Colourful Buckby cans with The London Canal Museum on them
Chocolate tins on a wooden crate with text 'chocolate' on it
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Next Saturday, 28th March, entry will be free for all.
We encourage all local residents to come and learn about a unique part of London's history.
View a short taster video here: https://youtu.be/DxVvs-w60-A
The ground floor of the London Canal Museum, with an ice cream bicycle, tractor and narrowboat
Two hands holding an iPhone which is displaying the free digital guide
Are you joining us for our community open day?
As an independent charity that receives no public funding, we rely on our entry fee to keep the doors open. However, we believe that London’s rich waterways history should be accessible to everyone in our community, regardless of circumstance.
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…the answer is the Dartford and Crayford Navigation. Hufflers generally worked in pairs, planting a pole into the creek bed and "walking" the boat to its moorings.
Multiple question marks, the London Canal Museum logo and #MysteryMonday
It’s time for another #MysteryMonday
On which lost navigation would you have encountered ‘Hufflers’? Specialist workers who used a 15-foot pole with a padded cup to push 80-ton boats three miles against the tide.
🔍 Add your answer to the comments, and we’ll confirm the answer later in the week.
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Book your canal adventure today lcm.me.uk/bt
A blue narrowboat motoring along a canal beneath a tree on a sunny day
🎉 Boat trip season starts Sunday, 22 March.
Step aboard and see a different side of London. We've got a range of interesting trips - from cream tea cruises and trips exploring Camden's locks, to longer trips including picturesque Little Venice, and Victoria Park.
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Chocolate tins on a wooden crate with text 'chocolate' on it
Colourful Buckby cans with The London Canal Museum on them
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On Saturday, 28th March, entry will be free for all.
We encourage all local residents to come and learn about a unique part of London's history.
View a short taster video here: https://youtu.be/DxVvs-w60-A
The ground floor of the London Canal Museum, with an ice cream bicycle, tractor and narrowboat
Two hands holding an iPhone which is displaying the free digital guide
Community open day - 28th March
As an independent charity that receives no public funding, we rely on our entry fee to keep the doors open. However, we believe that London’s rich waterways history should be accessible to everyone in our community, regardless of circumstance.
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...on the way and learn about a way of life whose transformed legacy is more relevant than ever in our fast-paced times."
Pick up your copy of 'Water Ways' in our bookshop 📚
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In this insightful book, he takes us all on a journey of discovery. How do you navigate a barge? What defines a canal? Who were the pioneers in canal making? And who fought to sustain them after their decline?
Diving deep into a fascinating subculture, we meet many inspiring characters...
Our book recommendation for March comes from volunteer Julia - Water Ways by Jasper Winn.
"When Jasper Winn is asked to be the writer in residence for the Canal & River Trust, he sets out to spend 2 years exploring canal life in the UK with all its historical layers, communities and quirks.
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And the answer is.... There are lots of ways to calculate this, but basing it on GDP per capita and average earnings, we think it’d be £275 million! Learn more about the canal mania period in our ‘Building Britain’s Canals’ exhibition.
Men bow-hauling small boats on the River Irwell while larger barges are pulled along the Bridgewater Canal by two horses. (London Canal Museum archives)
It's another #MysteryMonday - The privately funded Bridgewater Canal, which triggered an explosion in canal building, cost just over £100,000 in 1777. How much would this cost today?
Leave your answer in the comments, and we'll confirm the answer later this week 🔍
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It examines the rich history of the area: the people, the goods and raw materials, passenger transport and the evolution of associated industry and infrastructure.
Illuminating and well-illustrated with heritage material, it’s highly recommended!
Pickup your copy in our bookshop 📚
Museum volunteer Tony stood in front of the London Canal Museum holding the book: The King’s Cross Story: 200 Years of History in the Railway Lands by Peter Darley
February's book of the month is from Tony - The King’s Cross Story: 200 Years of History in the Railway Lands by Peter Darley.
This book focuses on the former King’s Cross Railway Lands, from the 19th-century canal and railway eras to the present redevelopment for modern business and leisure.
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...and the answe is... the image shows rubbish being loaded at Paddington Basin bound for Middlesex brickfields. Contractors continued to carry rubbish on this route until the 1940s.
Our narrowboat cabin is having a repaint over the next couple of weeks - if you are visiting, the cargo hold and cabin may be unavailable during your visit. The rest of the museum is open as normal.
View more about the story of Coronis on our digital guide: www.canalmuseum.org.uk/visit/bloomberg.htm
Material being loaded to a boat at Paddington basin
It's our first #MysteryMonday of the year - these boats are being loaded with something at Paddington basin - what was it, and when did it stop being carried by boat from here? Leave your answer in the comments, and we'll confirm the answer later this week 🔍
An advertisement for Lucy Worsley's Victorian Murder Club
Did you catch the start of Lucy Worsley's Victorian Murder Club? This programme follows a cold case of a Victorian killer, who deposited body parts in the Regent's Canal and the Thames. Can Lucy and her team unmask the killer? Watch on @BBCiPlayer, or Mondays at 9 pm on BBC2 to find out!
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...Taking in the wildlife and fauna that add wonder to the man-made canals.
How her partner, Simon and she adapt to the physical chores and skills needed to steer Pike, secure her moorings and negotiate locks throughout their travels.'
Pick up your copy of 'Adrift' in our museum bookshop 📚