Trent Riverside

Picturing the Past: NarrowBoat, Summer 2026

In 1962 Jack Parkinson photographed two views of water-transport facilities and traffic on the River Trent at Nottingham

Further upstream was another British Waterways Depot at Meadow Lane against Trent Lock, giving access to the Nottingham Canal. By 1962 a pedestrian swing-bridge had been built over the lock with the lock-keeper’s house a few yards to the left. This depot was also sizeable with several sheds and warehouses in active use. One of British Waterways’ own motor barges is in front, which appears to be its Waterdog. Originally this was an iron dumb barge of some considerable age, and was first registered under the Canal Boats Act early in 1879 as fly-boat No 81 for the trustees of the Aire & Calder Navigation Co at Leeds. After nationalisation, it passed to the Docks & Inland Waterways Executive at Goole, then to the British Transport Waterways North East Division at Leeds. It was rebuilt at Goole in 1956 as a motor barge and renamed Waterdog BW. Normally a train of some three dumb barges was towed behind a powered barge from the Port of Hull. The trip to Nottingham was ab…