Post Nationalisation…work or pleasure?

Dover managed to stay with the GUCCCo. when the canals were nationalised in 1948. Dover continued in service with the South Eastern Division Carrying Company, which was a division of British Waterways after nationalisation. The British Waterways carrying fleet was continually being reduced and new uses being found for redundant craft. Some were transferred to canal maintenance duties whilst others were sold off or sunk.

The late 40's saw the start of the pleasure boat industry and British Waterways converted several redundant carrying boats to this purpose throughout the 50s and 60s. Dover was sent to Icknield Port, Birmingham in 1958 for conversion to pleasure craft, but then was sent on to the North West Division as a maintenance boat. The Dover was given a new BW number, which was 80123. Dover was a replacement boat for another narrow boat, which had been taken in for maintenance work. Dover was really too big for what the crew needed, and it didn’t have an engine at that point, but its rear cabin made a good storage area for tools, and a good area to make the tea!

As a maintenance boat, Dover operated as a lock repair boat at first. The Dover carried also redundant lock gates from the repairs. Later, Dover carried anything connected with canal maintenance work, e.g. lock gates, general brickwork, trees, branches, cement, sand etc.
In 1991, Dover was put up for auction by British Waterways and ended up in private ownership. Three owners later, Alan Herd took the Dover on to get it back on to the waterways.