Sunken Barge on the River Aire, Castleford.

eddie666 · Post by **eddie666** » Sun 17 Aug, 2008 2:50 pm

Does anyone know of anywhere that has info on the sunken barge which now lies just underneath the new bridge in Castleford. I can't find anything about it anywhere other than more recent articles reffering to the new bridge.

Penz · Post by **Penz** » Sun 17 Aug, 2008 9:26 pm

This may or may not help you.....I know the vessel has been there for about 20 years .... and one website suggests it's been there for over 50 years If it was a coal barge, it may not have had a name ... just a number

eddie666 · Post by **eddie666** » Mon 18 Aug, 2008 1:48 am

Cheers, I'll ob into the local library and try and dig something up. Its been there ever since I can remember, so its well over 20 years old lol. Seems weird no-one in cas actually talks about it or knows anything much about it whenever I ask the elder generation in the town.

eddie666 · Post by **eddie666** » Mon 18 Aug, 2008 1:48 am

Cheers, I'll ob into the local library and try and dig something up. Its been there ever since I can remember, so its well over 20 years old lol. Seems weird no-one in cas actually talks about it or knows anything much about it whenever I ask the elder generation in the town.Oooops, sorry for the double posting. :s

Rushers · Post by **Rushers** » Mon 18 Aug, 2008 11:57 am

I have a friend (now in his fifties) who lives in the Castleford area. He told me that when he was a youngster he and some friends saw the barge moored a bit further upstream from the weir and decided to steal a small inflatable which was on the deck. Having done the deed they decided it would be a spiffing jape to release it from its moorings the result being that it floated off downstream and got stuck on the weir. Apparently nobody was ever held to account for it so his story can't be verified. What I do know for a fact is that I moved to the Allerton Bywater area in 1984 and the barge was a rusting hulk then. (Albeit a small hulk).

Post by **cnosni** » Mon 18 Aug, 2008 7:11 pm

Working in Cas in 83 and the barge was on the weir.Its circumstances were told to me by one of my colleagues from Cas and he stated that the barge had been deliberately untied,so this mirrors the preceding story.He didnt say how long it had been there.

Fleetline · Post by **Fleetline** » Thu 11 Sep, 2008 2:09 pm

I believe it was tied up after delivering to Allinsons flour mill

simonm · Post by **simonm** » Thu 11 Sep, 2008 4:12 pm

It sank!!!