1914
Stour lighter in Ballingdon Cut, Sudbury
Horse-drawn pairs of barges known as ‘lighters’ took goods, particularly bricks, down the River Stour and brought other goods back. The lighters feature in John Constable’s paintings and in 1914 the entire Sudbury fleet of about 20 lighters was scuttled in the Ballingdon Cut because of invasion fears at the start of the 1st World War.
One of these lighters, now named the John Constable, is being restored. For more imnformation see:
https://heritage.suffolk.gov.uk/hbsmr-web/record.aspx?UID=MSF15869-Ballingdon-Cut
Further reading
Marriage, J., The Essex and Suffolk River Stour Navigation, Tempus 2001.
O’Dell, S., Essex and Suffolk Stour. A History, Tempus 2006.
