Tag Archives: historic Hastings fishing boat
Historic Hastings fishing boat is removed from outside the station
The clinker built boat Dorothy Melinda had been on display on an island outside Hastings railway station for the past 15 years. It was the first thing visitors to Hastings see when they arrive in the town by rail. But Hastings Borough Council said the condition of the boat was seriously deteriorating and claimed it could become a potential hazard. In addition, the lease for the roundabout, which belongs to South Eastern Rail, had expired. She was due to be removed and demolished at the end of January, due to her deteriorating state, but local man Peter Carney launched a campaign to have her restored and put on display in Hastings old Town, setting up Go Fund Me appeal. Photos, more, >>click to read<< 07:00
How an historic Hastings fishing boat was saved from being scrapped
She was saved from being scrapped by local writer and historian Steve Peak who writes: She was the first Hastings fishing boat to be built with an engine and was constructed in late 1919 on the beach opposite the London Trader pub for landlord Edward ‘Tiny’ Breeds. She is 22.6 feet long on the keel and 28 feet overall, and was named after Tiny’s daughter Mary and his son Edward (always called Ned) who worked the boat. The Edward and Mary left Hastings in 1957 operating from nearby ports until the early 1980s. By then she was much altered, renumbered and renamed. In late 1982 she was laid up in Eastbourne and stripped of her engine and the rest of her gear. Photos, >click to read< 08:57
