The River Trent was once a major artery of trade - and, indeed, invasion - affecting much of the East Midlands of England. In a long history of commerce, everything from Roman pottery to bulk oil cargoes have been carried along either its placid, lower reaches or the various 'navigations' (short sections of canalized river) or the canals which connect with it. As the Trent winds its way through the flat, almost featureless lands of Nottingham and Lincolnshire, on its way to the Humber and the North Sea, various communities can be found which originally flourished due to an advantageous river crossing and the trade that it brought, or the proximity of a castle or religious house.
Newark-on-Trent (or just 'Newark', locally) is a fine example of this growth due to riverine trade. Situated on the ancient Roman road known as the Fosseway - which runs from London to Lincoln, another Roman fortress town - the settlement benefitted from the Mediaeval market and the wool and woven fabric trade which was exported to the closer European ports from here. The establishment of a system of canals in the 18th century, several of which fed into the Trent, only served to bolster that position.
Located just a stone’s throw from Newark Castle on the River Trent is one of the most unusual pubs in the UK. The Castle Barge (formerly known as ‘Ril Elsie’, registered in Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire), is moored at The Wharf on the east bank of the Trent, just north of where the Great North Road (at this point known as the B6326) crosses the river.
This steel barge was built in 1923, for the grain trade. ‘Ril Elsie’ worked between the port of Kingston-upon-Hull, an inland port on the River Hull some 25 miles from the North Sea, and the river port of Gainsborough, Lincolnshire. The capacity of the barge was equivalent to 20 trucks. She was owned by Spillers Foods Ltd, and towards the end of her working life serviced the large flour and animal feed mills close to Spillers Wharf, Gainsborough.
At the end of her useful life, in 1979, ‘Ril Elsie’ was sold for scrap value – £2000 – to North Country Breweries of Hull (at that time owned by Northern Foods Ltd., later, in 1985, bought by the Nottinghamshire-based Mansfield Breweries). Work to convert ’Ril Elsie’ to a floating hostelry began in 1980, with the majority of the project being undertaken at Fiskerton, Nottinghamshire.
Now moored close to the centre of town, called The Castle Barge, and advertising ‘great pub food available all day’ she is enjoying a VERY lively retirement. This floating pub is extremely popular with the younger crowd, and is a most colourful and unusual venue. There is even a supporters group called the Castle Barge Society (drop by their Facebook page).
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