Our Coffee Shop has been around for 20 years - can you believe it?     The majority of content remains current-times stuff, but we are informed by history.   However as a "historic" sight we have only glimpses, and on days like today I find myself looking at significant events that may have shaped things for the future, or be early examples of what is common today or has resulted in improvements so that things should not happen today.

From travel and transport news I remember, but before the Coffee Shop

20th August 1979 - The East Coast Main Line rail route between England and Scotland is restored with the opening of the Penmanshiel Diversion

20th August 1989 - Dredger "Bow Belle" collides with pleasure boat "Marchioness" on the River Thames in central London; "Marchioness" sinks in 30 seconds, drowning 51

To see "On this day" across the whole year, visit https://www.passenger.chat/otd.html?all=365

 

We were out on the river that night in a skiff, albeit the non tidal Thames, returning from Sunbury. Very clear and windless, with glassy reflections, and the 'Yarmouth Belle' passed us heading upstream, a lot of lights and kerfuffle from the party on board.

Not very long before, on a downstream trip on the tidal Thames in a skiff and in the centre of London, in to sight and heading upstream and making her way slowly against the ebbing tide came the boat that sank the Marchioness. Mindful to ignore previous instructions from a chap on a Metropolitan police boat to tuck ourselves into the shore - and, anyway, aware that in this case we'd been seen (her forward visibility was not exactly optimal and from a small boat all you see is bow) we made a minimal course alteration and passed her in the appropriate way for that situation, i.e. port to port.

I read that after several changes of ownership, name and country, she eventually came to grief off Madeira with the loss of life of one member of crew.

Mark