The old "Privateer"

The Privateer was owned by the Boston Steam Tug Company Limited and ran pleasure trips from Doughty Quay in Boston to Skegness and Hunstanton piers and also down the River Haven to The Wash and back.

Above: Doughty Quay, Boston.

 

 

Above and below:The Privateer, going past The ferryman, heading out on one of its trips.

 

 

After the Titanic disaster the Board of Trade brought in strict measures and new certificates for Passenger Carrying. Consequently the Privateer's new certificate cut numbers drastically and the trips did not pay, and the vessel resorted to towing.

 

The company sold her and she was sunk by the Germans off the French coast in 1914.
Incidentally The Privateer pulled down the old Town Bridge in 1912/13.

Above: The Privateer demolishing the old Town Bridge.

Boston Deep Sea Fishing

Boston Deep Sea Fishing and Ice Co. Ltd. was formed on 7 August 1885 and started in business with seven second-hand fishing smacks. Two new steam trawlers were launched for the company the following November. These vessels were initially based at Hull, but a fish quay and stores were shortly after built at Boston. By the 1890s the company was making a profit.
In 1922 the Steam Ship 'Lockwood' went aground in the River Haven and blocked the way into Boston Dock. The vessel was salvaged by the Boston Deep Sea Fishing and Ice Co., but because the company had trouble obtaining payment from Boston Corporation for this work, the owner, Fred Parkes, decided to move the business to Fleetwood and Grimsby and this marked the end of Boston as a major fishing port. This was just one of many cases of Boston Councillers making the wrong decisions for our town, which they continue to do to this day. Below is the company’s flag, loosely based on the arms of Boston.