‘Barnabas’ Award Highlights Importance of Lugger Heritage and Quay Restoration

We have fantastic news that shines a spotlight on the rich maritime heritage of Newlyn and the importance of our efforts to restore the Old Quay!

The 143-year-old Cornish lugger, ‘Barnabas’, has been awarded the prestigious ‘Centenarian of the Year’ title at the 2025 Classic Boat Awards in London. This is a moment of immense pride for Cornwall and a testament to the dedication of those working to preserve our seafaring traditions. As the Newlyn Old Harbour Restoration Project emphasizes, luggers have long been the lifeblood of Newlyn’s maritime heritage, serving as the backbone of the local fishing industry for centuries. They are more than just boats; they’re a vital part of our cultural tapestry.

‘Barnabas’ holds a special place in history as the “last surviving lug-rigged St Ives Mackerel Driver” and the “oldest mackerel driver still sailing today”. This award recognizes not only the vessel’s historical significance but also the tireless work of the Cornish Maritime Trust. The CMT, a community charity, is committed to preserving historic vessels and teaching endangered heritage sailing skills to the next generation.

Toby Floyer, the charity’s chairman and skipper, sees this award as a recognition of the growing support for their work, especially after ‘Barnabas’’ ambitious voyage to four Celtic nations in 2024. That voyage, during which 43 sailors were trained and £20,000 was raised to replace the lugger’s masts and spars, further underscores the active role ‘Barnabas’ plays in celebrating and maintaining maritime traditions.

The Barnabas has also been selected as a National Historic Ship Flagship for 2025, awarded in recognition of her plans for an exciting sailing season incorporating the Semaine Du Golfe de Morbihan, Falmouth Classics, Looe Luggers and a visit to the Isles of Scilly, as well as opportunities to promote lug rig in conjunction with other historic craft.

This brings us back to the heart of our mission: restoring the Newlyn Old Quay. As this award demonstrates, these historic luggers, like ‘Barnabas’, are a living testament to our rich Cornish maritime heritage. Our project actively seeks support to bring the Old Quay back into use and provide a home for these historic vessels to their former glory and keep the spirit of our community alive.

As Dave Gander, CMT and ‘Barnabas’ skipper, so eloquently put it, “Each lugger tells a story of Newlyn’s Maritime past, a story that intertwines courage, community and the sea. The vessels and the skills to sail them, are an irreplaceable part of our cultural heritage”.

The restoration of the Old Quay is not just about preserving wood and stone; it’s about preserving this irreplaceable part of our cultural heritage for generations to come. The award given to ‘Barnabas’ reinforces the importance of this goal.

Get Involved!

To learn more about the Cornish Maritime Trust and their work, please visit their website (www.cornishmaritimetrust.org) and follow them on social media (Facebook and Instagram). And to support our efforts to restore the Newlyn Old Harbour and provide a fitting home for these magnificent vessels, please visit our website (newlynoldharbour.co.uk).

With Easter looming and the expected return of vessels to their morrings in the Old Harbour work has been carried out on several fronts – from weeding to welding!

A search was made outside the old quay wall on the sea side and many flat stones were retrieved, inclusing one that has been missing for over 100 years as evidenced by old photos! These and other suitably shaped granite stones are being stockpiled ready to fill in the missing spaces before being fixed in place with granite grit from Castle-an-Dinas quarry after which the surface will be pointed with lime mortar. The work for this being directed by experts from English Heritage and the National Trust stonemasonry teams

On Tuesday, 18th March, Charlie Johns Archeologist and Louise Whitby, County Council Development Officer for Historic and Environment Planning took the oportunty to get a first-hand look at the work in progress and advise on the next stage of surface restoration.

The surface of the old quay is slowly being cleared of weeds and previous repair patches of crumbling tarmac and cement. This will be replaced by a mixture of lime mortar and grit to provide a more stable surface and prevent weed growth in the future ,which caused the surface to deteriorate in the past.

Helping out with the work, the fishing company Waterdance provided the services of their telehandler to assist in removing all three new ladders after they have had their quay brackets fitted in place – they have now removed to be sent away for the application of a protective coating.

The damaged granite edge stone was removed allowing for the surface underneath to be cleaned and prepared in readiness for the arrival of its replacement.

Back in the day when the quay was built, a horse team and cart would have deleivered stone from a local quarry and ‘A’ frame cranes would have been employed to lift and position the stone inplace. Today’s technical advances means that this job can be carried out by a single machine.

Here is Bernard Evans in 2012 sporting his familiar Breton fishermen’s cap during the last Lugger’s Painting Day with his depiction of the Barnabas, Happy Return and Ripple. It was probably one of the last times he was out and about to enjoy painting in the harbour.

Once the restoration work has been completed this and other scens involving the local luggers and other historic vessels will become a familiar sight as the old quay once more becomes a hive of historical activity!

Once the new ladder ironwork has had the mounts fixed in place, the ladders will go away to have a three-part protective finish applied using the same technology that protects wind farm platforms.

In the meantime, two more ironwork jobs remain. The repair of damaged handrails and the replacement of mooring rings on the Old Quay itself.

The replacement handrail posts are currently with Canon’s Town based Pencarn Forge who are awaiting the delivery of a small batch of wrought iron bar with which to complete the missing handrail sections, including new curled ends that match the others for the Red Lion Slip section.

Pre-installation of new steel ladders.

Built at the ocal workshop of JT Fabrications, the new ladders have been designed to meet the current ladder spcifications for ports and harbours while making access to and from the decks of historic wrking vessels as easy as possible.

Each of the ladders had to be temporairly fixed in place in order to position the quay side fixing plates which will hold them off the quay after the final fitting. Stainless bolts embedded in epoxy resin were used to fit those plates in place. The ladder rungs have to be a minimum of 200mm away from the facing stonework.

Once all the ladders have been fitted in place and the mounting plates aligned they will all be rermoved and sent away for surface finishing. This will be a three-coat system – the same used to protect the steel base pedastels that support winfarm turbines at sea.