Fifthy people gathered for our conference on Crossfield Boatbuilders in November 2023, including people from Scotland, South Coast and Canada. Crossfields of Arnside were leading builders of Morecambe Bay Prawners and yachts from 1840s from 1940s. Around 40 of their boats are still in existence, though not all sailing. The conference was chaired by Eric Crossfield, the great grandson of William Crossfield who set up the boatyard on the shore in Arnside.
The conference included talks about the history of Morecambe Bay Prawners and individual boats. The skills involved in sailing a prawner whilst fishing and sorting the catch at the same time, often single handed would most current day sailors to shame.
Boats feature in the conference included Bonita, which was built in Arnside in 1888, Laura which featured in Edward Delmar Morgan’s 1953 book “I brought a prawning boat” and the Pride of Liverpool, which is being restored by the NOA Classic Boats Association.
Laura
There was an update on the restoration of the Sailing Club’s Severn. Adam Kyffin and Ruth Taylor recounted their experiences of sailing in Severn as children in the 1960s. Severn was owned by Adam’s parents and subsequently Ruth’s parents at Porthmadog in North Wales
Pictures of Severn’s Restoration
Simon Williams, a local historian gave a talk about Matchless a boat taking holiday makers from Morecambe to Grange-over- Sands which capsized in 1894 drowning 25 people.
Pastime
A highlight of the concert was the performance of the song “Ballerina” by Dave Walters a folk singer about Pastime, a Crossfield’s boat he owned in 1970s. Andrew Price and Melinda Elder, whose father / uncle kept the boat at Menai Straits in the 1960s gave a talk about their memories of the boat. After David’s ownership Pastime sunk off Anglesey in a Force 11 gale. Dave wrote the first two verses of Ballerina when he owned her and the final verse after she had sunk. The song includes poignant lines such as “Drifting to nowhere borne by the tide” and “Sailing’s not easy two skippers on board.” Dave gave a concert in Arnside Sailing Club’s clubhouse in the evening.
Dave Walters performing in the clubhouse
We hope to repeat the conference in 2025.