Meaning
A person who worked on a barge transporting goods along rivers and canals.
Description
Bargemen lived and worked on flat-bottomed vessels carrying heavy cargoes of coal, grain, timber, stone and manufactured goods along the inland waterway network. Many bargemen lived permanently on their boats with their families, creating distinctive floating communities. The canal system expanded rapidly from the 1760s and bargemen were essential to the industrial economy before the railways. With the coming of the railways many canal carriers struggled but barge traffic on major waterways continued well into the 20th century. Bargemen developed their own customs, crafts and decorative traditions.
Also Known As
Canal Boatman, Waterman, Lighterman
Commonly Found In
- Census Returns
- Parish Registers
- Canal Company Records
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