Saturday 31 March 2012

Children on Englands Canals (1947)

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With the recent announcement of the demise of the Encyclopaedia Britannica in printed form (It will be available on line);  I was reminded of a seemingly inauspicious  item in my collection which at first glance might be passed over as ‘just another childrens book’
As a 1947 American publication by the Encyclopaedia Brittanica it is not often seen here in the UK and was I think not issued here, being primarily intended for children in the U S.
childre on englands canals 1947095
With over 40 photographs of boat life on boats of the Grand Union Canal Carrying Companies fleet, this book  is a ‘must see’  for anyone interested in social history on Britain’s canals.childre on englands canals 1947096
The photographs – mainly of kids on the boats, also show boats at work including some unusual shots of wide beam boats on the southern Grand Union.
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Very interestingly, the title page describes the illustrations as being taken from the Encyclopaedia Brittanica film ‘The Canals of England’. Has anyone ever seen this film? I cant remember coming across it before.
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As you can see many of the shots are quite unusual in their scope and seem to have been taken on the G Union between Bulls Bridge layby and Stoke Bruerne.
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If you know anything about the film please let me know.

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