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History of Sailing Barge Kitty

One of 37 barges built by J & H Cann at Gas House Creek, Harwich, Kitty was built in 1895. Cann's were renowned for both high quality workmanship and a reputation for building fast vessels. This reputation for speed is evidenced by the number of East Coast Barge races she has won over the years.

Construction

Kitty is 25 metres in length, with a 6.5 metre beam; she is massively built on oak frames and floors and clad in 3 and 4 inch pitch pine. She still has her original pine keelson 0.4 metres square and 23 metres long. Her spritsail rig has a sail area of almost 3000 square feet and her gross tonnage is 79 tons and is capable of carrying a cargo of 150 tons.