Name Swan

SWAN was the first of eight motor boats built by W J Yarwoods & Sons Ltd in 1933 for W H Cowburn & Cowpar, a chemical company based in Trafford Park, Manchester. Used to carry chemicals in carbuoys or drums, SWAN was then later fitted with special tanks to carry carbon disulphide to Courtaulds, based in Coventry, using Bridgewater, Trent & Mersey and Coventry canals.

SWAN was sold circa 1956 to Gordon Waddington of Bolton to carry coal from Lancashire coalfields to Runcorn gasworks, using the Bridgwater canal. No modifications have been made to SWAN; she retains her original engine (Gardner 4VT also in Skylark and Stork) and fuel tanks while the canal artwork, castles and roses painted in the 1940s or 1950s, are preserved on fittings in the back cabin. SWAN remains in good condition following a cabin restoration in 1999 and the restoration of the hull and wooden bottom in 2009.