From the earliest days until the mid-18th century the Thames was the preferred route for travelling east-west across London, and a barrier which had to be crossed by boat to travel north-south. By boat, because the roads were very poor and there was only one bridge. In 1510 Henry VIII set up a licencing system for watermen, or wherrymen, and in 1555 the watermen were incorporated to control tariffs and impose safety regulations. In 1700 the watermen joined forces with the lightermen (who carried cargo rather than passengers) to form the Company of Watermen and Lightermen. See also Doggett's Coat and Badge.
This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Thames watermen
Commemorated ati
wherrymen seat
{On the modern plaque above:} The Ferryman's seat located on previous buildin...
Other Subjects
Donald Campbell
Land and water speed record-holder. Born Donald Malcolm Campbell, Canbury, Kingston Hill, Surrey. After the death of his father (Sir Malcolm Campbell), he decided to defend his water title and rega...
1 memorial
5 memorials
1 memorial
Paul Atterbury
As this is a fairly unusual name, we are presuming he's the same person who is one of the experts on the BBC television series 'Antiques Roadshow'. He has also written about railways.
1 memorial
Charles Tyson Yerkes
First things first - pronounce his name to rhyme to with turkeys. He has a claim to having created London Transport. Born Philadelphia. The memorial describes him as 'creative' and 'imaginative' ...
2 memorials