Lister win the day
At last, we are moving forward on all fronts; shortly Brian and Shaun
will be in a position to start working on Endeavour's mast and spars, and we
are progressing elsewhere too.
After much research on the internet we were able to locate quite a number
of possible engines for Endeavour including Volvo, Perkins, Ford and Lister.
We gave very serious consideration to all these engines but since she had a
Lister Blackstone in her during her early life and during the time of going
to Dunkirk, it was decided that Lister would be our preferred choice. So,
after approaching Lister direct and informing them that traditionally
Endeavour always had a Lister engine, that she had a Lister engine when she
went to Dunkirk, and that on a number of occasions she won the local trawler
race and lifted the 'Lister cup', they decided to make us an offer that we
just could not refuse. They will therefore be supplying us with a Lister
Petter 40 HP diesel engine at about £2,000 below the current list price. So
when Endeavour takes to the water once again 'in spring of 2005', she will
again be propelled by a Lister engine, of very similar size to the one that
was last in her.
A Multiplicity of Components
We
are now well under way with arranging the purchase of the major components
that are needed for Endeavour. Thank you to those who have helped by
providing photographs of Endeavour under sail or just as she was in her
early days! It all helps to get her restoration right, so if you have an old
photo of Endeavour please let one of the Trust officers know.
We have ordered the mast and spars and they will be ready by the end of
May. Then we will be in a position to order the sails. A company called
North Sea Sails, who have worked a lot with Brian and Shaun in the past,
have been helping us with working out just how they should be and the more
accurate information we can assemble the better. Then we will be able to go
out and get quotations to provide the sails by the latter part of the year,
in plenty of time for them to be fitted to Endeavour as soon as she is ready
to receive them.
The
multiplicity of components needed is quite mind-boggling. We have already
been given quite a large number of useful items and have them in store, and
as you can imagine, storage space is at a premium. But don't let that put
you off if you can help to provide some much needed equipment please get in
touch with Peter Wexham or David Spurgeon to find out whether what you have
is just what we need. The items we will have to acquire range from the quite
large like a clinker built skiff in order to get aboard when the tides in,
to spoons to be able to stir the tea.
At our last management meeting, Mike made a joke about not needing a big
oar to row her and in unison Peter, David and Keith pointed out that one
thing we do need is a big oar. Not to row with but to push on, Endeavour
always carried an oar about sixteen feet long which was used to stop her
going too firmly aground and to help turn her in Leigh creek.
So as you might by now have realised, when Mike and Peter did their
original estimate, with the help of John Millgate, which has proved to be
remarkably accurate, they were only thinking about the big things. They just
took the broad overview not a detailed inventory, therefore the more of the
little things we can gather over the period of the restoration, the better.
Dunkirk - according to the BBC
Before the recent three-part TV programme on Dunkirk was broadcast the
papers were full of claims that it would show that 'Leigh cocklers only went
to Dunkirk because they were paid'. Understandably there was an outcry, and
Reta was much quoted, showing her understandable anger at the insinuation.
But, that wasn't what went out in the programme, and one wonders why? Was
it because they took it out of the broadcast, or was the pre-publicity
intended to stir it up and get people watching it? Probably we shall never
know, but it left a nasty taste.
The programme itself was extremely effective in showing the total horror
of war. All too often battles are shown in a macho way, which glorifies
them.
It was particularly pleasing that the Renown disaster wasn't altered for
dramatic effect; indeed the only odd thing was the destroyer helmsman being
told to steer 'one point to starboard' - very, very precise!!
I was left with the realisation of the responsibility we all have to
ensure the real heroes are recognised and remembered by following
generations by using that old lady Endeavour as a centrepiece.
Mike
Date for your Diary
Our Trust AGM for 2004 will be held on Friday July 23rd
at 7.30pm in room 3 (Canteen Room) at Wesley Methodist Church in Elm Road,
Leigh. We have decided to move to Wesley so that we can have a good sized
room on the ground floor in order to provide easy access for all our
members. So please mark this date in your diary and perhaps we can have an
even better attended meeting than last year. Further details about the
nights events will, be in the next edition of this newsletter.
I have been asked by the remaining members of what was the Southend and
District Dunkirk Veterans Association to make you aware of their Anniversary
Church Service. They are all members of the Endeavour Trust and Frank Grove
their very last Chairman tells me that the service will be held at St. John
the Baptist Church in Church Road, Southend on Sunday 30th May 2004
at 11am. God willing, all seven will be in attendance as will the Mayor of
Southend and they would be very pleased to welcome any members of the Trust
who are able to attend. They laid up their standard on Sunday 10th September
2000 and it is kept at St. John the Baptist Church for safe keeping.
Keith
Membership Renewal Now 1st September
Over the life of the Trust, our membership has risen from about thirty
five to about one hundred and seventy. Whilst this is great and I hope it
continues it also has its downside; as people have taken out membership with
the Trust, I have given them a renewal date twelve months on from joining.
This has resulted in a situation now where we have members needing to renew
their membership in most months of the year which creates an awful lot of
work.
Therefore, at the last management meeting it was agreed to move
everyone's membership to the same renewal date, the beginning of our
financial year, 1st September of every year. So, from now on, everybody's
membership is due for renewal on the first of September.
March 2004 Newsletter
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