Cambria’s compass in memory of Tony Ellis

Here’s the Compass which was presented to sb Cambria in memory of Tony Ellis, and a close up of the brass plate commemorating the occasion.

Tony Ellis was the inspiration behind the project to restore Cambria.   It was he who eventually persuaded The Maritime Trust to sell the rapidly deteriorating vessel to The Cambria Trust for one pound.   It took twenty years to complete the project and for Cambria to rejoin the fleet of Thames sailing barges.

Sadly Tony Ellis died in 2008, three years before Cambria sailed again.   The Ellis family donated a sum to enable a large old compass to be bought and installed on the barge as a memorial to Tony and it was blessed at a short memorial service during the re-dedication of Cambria in May 2012.

 

 

Cambria’s aft cabin lamp back in place

A nostalgic piece of Cambria’s history was hung back in place this afternoon. The Aft cabin lamp that can be seen in a picture that appears in Dick Durham’s ‘The Last Sailorman’ and the Maritime Trust Pamphlet about the Cambria has been restored by Project Manager William Collard. It was donated some years ago and William has sourced new wicks from Ebay of all places, along with a new shade from an antique shop in Shropshire and a lamp chimney from Weymouth. He had a hole that had been used to run electric flex welded up in the font to restore it to its original state and this afternoon it burned brightly once again in the cabin it first shone in many moons ago.

Photograph & Story  –  Dave Brooks