Watermen & Lightermen
In 1514 the earliest Act of Parliament for regulating watermen, wherrymen and bargemen received Royal Assent from King Henry VIII.
In 2014 the Company is celebrating the 500th anniversary of that Act.
Under this Act the Company introduced apprenticeships for those wishing to learn the skills of the Watermen. In 1700 the Lightermen (carriers of goods/cargo) joined the Watermen’s Company.
The Company is a working guild and is still actively involved with the life of the River and those that work on it.
For more information, visit http://www.watermenshall.org/index.html