There were 77 members at the meeting alongside 2 visitors.

It was a special day as we were fundraising for MacMillan.  We had many of our ‘bakers’ bring buns and cakes.  There was a fabulous choice to be had and we raised £319.15 for the charity.

So then on to our speaker, Keith Small, with his second presentation on the river Trent.  This time he was focussing on the industrial landscape around the river and some of its history.  Interestingly, the Trent is known as the Trespasser or ‘the one that overflows’ which I am sure many of the members, if not all, readily identified with. 

A quick roundup of the industries around the river was like a compendium of different types of industry, from textiles to pharmaceuticals and  many others including leisure activities such as fishing and boating.

He explained how the Trent Mersey canal came into being and was diverted to the 6 towns of The Potteries at the request of Josiah Wedgwood to enable him to move his pottery much more easily than by road, and with less breakages.  This was the golden age of the canals.

He continued his talk telling us all about the decline of the steel industry in Scunthorpe which led to a decline in the use of the canal thereabouts.

Lastly, he touched on electricity and the Trent whereby, at one time, 25% of the power for England and Wales came from the 13 coal fired power station located along the river.