Molesey Lock

[Newbroom]

Help settle an argument with my old boating buddy. We were discussing our early boating days on the Thames and I happened to mention that I remembered Molesey Lock being manned 24 hrs.
He says I cant possibly remember that as he is a few years older than me and it hasn't been 24 hrs in his time.
I believed it was 24 hrs until Coxs Mill on the Wey stopped barging flour.
There is £5.00 riding on this. Anybody throw any light on it I haven't been able to find anything on tinternet

Dave

 

[Chris_d]

It has had out of hours power for a long time unlike the other locks further up, not sure about a lockkeeper though.

 

[Wavey]

I have a vague recollection that Molesey was 24 hours back in the 60s but can't find anything on the web to substantiate that.

 

[BG1]

I've had the same argument with a friend of mine. I have somewhere, the Thames handbook that came with the licence for 1973, that shows Teddington and Molesey Locks both 24hr working. Hope this helps.

 

[Newbroom]

I've had the same argument with a friend of mine. I have somewhere, the Thames handbook that came with the licence for 1973, that shows Teddington and Molesey Locks both 24hr working. Hope this helps.

That is even later than I thought. My first time on the river was in 1969 when I helped the tug from toughs boat yard tow a 90 ft steel boat called Helga from a mooring in Desborough channel back to Toughs yard.
The crew on the tug did not want to go through Molesey till after 6 when most of the private and hire boats had tied up for the night and that they would then catch top of the tide at Teddington.

 

[rotrax]

My brother caught what might have been a record Dace from Molesey Lock in about 1962.

He hooked it in the lock chamber, played it and then lifted it gently up the wall.

It was not a Chub-easy to tell when you no how-and it was WELL over a pound in weight.

It was mid June-first day of the season, and first light-5.30 AM ish.

A lockie came up while we were examining the fish, told us to chuck it back ASAP and to bugger off even quicker.

Fishing was not allowed in the lock-quite right too-but the lock was manned even at that time of the morning.

We would often see the lovely narrow boats working in pairs, also the drab BWB ones, all heavily loaded with goods.

The full 3 month freeze up of 1962/3 finished that trade off.

 

[djm]

Just in case that fiver hasn't been paid yet, here's confirmation from the 1976 Thames Launch Digest.

 

[Actionmat]

Henley looks very different in that cover shot. No large cruisers, Hobbs tour boats or pink trousers in sight

 

[Newbroom]

Just in case that fiver hasn't been paid yet, here's confirmation from the 1976 Thames Launch Digest.

View attachment 59859

Well done conclusive proof. thank you

 

[Geoffs]

It certainly was open 24hrs. I went through at 1am November 1971, it was freezing cold and I remember the lock keeper saying 'watch out for the brass monkeys swimming in the lock cut'. I was doing a delivery trip with a narrow boat, from Birmingham , and was keen to get to Staines m