Itchen ferry

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An Itchen Ferry is a small gaff-rigged sailing boat used for fishing in the Solent and nearby waters, and it was often raced in town regattas. It’s believed they sometimes carried passengers across the River Itchen between Woolston and Southampton before 1836, though the evidence isn’t clear. The place where the boats came from was called Itchen Ferry Village. The term Itchen Ferry was also used for the Floating Bridge when it opened in 1836 to meet Woolston’s growing demand as the railways arrived. The new ferry made the old boats redundant for carrying people, though they continued to be used for fishing. The original Itchen Ferry hull design was later used by Drummond Bayne (Marine) Ltd in Southampton to make small yachts about 22 to 25 feet long, also known as Itchen Ferry. Production was mainly in the 1970s, but some of these boats are still in use.