| Meeting Report December 4th 2006 |
| We held the branch AGM at our December meeting, the minutes of the previous AGM held in December 2005 were read and approved and the chairman secretary and treasurer gave their reports. After a vote the standing committee were re-elected en bloc and the following members form the 2006/7 committee; chairman, David Brown; secretary and treasurer, Ian Wells; vice chairman Robin Butcher, and committee members, Roy Leach , Andrew Smith and Ray Smith. Ray Smith and Tony Hogwood were adopted as joint auditors. We try and keep our AGMs short and this proved no exception. We handed over the rest of the evening to Ian Wells who showed us his collection of slides taken in the Royal Docks in 1972. Ian�s career with the Port of London Authority started in the docks but he had been moved to the PLA Head Office in the City. After a reorganisation in 1972 Ian found himself, much to his great pleasure, back in the Royal Docks. He was however one of a very few of his colleagues from the City delighted with the move out to the �business� end of the PLA. Fortunately for us even whilst at work, his camera was never far away, and the fruits of his labours formed the unique catalogue of visitors to the docks at that time. This was a time when boxes were just appearing and often carried as deck cargo on regular freighters and liners. There were still a large number of lighters working on the Thames and many a dockside shot showed lighters alongside accepting cargo discharged by ships derricks. There were still a large number of war built standards around and still a few pre-war examples also. Of the newer built the smartest and most modern looking were those of Messageries Maritimes with their shiny black hulls. Other companies with representatives in the show were Cunard, Ellerman and Shaw Saville to name just a few. The Russians were well represented, as were Greeks and the Balkan states. There were some interesting shots of the raiasing of the PLA tug Plangent which sank in the Thames near the lock gates after suffering damage in one of the locks. She survived her ordeal and lived to work another day. We thank Ian for his accomplished commentary and ship research, and we look forward to some further of the same in January. |
| AGM and Shipping in the Royal Docks 1972 |