President is an historic, steam-powered narrowboat, built in 1909 by Fellows Morton and Clayton (FMC) at their dock at Saltley, Birmingham, England. It is now owned by the Black Country Living Museum, where it is based.
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Early Years [link]
The 71 feet (22 m) long[1] President was constructed in 1909 at FMC's company dock in Saltley,[2] and cost £600.[3] She was registered on 23 June that year.[3] Her riveted, wrought iron hull is shaped in the 'Josher' style, named for FMC director Joshua Fellows.[3]
In 1925, the Ruston, Proctor and Company steam boiler and engine were replaced by a 15hp Bolinder crude oil engine.[3]
Ernest Thomas, a director of FMC, and a Walsall based coal carrier, acquired the boat in 1946.[3] She was sold to George and Matthews of Wolverhampton in 1948,[3] but that year the UK's canals were nationalised and she finished her working days as part of British Waterways' northern maintenance fleet, on the Trent and Mersey, Macclesfield and Shropshire Union canals, from a base at Northwich.[3]
Preservation [link]
President was bought by Nicholas Bostock and Malcolm Braine in 1973, as a derelict hull.[3] They restored the hull and constructed a replica cabin and boiler room.[3] A 1928 Muir and Findley “Scotch” return boiler, similar to that originally used, but operating at 100 PSI was acquired and fitted,[3] as was a twin cylinder steam engine, originally used in a Thames launch.[3] The boat returned to service in 1978.[3]
Black Country Living Museum [link]
President was purchased by the Black Country Living Museum in January 1983.[2] The boiler was replaced by a Cochran dryback return flue boiler in 1990.[3] A major refit took place from 2001–2003, including the provision of a new steam engine, pipework and cabin, plus major hull repairs.[3]
President, in FMC livery, normally operates with a butty boat, Kildare.[3]
On 3 June 2012, President took part in the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant in London, representing the Lord-Lieutenant of Staffordshire,[4] having spent three weeks making the journey from Etruria Industrial Museum, Stoke-on-Trent,[4] at an average speed of 3mph.[1]
Bibliography [link]
- Ratcliffe, Neil J. (2009-05). Steam Narrow Boat "President": The First Hundred Years. Black Country Museum Trust Ltd.. ISBN 0956203108.
References [link]
- ^ a b "President and the Thames Pageant". Staffordshire County Council. https://www.staffordshire.gov.uk/leisure/DiamondJubilee/President-and-the-Thames-Pageant.aspx. Retrieved 5 June 2012.
- ^ a b "Steam Narrow Boat President". https://nb-president.org.uk/. Retrieved 5 June 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "History". https://nb-president.org.uk/history/. Retrieved 5 June 2012.
- ^ a b "Staffordshire Send Off for Narrow Boat President En Route to London for the Diamond Jubilee". Inland Waterways Association. 2012-04-19. https://www.waterways.org.uk/news_campaigns/other_news/staffordshire_send_off_for_narrow_boat_president_en_route_to_london_for_the_diamond_jubilee. Retrieved 5 June 2012.
External links [link]
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President
A president is the leader of a country or a division or part of a country, typically a republic, a democracy, or a dictatorship. The title "president" is sometimes used by extension for leaders of other groups, including corporate entities.
Etymologically, a president is one who presides (from Latin prae- "before" + sedere "to sit"; giving the term praeses). Originally, the term referred to the presiding officer of a ceremony or meeting (i.e., chairman), but today it most commonly refers to an executive official. Among other things, "President" today is a common title for the heads of state of most republics, whether presidential republics, semi-presidential republics or parliamentary republics.
Title
The title President is derived from the Latin prae- "before" + sedere "to sit." As such, it originally designated the officer who presides over or "sits before" a gathering and ensures that debate is conducted according to the rules of order (see also chairman and speaker). Early examples are from the universities of Oxford and Cambridge (from 1464) and the founding President of the Royal Society William Brouncker in 1660. This usage survives today in the title of such offices as "President of the Board of Trade" and "Lord President of the Council" in the United Kingdom, as well as "President of the Senate" (one of the roles constitutionally assigned to the Vice-President of the United States). The officiating priest at certain Anglican religious services, too, is sometimes called the "President" in this sense. However the most common modern usage is as the title of a head of state in a republic.
President of Angola
The President of the Republic of Angola (Presidente da República de Angola in Portuguese) is both head of state and head of government in Angola. According to the constitution adopted in 2010, the post of Prime Minister is abolished; executive authority belongs to the President who has also a degree of legislative powers, as he can govern by decree.
The position of President dates from Angola's independence from Portugal. Agostinho Neto held the position when his then Marxist Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) won control of the country from the Portuguese. When Neto died in 1979, José Eduardo dos Santos succeeded him.
Under Dos Santos's leadership, Angola became a multi-party state, although controlled by Dos Santos. The most recent elections, held in 1992, reelected Dos Santos with 49% of the votes. Dos Santos's opponent, Jonas Savimbi of the National Union for Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) party, claimed that the elections were fraudulent.
Gouais blanc
Gouais blanc (French pronunciation: [ɡu.ɛ blɑ̃]) or Weißer Heunisch (German pronunciation: [ˈvaɪsɐ ˈhɔʏnɪʃ]) is a white grape variety that is seldom grown today but is important as the ancestor of many traditional French and German grape varieties. The name Gouais derives from the old French adjective ‘gou’, a term of derision befitting its traditional status as the grape of the peasants. Likewise, the German name Weißer Heunisch labels it as one the lesser, Hunnic grapes.
History
Gouais is known to have been widely planted in central and northeastern France in Medieval times. At this time, it was used to produce simple, acidic white wines, and were primarily grown in less good plots that were not suited for the much more highly regarded Pinot noir or Pinot gris. Gouais Blanc was thus the grape of the peasantry rather than of the nobility.
Its history before Medieval times is not known with any certainty, but is the subject of much conjecture, in similarity to many other grape varieties with a long history. Gouais blanc has been proposed as a candidate for the grape given to the Gauls by Marcus Aurelius Probus (Roman Emperor 276–282), who was from Pannonia and who overturned Domitian's decree banning grape growing north of the Alps. Another hypothesis claims it originates specifically in Croatia (or Pannonia), but the Vitis International Variety Catalogue currently lists it as originating from Austria, which should probably be interpreted as "likely to originate somewhere in Central Europe".
