AN HISTORIC sailing barge has a set of new sails thanks to the legacy of a Cotehele House volunteer.

Shamrock is one of only two surviving Tamar sailing barges; the 119 year old vessel has been moored at Cotehele Quay since the mid-1970s and is currently undergoing major renovation.

Now, a substantial legacy from former National Trust volunteer Lawrence Brodley has enabled the Trust to commission a set of hand-stitched sails for Shamrock.

‘Lawrence and his wife Janet were both room guides at Cotehele,’ said a Trust spokesperson.

‘Lawrence was especially interested in the history of the estate and was well-known and liked by the shipwrights working on Shamrock down at the quay.

‘Mrs Brodley visited Shamrock again this week to take official delivery of the new sails.’

Patrick Selman of Gaff Sails was commissioned for the task of creating the sails, and he adopted many of the traditional techniques used by the original sailmakers working in 1899.

‘The sails have been hand-cut, -roped and -stitched, so they will look the part,’ said the Trust spokesperson.

‘However, being made from modern materials, they are around a third of the weight of traditional sails and, therefore are safer and easier for the crew to work with. They’re also more durable and weather-proof, so will serve Shamrock for many years to come.

Project manager Joe Lawrence says that the eventual plan is to take Shamrock out onto Plymouth Sound for regular day trips.

‘She needs to be worked and taken into seawater to preserve her – the salt protects the wood in the hull,’ he said.

‘Having these modern sails means the crew can do this more safely and easily.’

As she met sailmaker Patrick Selman on the quayside, Janet Brodley said her husband had taken a keen interest in sailing, and that the Shamrock project had been the perfect recipient for her husband’s legacy.

‘Lawrence would be absolutely thrilled to bits with these sails.’