BACK HISTORY OF SITE UPDATES

No.	Publication Date	Description Of Update
62.	May 25 2010	The webmaster of 7 year's standing steps down. The vacancy is announced on the front page.
61.	April 08 2010	The founder's motives for establishing the match are included on the front page and the benefits for Patrons page is updated.
60.	June 19 2009	The results of the PLA Centenary Match on 13th. June 2009 are provided, together with the date of the next match in 2010.
59.	June 02 2009	The section "Scenes from Gravesend ..." is expanded. A note is added that an article on the Thames Match has been published in the June issue of Kent Life magazine. Information about the availability of accommodation in the local area, convenient to the event, is included via the menu bar.
58.	May 22 2009	It is announced on the front page that the classic coal fired steam tug Portwey, will be following the event.
57.	May 17 2009	The names of the barges expected to enter the 2009 event are published. The section "Pictorial Accounts Of Past Matches" has been reduced to the 76th. event in 2006 only. The "Archive" section has also been removed as part of a rationalisation of the site.
56.	April 26 2009	Starting times of the 2009 match are provided together with the availability of vessels to follow the event.
55.	Dec. 04 2008	Details of Nick Ardley's signing of his barging book in mid December 2008 are included on the front page, together with an historical research query relating to the Farnfield family of solicitors associated with the Thames Match.
54.	July 28 2008	Outline results of the 78th. Match that took place on July 12 2008 are provided, together with new photographs. The date of the 2009 Match is also provided.
53.	June 24 2008	Details relating to the availability of excursion vessels and the 78th. Match in 2008 are provided.
52.	June 22 2008	Details of the 78th. Match in 2008 are published.
51.	Dec. 26 2007	An image and account of the 12th Thames Match, in 1874, obtained from The Illustrated London News of that year has been added here.
50.	July 21 2007	Select images of the 77th. Match that took place on Sat. July 21, 2007 have been placed on the front page, together with the results of the event in terms of the winning barges. The Timekeeper's Report is available here.
49.	June 25 2007	Images of the poster promoting the Match and the cover of the Match Programme for the forthcoming 77th. Match on July 21, 2007 have been included on the front page. It was confirmation that 14 barges are expected to compete. Amended starting times were provided in lieu of those provided in May.
48.	May 22, 2007	Details of the various ways the public can watch the forthcoming 77th. Match on July 21, 2007 have been provided on the front page, together with the barges expected to compete. A new page has been added - "Can you help us promote the match?" here.
47.	Aug. 08 2006	A pictorial account of some of the highlights of the 76th. match that took place on July 15, 2006 was made available here.
46.	July 23 2006	A correction was issued and the front page's contents changed. The Champion Barge of the Thames 2006 was corrected to state that it was Decima.
45.	July 16 2006	The results of the 76th. match that took place on July 15 2006 were provided, in terms of 1st., 2nd. & 3rd. places.
44.	July 09 2006	An announcement was made on the front page that the forthcoming match was receiving coverage in the BBC's Essex Online. A thumbnail image of the page, which provided a link to that site was provided. Visitors' information on car parking in Gravesend and Tilbury, together with the cross river ferry service was also added here.
43.	June 29 2006	Further information on fares, embarkation time and place for the MV X-Pilot which is available to follow the 2006 Match has been provided on the front page.
42.	June 26 2006	Information on using the MV Duchess M - the Gravesend - Tilbury ferry as an ideal way to watch the barges preparing for the start of the 2006 Match was provided. Also the Jolly Drayman, in Gravesend, was suggested as a convenient local source of accommodation for people travelling to watch the match.
41.	June 16 2006	A provisional list of the barges with their Masters which are expected to compete in the 2006 match was included on the front page, as provided by the Hon. Secretary. Hyperlinks were included in those barges' names that are available to charter by the public.
40.	June 05 2006	An invitation to join the Match Patrons' scheme [the details of which are here] and support the 76th. Match in 2006, was included on the front page.
39.		There was no update associated with this number - a webmaster's error occurred. Apologies.
38.		There was no update associated with this number - a webmaster's error occurred. Apologies.
37.	March 19 2006	A notice was placed explaining that additional information was available regarding the arrangements for the public to view the Match on July 15 2006. In addition to SB Cabby and MV X-Pilot following it the PS Kingswear Castle would be coming out of the River Medway and her passengers were likely to be able to observe the middle part of the Match activity.
36.	March 12 2006	A notice was placed highlighting the fact that information was available regarding the arrangements for the public to follow the Match on July 15 2006. They are the SB Cabby and the MV X-Pilot. See here.
35.	Dec. 14 2005	The Hon. Secretary announces that the date of the next match will be Sat. July 15 2006, also that MV Princess Pocahontas will not be able to follow the match, as in the past, due to the 2006 match date clashing with a long standing annual event on the Upper Thames.
34.	Oct. 21, 2005	Capt. Julian Cass, the Officer Of the Day for the 75th. Match 2005 has kindly provided a copy of his report. It is now available here.
33.	Sep. 11, 2005	A notice was placed highlighting the fact that a three quarter column overview of the 2005 Match written by Graeme Ewens, has been published in the Oct. edition of Ships Monthly. See here.
32.	Aug. 22, 2005	A notice was placed highlighting the fact that an account of the Match written by Dan Houston, who presented the prizes, has been published in the Sept. edition of Classic Boat magazine for which he is the Editor. See here.
31.	Aug. 19 2005	The points awarded by the Sailing Barge Association [as part of the SBA Champion Barge Of The Year competition] to the participants in the 75th. Thames Match as a result of the outcome of the Match have been included on the front page, here.
30.	July 27 2005	A pictorial account of the 75th. Match which took place on Sat. July 16 2005 is provided here. It consists of over 70 photographs, many of which were taken from on board a competing barge - the SB Lady Daphne (1923), thanks to a kind invitation from Elisabeth Mainelli, the owner. The photographic contributions of Julian Cass, John Hargreaves, Barry Lawrance, Heather Rooke, and Ann Wignall are gratefully acknowledged. The list of Patrons who provided financial support for the Match and the list of companies and individuals who provided good and services for the event have also been included in the pictorial account.
29.	July 21 2005	A photo of SB Xylonite (1926) which came 1st. in the Bowsprit Class during the 2005 Match and thus became Champion Barge of the Thames was placed on the front page. A copy of the Timekeeper's Report created by John Hargreaves, the 2005 Match Timekeeper, which includes individual barge times and their time related prizes for all three classes of entrant in the 75th. match that took place on July 16, 2005 has been included here.
28.	July 10 2005	Details of this year's Race Committee as published in the 2005 Match Programme and the announcement of the prize giver have been added to the front page. The list of the all-important Patrons, also published in the Match Programme have been added here. The graphic entitled "SB Gladys in the Lower Hope, 1996 Thames Match", on the same page has been replaced by one entitled "SB Edme (1898) in Sea Reach, heading downriver towards the Outer Mark, during the 74th. Thames Match in 2004. The skill of her master, A. Harman and crew enabled her to win the Bowsprit Class and thus become the Thames Champion Barge for 2004".
27.	July 02, 2005	This year's Match Poster has been included on the front page, together with information on exhibitions at the Three Daws pub, Gravesend, on the day of the match - here. The Hon. Secretary's summary of the 2004 Match, together with the 2005 Match Programme cover, has been added to the Poster - Programme Gallery page, here.
26.	June 28, 2005	Notification of a special offer being made by the Overcliffe Hotel, Gravesend, for anyone needing to stay in Gravesend to watch the Match on Saturday July 16, 2005 was included on the front page, here. The full details continue to be provided here.
25.	June 19, 2005	The start times of the Match on Saturday July 16, 2005 have been included on the front page here, plus suggestions for watching it.
24.	May 31, 2005	The Poster page has been completely re-designed with the incorporation of the hitherto missing posters, plus the addition of all the Match Programme covers. It now provides a fascinating 10 year history here.
23.	March 23, 2005	The ticket prices for following and watching the 2005 Match on July 16 from onboard the MV Princess Pocahontas have been added here.
22.	Dec. 07, 2004	The results of the Match 1995-2004 have been converted from Microsoft Word® format to Adobe Acrobat Reader® format - PDF here., 2004
21.	Sept. 01, 2004	A link to another site which contains a photographic account of the 73rd. Match in 2003 has been made from the "Following the Match, in the MV Princess Pocahontas" page here.
20.	Aug. 24, 2004	The page on the unique Thames & Medway Canal, at Gravesend, and its modern day and historic links with the sailing barges that frequented the basin has been updated with illustrations here.
19.	Aug. 15, 2004	A new page has been added here which introduces the unique Thames & Medway Canal, at Gravesend, and its modern day and historic links with the sailing barges.
18.	Aug. 07, 2004	The pages detailing "Press Coverage" here and the "Bibliography" of books on the Match here have been rationalised. Also the layout of the page explaining how to become a Patron of the Match here has been revised, and an application form provided here. The front page of a past Newsletter for Patrons has been added here.
17.	July 29, 2004	The page relating to "Following The Match" from ashore has been updated here and the equivalent page for the Princess Pocahontas has also been updated here.
16.	July 25, 2004	The historical results table 1995-2004 has been updated here. Selected photos of the 2004 Match have been placed on the front page here.
15.	July 18, 2004	Full details of each barges' match timings for the 74th. Match on July 10th. 2004 were made available in a Microsoft Word file here. The historical results table 1995-2004 has been brought up to date with this year's results here.
14.	July 14, 2004	Information on the Yearbook has been updated here, and a mail-order form has been added here.
13.	July 02, 2004	Updates have been made to the details of the marquee, that is being organised for the public to view exhibitions relating to the London River and sailing barges, on the day of the Match, July 10, 2004, is here. The page on the Yearbook has also been updated here.
12.	June 06, 2004	The MV Princess Pocahontas passenger fare prices have been updated for this year's Match. See here. The graphics of the electronic charts which were extremely busy with excessive information that had nothing to do with the Match have been replaced with two simple top level views of the course, here. A new page has been added to provide details of a marquee that is being organised for the public to view exhibitions relating to London River and the sailing barges, on the day of the Match - July 10, 2004. See here.
11.	May 28, 2004	Information on a major new initiative by the Committee for this year - the production of a Yearbook, which is close to publication, has been added here.
10.	March 25, 2004	A correction has been made to the Henry Dodd, Bi-Centenary 1801 – 2001 page here. It was Dickens's eldest son that wrote the Dictionary of the Thames, not Dickens himself.
9.	Jan. 15, 2004	10 new entries have been made in the Bibliography page here, as a result of back copies of magazines and newspapers being supplied by the Hon. Secretary.
8.	Nov. 23, 2003	Quotations from Capt. F. S. Cooper's Racing Sailormen have been included in the "Following the match from the MV Princess Pocahontas" page, here and in the "Posters" page, here. A graphic of the front cover of Charles Dickens' Our Mutual Friend, 1864, has been added to the "History of the match" page, here. A graphic of the front cover of Charles Dickens' Dictionary Of The Thames, 1887, and one of Dickens himself, has been added to the "Henry Dodd" page, here. The Hon. Secretary's Official Summary of the 72nd. Match (2002) has been added to the Posters page, here.
7.	Nov. 14, 2003	A brief history of the Match, an overview of the form it takes and a quotation from the late Bob Roberts' autobiography Coasting Bargemaster have been included in the front page, here. A new page 'Site Info' has also been added, here.
6.	Nov. 09, 2003	Extracts from Charles Dickens' novel Our Mutual Friend, published 1865, two years after Henry Dodd inaugurated the 1st. Thames Barge Match, have been incorporated in the 'Henry Dodd, Bi-centenary 1801-2001', page here.
5.	Nov. 07, 2003	Facilities for accessing on-line maps of the various locations on the Essex and Kent coasts suggested as places for watching the Match from ashore have been included in the 'Viewing The Match From Land' section, here.
4.	Nov. 04, 2003	The Official Summary of the 67th. through to the 70th. Matches (1997 - 2000 respectively), as provided by the Hon. Sec. at the time, have been included in the Posters section, here.
3.	Nov. 02, 2003	The entries in the Bibliography have been updated, here.
2.	Oct. 30, 2003	The Back History facility i.e. the page that you are looking at now, has been included.
1.	Oct. 29, 2003	The Official Summary of the 65th. and 66th. Matches (1995 and 1996 respectively), as provided by the Hon. Secretary at the time, have been included in the Posters section, here. Match Results for each of the 65th. through to the 73rd. Matches (1995 - 2003 respectively) which include the Time keepers' Reports and the prizes awarded, have been added to the Results section here.