Moored alongside the quay at Cotehele House, ancestral home of the Edgcumbe family, is the sailing barge Shamrock, an interesting little craft and part of Falmouth's unique maritime history.

On a trip to east Cornwall I spent a day at this idyllic spot on the banks of the Tamar exploring the riverside and finding out more about this dapper sailing barge that once plied the River Fal carrying stone from the Lizard peninsula to Truro.

Found in a derelict state on the Tamar Shamrock was acquired by the National Trust in 1974 in a joint venture with the National Maritime Museum. During a four year period the barge was fully restored.

Built as a ketch-rigged inside barge in 1899 by Frederick Hawke, of Stonehouse, Plymouth, Shamrock was designed to carry specialised cargoes up and down the River Tamar. Normally, these cargoes had to be discharged into horse drawn carts on an open beach hence the specific design of an inside barge which has much flatter bottoms, wider beam, broad transom and small cargo hold, typical of Westcountry barges.

At 31 tons Shamrock is 57 feet 06 inches in length, 18 feet one inch beam and depth in her cargo hold of five feet four inches. Shamrock carried mainly manure and fertiliser from Torpoint to Plymouth. To the small hamlets such as Cotehele she carried coal, stone. limestone, bricks and sand.

In 1919 she was converted into a smack rigged auxiliary barge when her mizzen mast was removed. Fitted with a 30hp paraffin engine that gave her a top speed of six knots she entered the roadstone trade carrying stone between the River Lynher to all points from Falmouth to Dartmouth. Later she was based at Truro carrying roadstone from Porthoustock quarry to the council depot at Tresillian which she did until 1960.

The stone barges Silex, Regina and Sweet May regularly carried their cargoes of Blue Elvin stone to Falmouth, Gweek, Truro and the smaller inlets on the River Fal. Barges fell into two distinct categories - outside or inside barges. The bigger outside barges were engaged in the coastal trade while the inside barges plied the rivers, creeks and coves.

Carne's Brewery used the Topsy to transport beer between Truro and Falmouth. Other inside barges were the Daisy, Marion and the Maggie.