Oxford is the home of Salter Brothers who have run pleasure cruise streamers on the Thames since 1888. Most of the steamers of this type were built by the company and, originally, were powered by steam engines. The engines were replaced by diesel motors between the 1940s and 1960s. As a child, I can remember some of these craft lowering the funnel to pass under Caversham bridge. Sadly, as the pleasure cruising industry declined, quite a few of these magnificent vessels have been sold off or scrapped though, thankfully, several survive and still ply the Thames on a regular basis in the summer months. This is Wargrave, built in 1913 by Salters. ------------------------------------------ Original Photograph: 6 May 2012