From the late 1860s the Horlock family of Mistley Essex, owned many of the best known wooden built barges that traded carrying cargo all over the east coast. Their barges worked the ports from Suffolk to Kent and into the docks of London. They would carry a host of different types of cargo from cement and paraffin to timber and grain. The Horlocks as well as successful business men and keen sailors, had a shrewd eye for saving money and moving the game on. In the 1920s there were already lots of steel barges trading on the rivers. Steel barges, whilst in those days were considered less traditional and ‘pretty’ could carry more cargo than wooden barges of the same size, because the way they were constructed gave them more space in the hold area than their wooden equivalents. They were also lighter, more agile and cost less to maintain. In 1924 the Horlocks commissioned seven new steel Thames barges, of which Xylonite was the third. These ‘seven sisters’ that are all still afloat, with the exception of the Blue Mermaid which was lost in WW2, were built at Mistley and are detailed below –

Name	Active	Built	Tons	Official no.	Current owner
Repertor	Yes	1924	69	145404	David Pollock
Portlight	No	1925	68	145405	Landbreach Ltd
Xylonite	Yes	1926	68	145408	Chris Palmer
Reminder	Yes	1929	79	161033	Topsail Charters Ltd
Adieu	Yes	1929	79	161035	Iolo Brooks
Blue Mermaid	No	1930	79	161038	N/A
Resourceful	No	1930	77	161039	I & R Stubbs