Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online

Get access

Bow hauling
(1,374 words)

1. System

In bow hauling, river boats (Inland navigation) were pulled on a long line from the bank, using human or animal muscle power, usually upstream (see fig. 1). On canals with little or no current, it was done in both directions. The practice relies upon the provision of a continuous, fixed tow path along the watercourse, the installation and maintenance of which (e.g. repairs after flooding, keeping the riverbank free of vegetation, see also River control), like the deployment of hu…

Cite this page
Ellmers, Detlev, “Bow hauling”, in: Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online, Editors of the English edition: Graeme Dunphy, Andrew Gow. Original German Edition: Enzyklopädie der Neuzeit. Im Auftrag des Kulturwissenschaftlichen Instituts (Essen) und in Verbindung mit den Fachherausgebern herausgegeben von Friedrich Jaeger. Copyright © J.B. Metzlersche Verlagsbuchhandlung und Carl Ernst Poeschel Verlag GmbH 2005–2012. Consulted online on 19 March 2024 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2352-0272_emho_COM_029047>
First published online: 2015
First print edition: 20160907



▲   Back to top   ▲