Engineering:Flat-bottomed boat
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A flat-bottomed boat is a boat with a shallow draft,[1][2][3][4][5] two-chined hull, which allows it to be used in shallow bodies of water, such as rivers, because it is less likely to ground.
The flat hull also makes the boat more stable in calm water, which is good for hunters and anglers. However this design becomes less stable in choppy water. This is because it causes the boat to travel on the water, instead of through it, as a boat with a rounded or V-shaped hull would.
Flat hulls are simple to construct, making them popular with boat-building hobbyists.
In Britain they came to popular notice during the planned French invasion of Britain in 1759, when a large-number of flat-bottomed boats were prepared by the French to ferry their invasion force across the channel and a number were destroyed during the British Raid on Le Havre. The flat-bottoms are mentioned in the song Heart of Oak written by David Garrick during 1759.
Types
- Barge
- Bateau
- Bull boat
- Car float
- Coracle
- Currach
- Dory
- Durham boat
- Dutch barge
- Flatboat
- Gondola
- Johnboat
- Keelboat
- Landing Ship, Tank
- Norfolk punt
- Pirogue
- Pontoon boat
- Pram
- Punt
- Pünte
- Quffah
- Sandolo
- Scow
- Sharpie (boat)
- Thames sailing barge
- Trow
See also
- Horse-drawn boat
- Pedalo
- Pusher (boat)
- Towpath
References
- ↑ Cecelski, David S. (2012). "Glossary". The Waterman's Song: Slavery and Freedom in Maritime North Carolina (1st ed.). Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press. p. 215. ISBN 9780807869727. https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Waterman_s_Song/AKQ1p1nJog8C. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
- ↑ Huang, Chunyan (2024). "Load Capacities and Shapes and Sizes of Ships in the Song Dynasty". A Panoramic View of the Song Dynasty Through the Lens of Shipbuilding Industry (1st 2024 ed.). Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore. p. 51. ISBN 978-981-97-6127-2. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-97-6128-9. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
- ↑ Harding, Richard, ed (30 November 2017). Naval History 1680-1850. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-351-12665-6. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351126656. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
- ↑ McGrail, Sean (1994). "The Brigg ‘raft’: a flat-bottomed boat". International Journal of Nautical Archaeology 23 (4): 283–288. doi:10.1111/j.1095-9270.1994.tb00473.x. ISSN 1095-9270. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1095-9270.1994.tb00473.x. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
- ↑ Why is a Flat-Bottomed Boat So Dangerous?. BBC Earth Explore. 15 May 2025. Retrieved 9 November 2025 – via YouTube.
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