A vessel that played a key role in Tyneside's shipping industry was taken to a new home yesterday.

Elswick Number Two was the last wherry, a half-decked commercial boat, to be built on the Tyne, in 1930, and was the last one used on the river, during the 1970s.

It transported coal, raw materials and finished goods across the river, and hundreds of similar vessels served the same purpose during the Tyne's industrial heyday in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Yesterday, the boat, which is three times wider than a standard lorry, was taken on a low loader from its store in Hebburn, South Tyneside, to Beamish Museum, near Stanley, County Durham.

John Clayson, keeper of science and industry at Newcastle's Discovery Museum, which is involved in a joint project with Beamish, said: "Elswick Number Two is a very important part of Tyne and Wear Museums' maritime collections and of Tyneside's history.

"As the last surviving Tyne wherry, it is important that we keep her in a safe and controlled environment."

A large object collections centre has been created at Beamish to display the wherry and other internationally important exhibits of industrial heritage.