Keelmen

Keelmen were people who lived a long time ago and worked on boats that carried big heavy things called "keels" on a river. The keels were like big rafts made out of wood that were used to transport things like coal and other goods from one place to another. The keelmen had a really important job because without them, these heavy things couldn't be moved around easily.

The keelmen had to work really hard, they would use long poles to push the keels along the river and make sure they didn't crash into things or get stuck. They sometimes had to steer around rocks and other obstacles in the water too. When they were finished, they would unload the keels and make sure that everything had arrived safely.

The life of a keelman was not easy, but it was very important, and they were respected for their hard work. Some lucky keelmen even had dogs who would help them on the boats – but most of the time it was just the keelmen and their trusty poles making sure everything got where it needed to go.