(From a Photograph by Frith.)
Barge, a name applied to vessels of various forms: (1) A pleasure-boat or boat of state, elegantly fitted, furnished with a band of rowers, used on state occasions. The college 'barges' at Oxford are similar boats, but are permanently moored. Such, too, are the 'house-boats' that have come so much into vogue on the Thames of recent years. (2) A flat-bottomed freight-boat, with or without sails, used on our rivers and canals, either in conveying goods from one town or quay to another, or to aid in bringing stores to and from ships. Barges without sails are often called lighters. (3) A long narrow boat belonging to a man-of-war, for the occasional use of the superior officers. (4) In the United States also, a double-decked passenger and freight vessel, without sails or power, and towed by a steamboat.