Ratho
Rev Mackay approached The Order of St John for £10,000 necessary to buy a boat and meet its immediate running costs. The boat purchased was Claire Hanmer's original craft, which was renamed The St John Crusader. The naming ceremony took place in 1979 at Wester Hailes and was attended by the Duke of Hamilton.
They had nowhere to dock the boat initially, but this problem was soon solved by the generosity of the landlord of the Bridge Inn at Ratho, Ronnie Rusack who also administered a booking system from his premises for the Trust.
Rev Mackay was anxious that the Trust should have its own accommodation, and acquired a partially built canal side facility at Wester Hailes. This was soon to prove beneficial for the canal as its presence prevented the blocking off of the waterway at the building of the new M8 Motorway. An aqueduct crossing was provided instead keeping the waterway open.
The St John Crusader was joined by the Janet Telford. The Janet Telford was soon found to be too small for use by the Trust and was sold to the Forth and Clyde Canal Society. She was replaced by the Mackay Seagull, which is still in operation today. The St John Crusader is not in use today and has been replaced by the St John Crusader II which came into service in 1996. The St John Crusader is still based at Ratho.
Read more about this topic: Seagull Trust