A lighterman is a worker who operates a lighter, a type of flat-bottomed barge, which may be powered or unpowered. In the latter case, it is usually moved by a powered tug. The term is particularly associated with the highly skilled men who operated the unpowered lighters moved by oar and water currents in the Port of London.
Watermen's Hall (1778-80), by William Blackburn.
19th-century lightering
Barge often refers to a flat-bottomed inland waterway vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. The first modern barges were pulled by tugs, but on inland waterways, most are pushed by pusher boats, or other vessels. The term barge has a rich history, and therefore there are many other types of barges.
Barges towed by a tugboat on the River Thames in London, England, UK
A British Airways Concorde being towed in New York City, USA. It is on a deck barge.
River barge below Barton Aqueduct c. 1793
A Dutch barge in Namur