Usksider Photographic

Concluding my brief look into the history and importance of Chepstow’s once thriving port facilities let me take you to the harder to reach parts that are generally ignored. In yesterday’s post I spoke a little about the history of shipbuilding at Chepstow and mentioned the once busy yards have all gone… strictly speaking this isn’t quite true since Mabey Bridge occupy one of the sites and are thriving.

Mabey Bridge - site of National Shipyard No.1

Fairfield-Mabey Ltd of Chepstow, Monmouthshire, was a firm of structural engineers. The company had its origins in 1849, with the construction of Brunel’s Wye railway bridge by E. Finch and Company who established a yard in the area. The yard later diversified into shipbuilding. In 1917 the government seized the shipyard which became National Shipyard No. 1. In 1925 Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Ltd bought the shipyard. In due course the company became Fairfield-Mabey Ltd who now specialise in steelwork for bridges and other structures. I’m not sure when the company re-branded, but the Fairfield name has gone and the company is now known as Mabey Bridge.

Mabey Bridge offices

The imposing offices are all that remain easily visible of the shipyard days; I have no doubt there are other traces within the plant, but my request for access was unfortunately denied.

Mabey Bridge offices

The sign by Mabey’s gated entranceway points down the lane to Forest Sand and R. B. Skip Hire, two other businesses operation on former ship yard and boat building sites. There is little to be seen from the exterior of Forest Sand (access also denied) although there is a gem of a building adjacent to the lane.

Unknown Building

I’ve no idea what purpose this building served in the days of the shipyards, but it is interesting in both design and construction.

There is plenty of evidence of past glories on the site used by R. B. Skip Hire, despite part of the site having been raised to the ground to make open space. The old boat sheds and wharf pictured below give some indication that this former yard specialised in the construction of smaller craft than those built at National Shipyard No. 1.

Boat Sheds and Wharf

The wharf itself is of timber construction and having not been maintained is badly silted up now. The timbers are also showing signs of extreme age and I suspect some are only held in place by the invading silt.

Timber Wharf

As you can easily see, these timbers must be nearing the end of their life, which is perhaps unsurprising considering they form the earliest section of the shipyard wharf.

Breaking Up

A little further down-river and unfortunately inaccessible to me are the stone and concrete wharf edges and slipways used by National Shipyard No. 1, Fairfield Mabey, etc. where larger vessels were launched.

It is interesting to note the former presence of large vessels even along the older wharf though.

There was another yard here in former times, but as you can see the site has been cleared now and is being prepared for domestic dwellings to help satisfy the modern trend for ‘waterfront’ properties.

Building Site

This concludes my look at Chepstow’s waterfront… of course I reserve the right to revisit parts of it in the future.

Having shared a little information about the once thriving port of Chepstow and looked at two of the businesses that have stood the test of time by continuing to trade to this day I think it’s time to spread my net a little further and examine some of the other pointers to Chepstow’s past.

I have already mentioned how the busy port contributed to Chepstow’s wealth. The River Wye is tidal at Chepstow and rises and falls many metres between tides. To help solve the problem of off-loading goods, stone slipways were built to extend well down the slippery river bank towards the centre of the river. This would allow goods to be loaded and unloaded on boats at any point on the tide.

Old Town Slipway

The Old Town Slipway is the best preserved and still in use today although the days of humping bales of wool, coal and timber are long gone. But it wasn’t the port alone that brought fame to the town, shipbuilding also played a part particularly in the 18th and early 19th centuries leaving a rich legacy to the town in the many buildings dating from that period.

Rope Loft

Shipbuilding and ropemaking were important industries that declined in Chepstow during the 19th century. There was a short revival of shipbuilding during the First World War as so many merchant ships were being sunk. Twenty thousand workers were brought into Chepstow in 1917 when the government decided to establish a number of national shipyards to cope with the wartime demand for ships. In accordance with the Protection of the Realm Act, all Chepstow shipbuilding companies came under government control. They were expanded to form National Shipyard Number 1 (Chepstow). Over 6,000 men from the Royal Engineers built the shipyard, and men from Tyneside and the Clyde came to work at the yard. Garden cities were built for the workers in Hardwick, Bulwark and Pennsylvania. The concrete blocks used to construct the houses were produced by German prisoners of war. Camps were built for the workers, along with workshops, a power station and hospital.

Chepstow also boasted its own dry dock, though there is little evidence of it today. If you drive to the waterfront you may be lucky enough to find a parking space among the old warehouses that now contain modern businesses.

Warehousing

You may be surprised to know the ground where your car is parked is not solid bedrock, but in-fill because this is the site of the Chepstow dry dock (see red grid for approximate location).

Site of Dry Dock

The old rope loft is to the right of the dry dock, the Boat Inn to the left. Warehouses and workshops run along either side of the site.

Site of Dry Dock

The architecture of the surrounding buildings provide us with some clues to their past.

The serenity of modern Chepstow belies its bustling past… I can’t imagine today’s architects and solicitors wanting to share these buildings with their original occupiers somehow, although the Wine Warehouse would not have been out of place.

The Port of Chepstow was also important as a passenger terminal before the construction of Brunel’s Great Tubular Bridge and the connection of the South Wales Railway with the growing network on the English side of the Wye. Several packets operated out of Chepstow, but perhaps the most important was the Wye packet steamer, which ran between Rownham Wharf, Hotwells, Bristol and Chepstow Packet Steps. The average passage was under two hours allowing the traveller to leave Chepstow in the morning, conduct his/her business in the Big City and be home in time for tea.

Packet Steps

As can be seen the Packet Steps are still utilised by small craft owners.

Packet Steps

Next time you’re out and about exploring an old town why not see what you can spot that links that town’s past and present? You may just be surprised by what you discover.

Mention Chepstow in mixed company and the likelihood is people will think about castles, horse racing, army camps, market towns and bridges… nothing wrong with that at all, except it misses a huge part of the town’s heritage. Let me tell you why…

Chepstow may well be known as a beautiful and historic market town situated on the west bank of the River Wye, but in medieval times it was also the largest and most important port in Wales. “What?” I hear you splutter, “Bigger than Newport, Cardiff, Barry and all that?” Yes absolutely! In its day Chepstow put all the rest to shame. Of course you have to bear in mind there weren’t huge ports in Barry, Cardiff or Newport back then, but even so the port at Chepstow was incredibly important and remained in use well into the last century.

Let’s go back in time a little… Chepstow shot to fame as Striguil (or Estrighoiel) in Norman times – from the Welsh word ystraigyl meaning a bend in the river – thanks to the construction of a fortified tower built in 1067, just a year after William and his cronies poked Harold’s eye out during their invasion at Hastings. By about the 14^th century the town had become known in English as Chepstow, from the old English ceap / chepe stowe meaning market place. So now you know where the English name comes from. In Welsh though Chepstow is Cas-gwent (short for Castell Gwent), meaning “castle of Gwent” which tells you how important the castle at Chepstow was. Why am I talking about the castle? Well because it controlled the gateway to Wales for more than 600 years making Chepstow one of the most important towns in Britain and if we remember heavy goods was transported by water we start to see why the port at Chepstow was equally important.

Sadly not very much remains of Chepstow’s once thriving port for the casual observer to enjoy today, but if we look a little harder we’ll find all kinds of clues including converted warehouses and a wonderful old slipway. I want to save those bad boys for another post though and concentrate on two other aspects of the port’s history now… two public houses that have in many ways remained unchanged externally through the years.

The Boat Inn

The Boat Inn was built in 1879 on the site of an earlier tavern adjacent to the port’s dry dock to accommodate the increased levels of trade. Today it is known for its convivial atmosphere and good food; I’m guessing that hasn’t changed much since it first opened.

The Boat Inn

Some of the original stone and timber work can still be enjoyed. Sadly the various rooms that once constituted the interior and gave the Inn individuality have mostly given way to a more open-plan feel… a sign of modern times.

At the other end of the old harbour frontage and adjacent to the river bridge stands another old pub… unimaginatively called the Bridge Inn.

The Bridge Inn

Judging by the for sale sign outside The Bridge its days may well be numbered like a lot of other public houses in the UK. It’s been sad to witness the downfall of the British public house, but that’s progress I guess.

The Bridge Inn

From what I can tell The Bridge dates from the early 1800s and it is interesting to note the difference in design between it and The Boat; despite The Boat being right in the thick of the port and its activities The Bridge appears more ‘working class’ to me. I wonder a little about the possible differences between the clientèle of the two establishments… but perhaps I’m just allowing the visual aspects to colour my perception? It’d be great to go back in time a couple of hundred years and find out though wouldn’t it?

These are just two of the public houses that once served the port community of Chepstow and are the only two still trading on the waterfront, unless of course you include the trendy wine-bar that now occupies a one-time storehouse. With the exception of the two pubs the thriving businesses that supplied food to the sailors and port workers have all gone… even the bakery that provided wonderfully warm and flavoursome bread has finally closed. How sad is that?

Well here ends part one of my look at the Chepstow port and waterfront… why not call back tomorrow for more?