With the reopening of the yard’s harbourside walkway and the launch of Underfall Market, this year has certainly been a busy one for the Yard. It has been wonderful to see visitors returning to the Yard in larger numbers, exploring the site and bringing its character back. Underfall Yard has always had a strong sense of community and that has survived, even thrived, as the Recovery and Reinstatement Project continues. Here are a few inspiring examples of the support that has been given since the fire in May 2023: Thekla From one historic harbour site to another! The legendary [...]

Lady Moyra Brit and Westward Ho moored at Underfall Yard in 1928 Volunteer writer Dave Duggan continues his series on P&A Campbell, the paddle-steamer business that was based at Underfall Yard in the early 20th century. This month, he explores the maintenance of the company's highly popular fleet of paddle steamers and the innovative steps taken during their time at Underfall Yard. Thank you to the Paddle Steamer Preservation Society for providing the featured photographs from their collection. The brothers Peter and Alexander Campbell started their Bristol based paddle steamer business in 1887. Over the next 69 [...]

By George Cruikshank - Illustration "Saturday Night At Sea" from "Songs, naval and national, of the late Charles Dibdin; with a memoir and addenda.", Public Domain On Saturday 21st September, venues across the city will be hosting the Bristol Sea Shanty Festival. The festival always brings a joyous crowd to Underfall Yard, and it's clear that sea shanties still have a hold over modern audiences. Volunteer writer Elaine explores the origins of the sea shanty and its lasting popularity. Does your favourite tune count as a "shanty" or a "sea song"? In December 2020, when the country [...]

A striking feature of the yard's walkway, the slipway is one of the few working examples of the “patent slip” design from the 19th century. Volunteer Elaine continues her research into the slipway, tracing its origins in Leith, Scotland… One of the outstanding features of Underfall Yard’s maritime heritage is its historic patent slip. The slip gets its name from the fact that the design, featuring a moveable cradle running on metal rails, was patented by Thomas Morton, a shipbuilder of Leith, near Edinburgh. I had visited Leith several times, as my daughter has recently moved there. However, it [...]

Sir Joseph Whitworth (1803-1887) is a name that may be familiar to you, sitting atop the large blue-green planing machine in Underfall Yard's Docks Maintenance Workshop. But do you know who he was? Volunteer writer Elise investigates his life and legacy... Sir Joseph earned his fame for his creation of the British Standard Whitworth (BSW) in 1841, the world’s first official standardised screw thread. This is the pattern of grooves that wind down the length of a screw. Prior to Whitworth’s system, the distance and depth of the grooves had varied from each manufacturing house, meaning that different machines [...]

Visitors to Underfall Yard can now view artist's impressions of what the yard could look like once work to restore the Big Shed and its two neighbouring workshops is complete. Click the images above to view them in full. The new designs aim to preserve the historical fabric of the buildings, whilst bringing them up to modern standards, returning the site to a fully functioning working boatyard as soon as is practical. The images form part of a detailed planning application to Bristol City Council to restore the building and workshop facilities. Plans include the addition of [...]

Serving the boats of Bristol's Floating Harbour since 1854, the patent slipway never fails to draw the eye of visitors to Underfall Yard. In this month's blog, volunteer writer Elaine delves into its origin story... “On Monday last a first trial was made of the heaving-up slip which has recently been erected by three enterprising citizens on the banks of the Floating Harbour” the Bristol Mercury reported in April 1854. An advertisement for Ross and Sage's original slipway (Bristol Museums and Galleries) The three enterprising citizens were William Ross, a shipbuilder from Devon, his son William Labdon [...]