Volume Six - Pre-Victorian to the Present Day - Select Aspects - Working the Ely Tidal Harbour . . .

Other fires occurred at the wharf and warehouses were afire in 1893 and again in November 1897 when a serious fire ensued. The only available water supply at low water was the T.V.R's. 2" diameter main which was completely inadequate. Following the 1892 blaze, recommendations were made by Head Constable, Mc Kenzie to the company to increase the water supply, but it seems that this was not acted upon. The opening of the subway under river in 1900 provided a potential route to increase the supply but again, I can find no record of this occurring although there was a disused 9" water main indicated in the survey report of 1991.

The tidal harbour contributed to the coal export peak of 1913 and continued working even when the docks closed in 1936 right up until coal shipping ended in 1962. The 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica [169] states that "a considerable import trade is carried on here by coasting vessels; but as only one of its sides has wharves (about 3,000 ft. long) scarcely more than 5% of the total of the shipping of the port is done here." Since its peak, decline and closure, the following images provide an insight into the decay of the wooden structures and the dereliction which has occurred.