Volume Ten - Pre-Victorian to the present day - even more aspects - The Cooper family of boat-builders at Penarth and Pill . . .

The Sailing Pilots : Prior to the industrial revolution, Bristol was the premier port of the Bristol Channel and the second port of the land. Near the mouth of the River Avon and 5 miles from Bristol is a small, muddy inlet originally named Crockerne Pill. The story of the Pill and its inhabitants is closely linked to the maritime fortunes of the Port. Being sited in a natural location well suited to offer incoming and outgoing sailing ships with pilotage services in order to limit loses to vessels, cargoes and crews whilst navigating the torturous routes from Lundy to the Port of Bristol. By the early years of the nineteenth century, Pill held a monopoly over pilotage services in the Severn Sea and Bristol Channel and its pilots were making a reasonable living : see 'From Pirates to Proletarians' - a great pamphlet which explains the transition! [677]

The growth of ports and trade on the Welsh side of the Severn Sea due to iron and later coal exportation, however, destabilised and undermined the position of the Pill pilots. Another factor was the decline of trade at Bristol and strong growth at ports such as Liverpool. By 1859, the number of foreign vessels entering Cardiff Docks was 4,434 whereas Bristol had 984 vessels that year. [614] Dissatisfaction grew at the 'exorbitant fees' charged by the Pill pilots, hence, the Penarth Harbour, Dock, and Railway Act of 1857 held clauses to allow for a separate and independent system of Pilotage at the new harbour and proposed dock but under the supervision of the Local Board for the Port. This mirrored dissatisfaction and frustration at the growing ports of Cardiff, Newport, Lydney and Gloucester.

Pill boat-builders had gained a reputation for construction of excellent pilot boats and these sailing vessels became safer and stronger as designs evolved. Across the Severn Sea at Penarth and Cardiff other boat-building yards sprung up with many men and their skills crossing the Severn Sea. It is not surprising that both pilotage services and boat-building facilities were often linked through established association as well as by family connection. This was the case with the Cooper family and it seems that skills, labour and materials were freely transported across the waters for mutual benefit.

The decline of the sailing pilots and their fine vessels commenced with the introduction of steam and subsequent developments in screw propulsion. Efficiency, speed and a readily available fuel supply (coal) ensured that by the turn of the 20th century the end was in sight. Tugs and steamships superceded the sailing pilots and wooden boat-building techniques for pilot vessels became largely redundant.