Volume Twelve - Pre-Victorian to the Present Day - further aspects - A History of Penarth Dock by Roy Thorne . . .

CHAPTER ONE

During the reign of Elizabeth in the years 1558 - 59 the coastline of Wales was divided into three sectors so as to establish stricter control over the custom revenue. The three sectors had Head Ports at Cardiff, Milford and Chester. The Port of Cardiff stretched from Chepstow to Worms Head, and included, amongst others, the creek of Penarth.

John Leland travelled through Wales between 1536 and 1539 and he described Penarth :  "Penarth is a hille or foreland into the Severn Sea.” Rice Merrick in "A Book of Glamorganshire Antiquities," c. 1578 gives a list of the "ports, havens and crickes" along the coast from "Rompney" (Rumney) in the east and Loughour in the west. He mentions "Eley, Sully, Barry, Aberthaw, Ogmor and Newton." "Eley" probably meant the mouth of the River Ely where Penarth Dock was built in the 19th century.

The 1562 Queen's Remembrancer Roll says "withoute the same (Cardiff) is a rode in Severne called Penarth, very good for snippers at iii Ffadome lowe water it lieth".

The only authorised landing place at Cardiff was the Town Quay at the foot of the present day Quay Street, but larger vessels found difficulty in sailing up the River Taff cutting through the mud flats. These larger vessels were allowed to remain under the lee of Penarth Head. Each shipmaster had to sign a declaration : -

"that he - (the master of the vessel) further maketh oath that he can't bring the said ship . . . . . . . . of  . . . . . . . . further of the River Cardiff with safety than the place where she lies near Penarth."

This deeper water at Penarth was to prove an advantage when the dock was built.

The Port Books which were returned annually from the Head Ports to London give an early record of a ship working from Penarth. On 15th October 1602, "The Margaret of Pennarthe," [1153] master Thomas Robins took 12,000 lbs of cheese, and 20 Kilderkins (Kilderkins = 112 lbs) of butter from Cardiff to Bristol. On 31 st August 1603, "Le Margaret de Pennarth" [1154]  master Thomas Robins and merchant William Angell, shipped Gascony wine from Cardiff to Carmarthen.