Porlock Weir is a

harbour A harbor (American English), harbour (British English; see spelling differences), or haven is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be docked. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is a ...

settlement approximately west of the inland village of

Porlock Porlock is a coastal village in Somerset, England, west of Minehead. At the 2011 census, the village had a population of 1,440. In 2017, Porlock had the highest percentage of elderly population in Britain, with over 40% being of pensionable ag ...

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

, England. "Porlock" comes from the

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

'' '' loca'', meaning an

enclosure Enclosure or Inclosure is a term, used in English landownership, that refers to the appropriation of "waste" or " common land" enclosing it and by doing so depriving commoners of their rights of access and privilege. Agreements to enclose land ...

near a harbour. Porlock Weir refers to the salmon stakes and traps that were situated along the shore. Many cottages date from the 17th century, including the Gibraltar Cottages which have been designated as a grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

. Like most ports in West Somerset, the harbour is tidal and is home to a small flotilla of yachts and is visited by many more in spring and summer. The port has existed for more than a thousand years. The ''

Anglo-Saxon Chronicle The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' is a collection of annals in Old English, chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the ''Chronicle'' was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alf ...

'' reports that in 1052

Harold Godwinson Harold Godwinson ( – 14 October 1066), also called Harold II, was the last crowned Anglo-Saxon English king. Harold reigned from 6 January 1066 until his death at the Battle of Hastings, fighting the Norman invaders led by William the C ...

came from Ireland with nine ships and plundered the area and before that in 866 AD it was raided by Danes. In the 18th and 19th centuries coal from

South Wales South Wales ( cy, De Cymru) is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards ...

was the main cargo and in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

pit prop A pit prop or mine prop (British and American usage, respectively) is a length of lumber used to prop up the roofs of tunnels in coal mines. Canada traditionally supplied pit props to the British market. As coal mining declined in importance an ...

s cut in local forests were the return cargo. The

ketch A ketch is a two- masted sailboat whose mainmast is taller than the mizzen mast (or aft-mast), and whose mizzen mast is stepped forward of the rudder post. The mizzen mast stepped forward of the rudder post is what distinguishes the ketch fr ...

''Lizzy'' was wrecked at Gore Point, near Porlock Weir. The ship, built in

Appledore Appledore may refer to: Places England * Appledore, Kent ** Appledore (Kent) railway station * Appledore, Mid Devon, near Tiverton * Appledore, Torridge, North Devon, near Bideford U.S.A. * Appledore Island, off the coast of Maine In fiction * App ...

, was spotted in trouble off

Lynmouth Lynmouth is a village in Devon, England, on the northern edge of Exmoor. The village straddles the confluence of the West Lyn and East Lyn rivers, in a gorge below Lynton, which was the only place to expand to once Lynmouth became as built ...

in a storm in 1854. The ship had lost her masts, and was in very bad condition. A fishing boat was sent out to rescue the crew, as Lynmouth possessed no lifeboat. The boat reached the stricken ketch, rescued the crew and returned to Lynmouth safely. The weather improved, and a fresh crew, with the vessel's skipper attempted to salvage her. They improvised with a scrap of sail, and managed to get safely around

Foreland Point Foreland Point is a rocky headland in Devon near Lynmouth, and is the most northerly point along the Devon and Exmoor coast. The highest cliff is above the high tide, although the highest point of the entire headland is near Countisbury (a v ...

. They sailed on all night, only just managing to keep the ship afloat. When they reached Gore Point, a mile from Porlock Weir, the ketch sank in shallow water. The wreck lies submerged off the point. On 12 January 1899, in a storm, the ten-ton Lynmouth lifeboat was launched, but because of the ferocity of the storm could not put out to sea, and was hauled by men and 20 horses over

Countisbury Countisbury is a hamlet on Exmoor in Devon, England. It is roughly two miles east of Lynmouth along the A39. It has a church and pub. The National Trust owns the other buildings. Since 2012, Countisbury has formed part of the civil parish of B ...

and Porlock Hills to Porlock Weir where the water was less rough. Thirteen seamen were rescued. Porlock weir, somerset

The

South West Coast Path The South West Coast Path is England's longest waymarked long-distance footpath and a National Trail. It stretches for , running from Minehead in Somerset, along the coasts of Devon and Cornwall, to Poole Harbour in Dorset. Because it rises a ...

and other trails link to Porlock Ridge and Saltmarsh and Culbone, the smallest parish church in England.

References

External links

{{Commons category-inline, Porlock Weir harbour Official Porlock Weir Website , https://porlockweir.co/
West Somerset Ports and harbours of Somerset Populated coastal places in Somerset