Clevedon Pier
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Clevedon Pier is a seaside
pier Seaside pleasure pier in Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century.">England.html" ;"title="Brighton, England">Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th ...
in the town of
Clevedon Clevedon (, ) is an English seaside town and civil parish in the unitary authority of North Somerset, part of the ceremonial county of Somerset. It recorded a parish population of 21,281 in the United Kingdom Census 2011, estimated at 21,442 ...
, Somerset, England on the east shore of the
Severn Estuary The Severn Estuary ( cy, Aber Hafren) is the estuary of the River Severn, flowing into the Bristol Channel between South West England and South Wales. Its high tidal range, approximately , means that it has been at the centre of discussions in t ...
. It was described by
Sir John Betjeman Sir John Betjeman (; 28 August 190619 May 1984) was an English poet, writer, and broadcaster. He was Poet Laureate from 1972 until his death. He was a founding member of The Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architecture, ...
, as "the most beautiful pier in England" and was designated a Grade I
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 ...
in 2001. The pier was built during the 1860s to attract tourists and provide a ferry port for rail passengers to
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 ...
. The pier is long and consists of eight spans supported by steel rails covered by wooden decking, with a pavilion on the pier head. The pier opened in 1869 and served as an embarkation point for
paddle steamer A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine that drives paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses wer ...
excursions for almost 100 years. Two of the spans collapsed during stress testing in 1970 and demolition was proposed, but local fund raising and heritage grants allowed the pier to be dismantled for restoration and reassembled. It reopened in 1989, and ten years later was awarded the Pier of the Year from the
National Piers Society The National Piers Society (NPS) is a registered charity in the United Kingdom dedicated to promoting and sustaining interest in the preservation and continued enjoyment of seaside piers. It was founded in 1979, with Sir John Betjeman as the f ...
, and a Civic Trust Award. The pier now offers a landing stage for steamers and is a popular attraction for tourists and anglers.


Location

The pier projects from the seafront at Clevedon into the Severn Estuary, which separates
South West England South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly), Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities ...
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 ...
. The pier and toll house, where entry fees are collected, are adjacent to the Royal Pier Hotel, originally known as The Rock House and built in 1823 by Thomas Hollyman. The shore at Clevedon is a mixture of pebbled beaches and low rocky cliffs, with the old harbour being at the western edge of the town at the mouth of the
Land Yeo The Land Yeo is a small river which flows through North Somerset, England. It rises on Dundry Hill and supplies Barrow Gurney Reservoirs before flowing through various villages to Clevedon where it drains into the Bristol Channel. During the ...
river. The rocky beach has been designated as the
Clevedon Shore Clevedon Shore () is a 0.38 hectare geological Site of Special Scientific Interest adjacent to the Severn Estuary at Clevedon, North Somerset, notified in 1991. It is the side of a mineralised fault, which runs east-west adjacent to the pier, an ...
geological Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle o ...
. It is the side of a mineralised fault, which runs east–west adjacent to the pier, and forms a small cliff feature in
Dolomitic Dolomite () is an anhydrous carbonate mineral composed of calcium magnesium carbonate, ideally The term is also used for a sedimentary carbonate rock composed mostly of the mineral dolomite. An alternative name sometimes used for the dolomiti ...
Conglomerate on the north side of Clevedon Beach, containing cream to pink baryte together with sulfides. The minerals identified at the site include: haematite,
chalcopyrite Chalcopyrite ( ) is a copper iron sulfide mineral and the most abundant copper ore mineral. It has the chemical formula CuFeS2 and crystallizes in the tetragonal system. It has a brassy to golden yellow color and a hardness of 3.5 to 4 on the Mo ...
,
tennantite Tennantite is a copper arsenic sulfosalt mineral with an ideal formula . Due to variable substitution of the copper by iron and zinc the formula is . It is gray-black, steel-gray, iron-gray or black in color. A closely related mineral, tetrahedri ...
,
galena Galena, also called lead glance, is the natural mineral form of lead(II) sulfide (PbS). It is the most important ore of lead and an important source of silver. Galena is one of the most abundant and widely distributed sulfide minerals. It cryst ...
,
tetrahedrite Tetrahedrite is a copper antimony sulfosalt mineral with formula: . It is the antimony endmember of the continuous solid solution series with arsenic-bearing tennantite. Pure endmembers of the series are seldom if ever seen in nature. Of the two, ...
,
bornite Bornite, also known as peacock ore, is a sulfide mineral with chemical composition Cu5 Fe S4 that crystallizes in the orthorhombic system (pseudo-cubic). Appearance Bornite has a brown to copper-red color on fresh surfaces that tarnishes to v ...
,
pyrite The mineral pyrite (), or iron pyrite, also known as fool's gold, is an iron sulfide with the chemical formula Iron, FeSulfur, S2 (iron (II) disulfide). Pyrite is the most abundant sulfide mineral. Pyrite's metallic Luster (mineralogy), lust ...
,
marcasite The mineral marcasite, sometimes called “white iron pyrite”, is iron sulfide (FeS2) with orthorhombic crystal structure. It is physically and crystallographically distinct from pyrite, which is iron sulfide with cubic crystal structure. Both ...
,
enargite Enargite is a copper arsenic sulfosalt mineral with formula Cu3AsS4. It takes its name from the Greek word , "distinct". Enargite is a steel gray, blackish gray, to violet black mineral with metallic luster. It forms slender orthorhombic prisms as ...
and sphalerite. Secondary alteration of this assemblage has produced idaite,
covellite Covellite (also known as covelline) is a rare copper sulfide mineral with the formula CuS. This indigo blue mineral is commonly a secondary mineral in limited abundance and although it is not an important ore of copper itself, it is well known t ...
and other
copper sulfide Copper sulfides describe a family of chemical compounds and minerals with the formula CuxSy. Both minerals and synthetic materials comprise these compounds. Some copper sulfides are economically important ores. Prominent copper sulfide mineral ...
s. The nearest parking to the pier entrance is on an esplanade above the rocky beach.


History


Construction

During the
Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...
, Clevedon became a popular
seaside town A seaside resort is a town, village, or hotel that serves as a vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requirements, such as in the German ' ...
, having previously been an agricultural village. Due to improving transport links, via the
Clevedon Branch Line The Clevedon branch line was a branch railway line that ran from Yatton railway station on the Bristol to Taunton Line to Clevedon in North Somerset, England, with no intermediate stops. It was opened on 28 July 1847 by the Bristol and Exete ...
, Clevedon was able to cater for the late 19th century craze for bathing in the sea with saltwater baths adjacent to the pier (since demolished, though the foundations can still be seen), and
bathing machine The bathing machine was a device, popular from the 18th century until the early 20th century, to allow people to change out of their usual clothes, change into swimwear, and wade in the ocean at beaches. Bathing machines were roofed and walled woo ...
s on the main beach. Many English seaside resorts built piers in the 1850s to attract tourists. At Clevedon tourism grew following the opening of a branch line from
Yatton railway station Yatton railway station, on the Bristol to Exeter line, is in the village of Yatton in North Somerset, England. It is west of Bristol Temple Meads railway station, and from London Paddington. Its three-letter station code is YAT. It was opened ...
which connected it to the Bristol to Exeter line, enabling travel from the rest of the country. It was also proposed that a pier could form part of a route from London to South Wales with the use of steamers to cross the Severn Estuary. An
enabling act An enabling act is a piece of legislation by which a legislative body grants an entity which depends on it (for authorization or legitimacy) the power to take certain actions. For example, enabling acts often establish government agencies to carr ...
was submitted to parliament in 1864. In November 1866, the Clevedon Pier Company was formed at a public meeting in the town. The directors included Sir Arthur Elton of
Clevedon Court Clevedon Court is a manor house on Court Hill in Clevedon, North Somerset, England, dating from the early 14th century. It is owned by the National Trust and is designated as a Grade I listed building. The house was built and added to over ma ...
. Construction of the pier started at a cost of £10,000, with John William Grover and Richard Ward as the engineers and
Hans Price Hans Price (1835–1912) was the architect responsible for much of the development of Weston-super-Mare, in North Somerset, England, during the Victorian era. Life Hans Fowler Price was born in St James's parish, Bristol. He studied under Thomas ...
as the architect. The erection of the iron pillars was undertaken by Hamilton Windsor Ironworks Co. of Garston, Liverpool. The legs were constructed from
Barlow rail Barlow rail was a rolled rail section used on early railways. It has wide flaring feet and was designed to be laid direct on the ballast, without requiring sleepers. It was widely adopted on lightly trafficked railways, but was ultimately unsuccess ...
which had previously been used on
Isambard Kingdom Brunel Isambard Kingdom Brunel (; 9 April 1806 – 15 September 1859) was a British civil engineer who is considered "one of the most ingenious and prolific figures in engineering history," "one of the 19th-century engineering giants," and "on ...
's
South Wales Railway The South Wales Railway ( cy, Rheilffordd De Cymru) was a main line railway which opened in stages from 1850, connecting the Great Western Railway from Gloucester to South Wales. It was constructed on the broad gauge. An original aspiration was to ...
, with wood planks for the decking. By August 1868 of the pier had been built and the final section was completed by February 1869.


Engineering

The pier is long and above high water. Each of the eight spans is long. The legs are made up of Barlow rails which are riveted together; one of the rails separates from the main support close to the deck at the top, forming a transverse truss joining a rail from the opposite leg of the pier and longitudinal bracing is provided by further rails. The supporting piles, which are made of cast iron, are in diameter at the seabed. In total approximately 370 tons of wrought iron was used. The Severn Estuary has one of the highest tidal ranges in the world, up to , second only to the Bay of Fundy in Eastern Canada. The estuary's funnel shape, its tidal range, and the underlying geology of rock, gravel and sand, produce strong tidal streams and high
turbidity Turbidity is the cloudiness or haziness of a fluid caused by large numbers of individual particles that are generally invisible to the naked eye, similar to smoke in air. The measurement of turbidity is a key test of water quality. Fluids can ...
, giving the water a notably brown colouration. The tidal range means that the legs of the pier are largely exposed at low tide and hidden at high tide and the landing stage at the end of the pier has several levels to allow boats to dock at all stages of the tide.


Opening and operation

The pier was officially opened on 29 March 1869, with a parade, bands and a cannon volley by the First Somerset Artillery. The number of rail passengers crossing to South Wales, which had been envisaged, was reduced after the opening of the
Severn Tunnel The Severn Tunnel ( cy, Twnnel Hafren) is a railway tunnel in the United Kingdom, linking South Gloucestershire in the west of England to Monmouthshire in south Wales under the estuary of the River Severn. It was constructed by the Great Western ...
in 1886. The tunnel linked
South Gloucestershire South Gloucestershire is a unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire, South West England. Towns in the area include Yate, Chipping Sodbury, Thornbury, Filton, Patchway and Bradley Stoke, the latter three forming part ...
in the west of England to Monmouthshire in south Wales, under the
estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environment ...
of the
River Severn , name_etymology = , image = SevernFromCastleCB.JPG , image_size = 288 , image_caption = The river seen from Shrewsbury Castle , map = RiverSevernMap.jpg , map_size = 288 , map_c ...
. The paddle steamer ''Waverley'' first visited the pier to take on passengers in 1886, and along with sister ships of the White Funnel Fleet belonging to P and A Campbell provided excursions around the Bristol Channel. Other ships of the fleet including ''Ravenswood'', ''Westward Ho'', ''Cambria'' and ''Britannia'' regularly called at Clevedon. Other companies, including the Cardiff-based Edwards, Robertson & Co., eventually taken over by Campbells, visited Clevedon Pier. In 1893 the pier head was replaced in cast iron with a new timber landing stage, and the pier head pavilion was completed in 1894. The Toll House on the pier and the adjacent Royal Pier Hotel were both designed by local architect Hans Price. In 1899, of the decking was washed away by a storm, and in 1910, part of the landing stage was damaged in another storm and replaced by a concrete landing stage in 1913. The pier continued to flourish between the First and Second World Wars and into the 1960s, and was visited frequently by P&A Campbell's steamers. The and were regular visitors.


Collapse

On 16 October 1970, spans 7 and 8 of the pier collapsed during stress testing, which had been introduced in the 1950s as a requirement for obtaining insurance cover. The tests involved the placement of polythene tanks long, wide and deep filled to a depth of , which created a pressure of .Coombes page 39 This simulated the required load agreed with the
Ministry of Transport A ministry of transport or transportation is a ministry responsible for transportation within a country. It usually is administered by the ''minister for transport''. The term is also sometimes applied to the departments or other government ag ...
. Six tanks were used for each span and left in place for three hours; the 18 tanks used in total allowed three spans to be tested simultaneously. At the end of the three hours the tanks were emptied and dragged along the deck to test further spans. The first six spans passed without problems, but under load the seventh span collapsed, bringing down the eighth and final span, leaving the pier head and pavilion standing.


Restoration

The Clevedon Pier Preservation Society was formed in 1972 and started campaigning for the restoration of the pier. The district council applied for permission to demolish the pier in 1979, but a public enquiry the following year ruled that it should be retained. The pavilions from the end of the pier were taken ashore in 1982 for storage in anticipation of eventual restoration; insufficient funds were available to complete restoration and the first stage was to open the Toll House as an exhibition centre in 1984. A major breakthrough came in 1984, when
English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...
and the
National Heritage Memorial Fund The National Heritage Memorial Fund (NHMF) was set up in 1980 to save the most outstanding parts of the British national heritage, in memory of those who have given their lives for the UK. It replaced the National Land Fund which had fulfilled the ...
granted a million pounds towards the restoration, with smaller sums from
Woodspring North Somerset is a unitary district in Somerset, South West England. Whilst its area covers part of the ceremonial county of Somerset, it is administered independently of the non-metropolitan county. Its administrative headquarters is in th ...
District Council and other funding bodies. The trust, which had been formed by the preservation society, also obtained a 99-year lease. The pier was dismantled in 1985, taken to Portishead dock for restoration, and reconstructed in 1986. After a long campaign by local people to raise funds for restoration (supported by
Sir John Betjeman Sir John Betjeman (; 28 August 190619 May 1984) was an English poet, writer, and broadcaster. He was Poet Laureate from 1972 until his death. He was a founding member of The Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architecture, ...
, who described Clevedon as "the most beautiful pier in England", the pier eventually reopened. Some funds were raised by "sponsored planks" – small brass plaques with names or messages are inlaid on the wooden planks and benches, recording donations. Reconstruction of the pier spans and decking was completed on 27 May 1989, and the pier was reopened to great enthusiasm. The pierhead was still shut, however, and it was not until 23 May 1998 that it was finally restored and opened to the public, as a result of funding from the
Heritage Lottery Fund The National Lottery Heritage Fund, formerly the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), distributes a share of National Lottery funding, supporting a wide range of heritage projects across the United Kingdom. History The fund's predecessor bodies were ...
. In 1999 the National Piers Society awarded Clevedon Pier the title of Pier of the Year, and it also won a Civic Trust Award. The pier was re-designated a Grade 1
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 ...
in 2001, the only other pier with this status being
Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...
's
West Pier The West Pier is a ruined pier in Brighton, England. It was designed by Eugenius Birch and opened in 1866. It was the first pier to be Grade I listed in England and Wales but has become increasingly derelict since its closure to the publi ...
(largely destroyed by fire and storms between 2002 and 2004). The landing stage at the end of the pier is used throughout the summer season (June to September) by the ''Waverley'' and her sister ship, the ''Balmoral'', and is a popular spot for
angling Angling is a fishing technique that uses a fish hook or "angle" (from Old English ''angol'') attached to a fishing line to tether individual fish in the mouth. The fishing line is usually manipulated via a fishing rod, although rodless techni ...
. There is a cafe at the pierhead, and a souvenir shop at the toll house. The upper floor of the toll house is an art gallery with a different exhibition every month. The pier is open every day of the year except Christmas Day. Scenes from the 2010 film, '' Never Let Me Go'', starring
Keira Knightley Keira Christina Righton (; née Knightley, born 26 March 1985) is an English actress. Known for her work in both independent films and blockbusters, particularly period dramas, she has received several accolades, including nominations for ...
were filmed near Clevedon pier during 2009, and the pier also featured on the promotional posters.
One Direction One Direction, often shortened to 1D, are an English-Irish pop boy band formed in London in 2010. The group are composed of Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, and previously Zayn Malik until his departure from the g ...
's music video for their single " You & I" was filmed on Clevedon Pier. An appeal was launched in 2012 to raise £1.6 million for a new visitor centre and educational facility, an additional £800,000 of grants have been applied for to cover the cost of repainting the legs of the structure. In December 2012 it was announced that the pier had received £720,000 of funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund to improve the visitor centre.


Photo gallery

Name Plates, Clevedon Pier.JPG, Name Plates, Clevedon Pier, Clevedon, England. Name Plates, Clevedon Pier boards.JPG, Name Plates, Clevedon Pier floor name plates. Clevedon Pier, support structure.JPG, View of support structure from end of Pier. Clevedon Pier North view.JPG, High tide view of Clevedon Pier. Clevedon Pier, North view.JPG, View of the pier from Coast Road. The Song of the Helix, Clevedon Pier.JPG, Sculpture that stood at the pier tollhouse. Clevedon Pier, gangway.JPG, Gangway showing the nameplates along the length and breadth of the pier. Clevedon Pier, cast iron lamp.JPG, Original cast iron lamp. Clevedon Pier, pay-to-use telescope.JPG, The pay to use telescope showing the name plates on the floorboards. Clevedon Pier, view towards the renovation of the Royal Hotel.JPG, View of the tollhouse and Royal Hotel from end of the pier. Clevedon Pier support leg at lower tide.JPG, One of the support legs at low tide Clevedon Pier, south side.JPG, South side view of the pier at low tide.


See also

*
List of piers Piers throughout the world include: Australia *Busselton Jetty, Busselton, Western Australia. The longest wooden pier in the southern hemisphere. * Gem Pier, Williamstown, Victoria * Station Pier, Port Melbourne, Victoria *Coffs Harbour Jetty, Ne ...
* List of piers in the United Kingdom *
List of Grade I listed buildings in North Somerset North Somerset is a unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Somerset, England. In the United Kingdom, the term listed building refers to a building or other structure officially designated as being of special architectural, historical or c ...


Notes


References

* * * *


External links


Clevedon Pier website
* {{Piers in the United Kingdom Buildings and structures in Clevedon Grade I listed buildings in North Somerset Tourist attractions in North Somerset Piers in Somerset Transport infrastructure completed in 1869 Transport infrastructure completed in 1989 Rebuilt buildings and structures in the United Kingdom Recipients of Civic Trust Awards 1869 establishments in England