Faded photo of the port long ago

It is the oldest known photo of the main harbour area to come into my hands.

Its date is very much a guess, but I would suggest before 1864.

The sloping foreground is from the cliffs down to the area of the recreation ground to be, here looking rather a muddy mess.

Fort Road leads away to the north with the very distinctive black line of the hedge which separated it from Huggetts Field.

The tide at the moment is extremely high and it would seem could easily overflow anywhere in the picture.

Above where the hedge ends is the south facing wall of the old bonded warehouse '“ today, the area of Bickerstaff's fresh fish shop.

One must realise that from beyond here, there is no swing bridge '“ that had yet to happen.

The new cut, or North Quay as we now call it, has to be excavated. So the distance would be Sefton Terrace, where is now Fludes, leading directly towards the railway station.

You want to catch a train? Walk down the High Street, cross the Ouse by the wooden draw bridge, turn right - passing Fludes (to be), continuing to Denton Terrace and then the Railway Hotel and very shortly you are at the train station.

You have travelled beside water all the way and it has followed you almost to the crossing gates - for the backwater 'Pennants Eye', resulting from the river suddenly turning right, to seek the sea, has worn away the land as can be seen in this photo.

Maybe, when the time came to create the new cut, the North Quay, spoil from the enormous undertaking may have been used to infill the backwater.

Whatever, it happened and with the building of the first swing bridge, things really did change and a lot of money must have been invested.

At the west bank are about four fair sized sailing vessels, at anchor it would seem.

If there were some flimsy stages (or staithes) then they are hidden by the high water.

The southern end of this river bank was known as Blackmans Head. Later pictures show small buildings there.

A thin line running south suggests the bank separating the river from Sleepers Hole was present, but somehow the barges must have been able to make entrance.

Later, there was a bridge when the rail track ran down to reach the far end of the breakwater, which was to start after 1879.

At the bottom extreme right and rear of Sleepers Hole is a distortion of the Ark House which arrived there in about 1814.

Coming south down the far side of the river, where now is the Marine Shops, is a small steamer with black funnel.

The quayside commences to develop towards the large two-masted sail vessel, then comes a two funnelled black paddle steamer, no doubt the ferry of the day, sheds with curved roofs and behind them, the London and Paris Hotel.

We are at the 'Newhaven Wharf for Paris' and the boat train would have arrived from London and discharged its passengers at what is now the Harbour Station.

To the right of the ferry is a small freighter (Dieppe service). These often discharged around the corner into the Tidemills Creek, culminating with a bonded warehouse behind the lone sail ship.

This, in fact, is in the area where careening took place and later, with the creek still open, a grid iron was constructed there, so the job could be done properly.

My old friend, Ted Davis, born at Tidemills, had the original photo and allowed me to copy it.

His son informed me that the original faded completely away. We are lucky copies were made.

Peter Bailey is curator of the Newhaven Local and Maritime Museum based in its own fascinating premises in the grounds of Paradise Park in Avis Road, Newhaven. Opening hours are Saturdays and Sundays, all year, 2-5pm or by arrangement, weekdays (April 1-October 31), 2-4pm. Admission 2 (accompanied children free). Contact the curator on 01273 514760. Log on to the website at www.newhavenmuseum.co.uk