Rare Photos Bring Old Pembrokeshire Back to Life
We featured photographer GRACE DAVIES a year ago and were keen to know what she was up to now. Here she tells us about an exciting find…
“A work colleague of my dad’s told him about a house clearance auction he had been to. He had brought boxes of glass plate negatives dating back to the late 1800s. He wasn’t too sure where a lot of these photos were taken and, knowing my dad’s knowledge and my work in photography, he sent us down a box and said if we could identify them, we could keep what we thought would be useful for my business.
“These negatives came from a late relative of Colonel Fitzroy Clayton, and his son Harold Clayton. The Clayton family business was in the coalfields of Llangennech, near Llanelli. He was the commodore of Penarth Yacht Club in its earliest years and had a huge passion for photography. The family business enabled him to sail up and down the Bristol Channel, exploring both sides and photographing churches and ports that caught his eye.
“Penarth Yacht Club was a real love for him; he photographed not only the club but the regattas and lots of small boats in sail, from the late 1800s into the 1900s.
“Clayton photographed from his boat towards the shore or port that he was sailing into. One of his photographs of Pembrokeshire was Tenby pier, just after it had been extended and opened in 1899. A rare photograph shows Tenby harbour and its working boats. There are a number of photos from his boat sailing into Pembroke quay, another place he enjoyed visiting. In one of the photos you can see the old corn mill, and the ivy that stretches to the top of the Castle. These images have never been seen publicly.
“By 1931 Harold Clayton, Colonel Clayton’s son, had sold up the family’s mining interests and moved to Brixham in Devon. In 2021 his descendant passed away and the glass plate negatives came up for auction. What is available today is a record of what Pembrokeshire looked like along the coastline in the 1890s and early 1900s. Virtually all photos from this time were taken from land, which is what makes these images so rare. Clayton is one of the very few who photographed from his own boat.
“I currently have five photos that we have turned from glass plate negatives into digital copies. Some we could do ourselves by taking a high-definition photo of them against a bright white screen, and using Photoshop to rid the blemishes. Two images of Tenby were in a quite bad way, so we sent them off to get them cleaned professionally. These negatives are so delicate you have to be so careful.
“In the coming weeks I am planning to print copies of these photos, get them mounted and then type up the story behind them. I think the world deserves to see these wonderful old photos and learn about the incredible family behind them. It is amazing to think that it has been over 130 years since some of these photos have been taken and this is the first time they have ever been seen and printed. When they are ready for sale, they will be in 8×10 mounts and will be £20 each, I am so looking forward to sharing this story with the great people of Pembrokeshire.”
PLEASE NOTE: All the images shown here are the property of Grace Davies and should not be reproduced without her permission.
MORE ABOUT GRACE:
“It has been exactly a year since I was last featured, and my business has really taken off. I now do three or four markets a week and I am successfully selling my products online. It has been really tough to start a small business during covid times but I am so glad I took the leap. I get to do a job I love every single day and I am so grateful for that.
“Now the summer season has come to an end. I am starting to prepare for Christmas. I have six Christmas markets coming up and I am looking forward to selling my magnets, keyrings, cards, frames, mounts and calendars of Pembrokeshire.
“If anybody is interested in an old Pembrokeshire print they can contact me through my Facebook page, Grace Davies Photography, or give me a call or text on 07845 740027.
Christmas markets I have coming up;
Lamphey village hall – 19 November – 10am-3pm
Cosheston village hall – 3 December – 10am-4pm
The Quins function room, Pembroke Dock – 5 December – 5.30-8pm
Monkton Swifts – 6 December – 6-8pm
Pennar Hall – 10 December – 10am-4pm
