Читать книгу Pearse's Commercial Directory to Swansea and the Neighbourhood, for 1854 - Ebenezer Pearse - Страница 3

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Swansea is most delightfully situated in the centre of the Bay to which it gives its name, near the junction of the river Tawe with the sea. The town is protected from the chilling influence of the north-west and north-easterly winds by two hills lying on either side, but freely receives those of the south, where it is open to the sea; and the soil being light and gravelly to a considerable depth, the air is both salubrious and agreeable.

Swansea justly claims to be the first and most important town in the Principality. It is the centre of commercial transactions of very great magnitude, and its status is proved by its having been selected for the Meeting of the British Association for the advancement of Science, in 1848. Few commercial towns have so admirable a sea-side available to the inhabitants, as that which extends from Swansea to the Mumbles, round the western margin of the bay.

The town is in general well planned and built, particularly in the newer portions, and the shops in the principal streets are in the most modern style. There are three churches and numerous chapels belonging to the various denominations of dissenters. The Castle is an object of principal interest to the antiquary; it is a fine old ruin, built in 1330, and is remarkable for the range of light arches surrounding the top of the massive quadrangular tower, and supporting the parapet which forms a connection with the turret at each angle. The Guildhall is a beautiful Grecian structure of Bath stone, and was greatly enlarged in 1848. The Royal Institution of South Wales, erected for literary and scientific purposes, is a most elegant structure, the museum and library of which are well worth a visit by strangers, who may obtain ready access by a note from any member. The Market Buildings are large and commodious, and well supplied with every kind of provisions, especially butter, poultry, fish and meat, besides other articles of almost every description. In the centre is a tower with a two-dial illuminated clock. Principal Market days—Wednesday and Saturday. The Grammar School founded by Bishop Gore in 1682, has been recently restored, and a new building in the Tudor Gothic style erected on a site at Mount Pleasant, commanding a most beautiful prospect of the Bay and surrounding Country.

There are also other Public Buildings of less importance, of which the following may be especially named—Custom House, Theatre, Assembly Rooms, Police Court, House of Correction, Union Poor House Infirmary, National and British Schools, Railway Station, Docks, Piers, the Deaf and Dumb Asylum, and Beau Nash’s Birth-place.

Next to the raising of coal, the most important trade carried on here is that of copper smelting. The circumstances that originally determined the settlement of cooper smelting in and around Swansea, are that it is possessed of an excellent and well-sheltered harbour, has an almost unlimited supply of the proper description of coal in the immediate neighbourhood, and is the nearest Welsh port of any rank to the Coast of Cornwall, from whence is obtained the principal part of the supply of copper ores. Some idea of the extent of the trade may be formed from the following particulars. The quantity of ore annually sent from Cornwall is about 150,000 tons, of the value of nearly £1,000,000. Irish, about 15,000 tons. Foreign—from Cuba, Chili, Australia, &c., about 50,000 tons: these contain about double the per centage of copper as compared with that of Cornwall, and are therefore proportionately valuable. This will give upwards of a million-and-a-half of money as the amount annually paid for ores alone. In addition to the copper works, there are extensive works for silver, iron, tin-plate, zinc, alkali, and patent fuel. Potteries, breweries, and ship building yards; and these together with bituminous, freeburning and stone coal are the articles which go to form the great export trade of Swansea. The imports are principally metallic ores, timber, flour, &c., &c.

Under these favorable circumstances, the shipping, the general trade, and the limits of the town have for many years past been greatly extended. In the coasting trade, the shipping has nearly trebled itself within about thirty years, whilst in the foreign trade the increase has been in a much greater ratio. The rate of increase in the population has been found to correspond with the general improvements of the town; in 1821 it was rather above 10,000, whilst it now amounts to nearly 35,000.

A great impetus was given to this part of the Principality by the opening of the South Wales Railway in 1851, and Swansea appears to have received its full share of the advantage which railway communication confers under the most favorable circumstances. The improvement of that part of the town near the railway station is very manifest; several new shops of a superior class having been built, and others improved and altered in order to keep pace with the growing importance of the neighbourhood. At the same time, in various parts of the town, most important improvements have been going forward. The Harbour has been much improved, by floating that part of the river known as the Town Reach: this was very much needed for the larger class of vessels trading from this to foreign ports, and which heretofore were liable to injury from being strained while lying on the mud in a dry harbour; it also gives the advantage of bridges to pass over the river in two places, instead of the tiresome old ferry boat, which happily now is only remembered as belonging to by-gone days. The Swansea docks on the western side of the pier, after a long, and at one time apparently hopeless struggle, are also now actively progressing towards completion. The effect of large works of this kind on the prosperity of the town was soon manifested, for no sooner was the vexed subject of the docks fairly settled, and the contractor had commenced operations, than in an incredibly short space of time, fields in the neighbourhood that were almost valueless, were soon covered with houses and streets; so that a person who has not seen that part of the town for the last two years, would now scarcely know where he was, if set down in the road he was formerly quite familiar with. In other parts of the town the tendency to extension is equally seen; and wherever there is room to extend, the buildings are rapidly covering the ground. Many persons living remember when the town extended westerly no further than Goat Street, Cross Street, Rutland Street, &c.; but the generation now rising up, bids fair to see even a much greater increase than their fathers; and it is quite impossible to form an opinion how far the town will ultimately extend.

Three or four projects are now in contemplation, for giving to the public increased railway accommodation, and improving the harbour; and judging from the natural capabilities of the district, and the experience of the past, the carrying out of some of these new schemes of railway accommodation, and the completion of the docks, must exercise an influence on the town and district, of which we can at present form very little idea.

No person who has an hour to spare should leave Swansea without driving round its beautiful bay to Oystermouth; a village, celebrated for its native oysters, its lighthouse, rocks, church, and ancient castle, and embracing from its noble headland, views of sea and rock, hill and dale, shipping and farming, which makes a coup d’œil no-where to be surpassed.