Remembering New Cut in Ipswich Docks?

[Adios]

I used to hang around Ipswich docks as a kid in the 80s and thought I had fond memories of ramshackle wooden jetties/piers with a knackered jumble of boats all along most of New Cut from nearly Stoke Bridge to the other end level with the locks. I was just looking at the place on Google maps and see it's been tidied up. But I was looking for some evidence of what I remember and I can't find any. I found an old aerial photo from the 1950s showing piers but only down by the Steamboat Tavern. I'm sure I remember them all the way along north of there where the mud is in the photo. And the colour photo is from the 90s, piers all gone and the new floating pontoons are already there. Have I imagined a lot of that jumbled old boats scene that fascinated me as a kid?

 

[Habebty]

Have a rummage here...

IMT Image Archive’s albums | Flickr

Our Collections » Ipswich Maritime Trust

 

[Adios]

Have a rummage here...

IMT Image Archive’s albums | Flickr

Our Collections » Ipswich Maritime Trust

Brilliant resource thanks.

I guess this is early 1900s. Taken from the island side looking at the steamboat tavern area. Early pleasure boat use of New Cut but going by other photos it is confined to that one area of the cut.

https://flic.kr/p/DJcp2T

This looks like late 70s or very early 80s, its as busy as I remember it and stretching around the corner towards stoke bridge. Zoomed in can see all the old steamboat landing stages were falling down but well used still.

https://flic.kr/p/CUZgbm

This is 1982

https://flic.kr/p/J6urYN

and this is 1992 just as the locked docks was starting to have some leisure boat pontoons. Not long after all the boats ended up either in the dock or on the new pontoons by the Steamboat


Looking at aerial photos from the 50s and 60s there was nothing mooring along New Cut so post war it was just 70s to early 90s. Question in my mind is if there is anything stopping people mooring there now.

 

[LONG_KEELER]

Just wondering if Stoke Yacht Club was originally in the New Cut along with the moorings.

You can still see the old lock entrance from the Steamboat side.

 

[ex-Gladys]

I had three months contracting in Felaw Maltings, the walk from the NCP in Burrell Road was an absolute delight, apart from low tide niff

 

[Sniper]

Just wondering if Stoke Yacht Club was originally in the New Cut along with the moorings.

You can still see the old lock entrance from the Steamboat side.

I think the Stoke Sailing club was originally based on what became the West Bank terminal. They moved down to their current location, originally on a converted lighter (now a houseboat at Pin Mill) before building their current clubhouse at the end of Slumpy lane at Freston

 

[LONG_KEELER]

I think the Stoke Sailing club was originally based on what became the West Bank terminal. They moved down to their current location, originally on a converted lighter (now a houseboat at Pin Mill) before building their current clubhouse at the end of Slumpy lane at Freston

So that's where they were . Thanks.

Quite a pretty spot for them further down.

 

[Adios]

I think the Stoke Sailing club was originally based on what became the West Bank terminal. They moved down to their current location, originally on a converted lighter (now a houseboat at Pin Mill) before building their current clubhouse at the end of Slumpy lane at Freston

This is Cliff Moorings which is about opposite to West Bank. Could be the clubs moorings?

https://flic.kr/p/2gNwFyX

And this fantastic photo is also Cliff Moorings with a view of the marshes that became the West Bank Terminal. (You can click on them to go to Flickr and then zoom in). It looks like just off to the right is a fair size creek into the mud flats which is probably another mooring. Quite likely that would be Stoke Sailing Club if its not at Bourne Bridge.

https://flic.kr/p/2ekiF2B

This is looking towards Bourne Bridge

https://flic.kr/p/2fDBWE5

And these must be boats moored that side as we're looking back to Cliff Quay

https://flic.kr/p/2ekiHtv

Here it is I guess, a little cluster of boats down that channel top left

https://flic.kr/p/29dsfAo

 

[Adios]

https://flic.kr/p/UpQ2W9

Until progress filled it in

https://flic.kr/p/DKwSRg

And then further down was Bourne Bridge Yacht Station where progress mercifully didn't reach.

https://flic.kr/p/DKxsjZ

What a great resource the Ipswich Maritime Trust is!

 

[Aquaboy]

An exploration a few years back now.....

 

[Aquaboy]

And these from 2018

 

[Adios]

An exploration a few years back now.....View attachment 110246

Looks a solid boat for exploring! Are there any restrictions on mooring around this area?

 

[Sniper]

Looks a solid boat for exploring! Are there any restrictions on mooring around this area?

I don’t know the details but there used to be a few moorings right up in St Peter’s dock, occupied by a collection of very modest boats. They all got turfed out about 20 years ago and several of them moved down to Pin Mill .....

 

[Adios]

I don’t know the details but there used to be a few moorings right up in St Peter’s dock, occupied by a collection of very modest boats. They all got turfed out about 20 years ago and several of them moved down to Pin Mill .....

Very modest from what I remember. But still to me that is a bit of character. To some neatly trimmed lawn type of town planner I guess its a mess. Still seems an odd thing to have unused easily accessible town centre mooring spaces. Having some interesting random boats in the cut won't be make or break for Ipswich's non-existent tourism industry

 

[Aquaboy]

There should be a free public pontoon at St, Peters Quay, many other places can manage it including Colchester at the Hythe but we are talking Ipswich so I'm not optimistic.......

 

[Adios]

There should be a free public pontoon at St, Peters Quay, many other places can manage it including Colchester at the Hythe but we are talking Ipswich so I'm not optimistic.......

A pontoon would be a nice luxury but I'm wondering if the quay and cut is not already free just that no one uses it. The steep mud bank along the cut is pretty uninviting to rest on though, but after a low tide inspection and with appropriate experience it seems an option. I guess they might have removed anything to tie up to, that would make it tricky. But cordless Hilti, rawl bolts....

 

[Aquaboy]

There are a few mooring rings at St Peters but once down into the New Cut proper there are no mooring signs along the island side (ABP I assume) A tea van used to park there and I climbed up and over the flood defence wall with my life jacket on and got a cupper one day. Judging from the looks of astonishment from passes by it doesn't happen often. To look at Photos from times past with rowing dinghy's for hire and the general hustle and bustle of the area it just seems a sad decline and and a waste

 

[LONG_KEELER]

There are a few mooring rings at St Peters but once down into the New Cut proper there are no mooring signs along the island side (ABP I assume) A tea van used to park there and I climbed up and over the flood defence wall with my life jacket on and got a cupper one day. Judging from the looks of astonishment from passes by it doesn't happen often.

Proves that a sense of adventure and daring is still in the hearts of all of us.
Would have loved to seen their faces too.

 

[Adios]

There are a few mooring rings at St Peters but once down into the New Cut proper there are no mooring signs along the island side (ABP I assume) A tea van used to park there and I climbed up and over the flood defence wall with my life jacket on and got a cupper one day. Judging from the looks of astonishment from passes by it doesn't happen often. To look at Photos from times past with rowing dinghy's for hire and the general hustle and bustle of the area it just seems a sad decline and and a waste

On the island side I see there was a wide tree lined promenade with a shelter at the end by the rowing boats. Its probably not a well known part of the towns history. The promenade was replaced with a railway siding and that was the end of leisure on that side of the cut. Looking at this it must have been a great spot to feel the towns connection with the river.

https://flic.kr/p/CWhDYA

https://flic.kr/p/DRtvjd

https://flic.kr/p/DKwTpk

They could have narrowed the prom and left a path up by the cut but no they removed all access for an extra siding.

https://flic.kr/p/GMAcCB

They could reinstate the promenade now but its been left as just waste ground with no public access.

A load more photos of the famous Ipswich promenade on this page IMT Image Archive Looks like it was a big part of Ipswich life

 

[Aquaboy]

As a kid the lock area always proved a draw. You could cross over in those days and with the train movements as well
I loved it. We lived off Foxhall Rd. and mum would walk us down there with the tripper, sit in the sun and watch the lock keepers. The gates were operated by individual winches, no one through us off........... Maybe. I,m getting old......