Volume 1, Number 11
Stealing a side of bacon, onion thieves, a call for buses to Malpas, assault with a saucepan, girl hits child in face with bible and complaining about how people walk in Newport.
Uncovering Newport's interesting past
Get started with our best stories
A Description of Newport and Caerleon in 1803
Rev J Evans' tour of South Wales including mentions of the bridges at Newport and Caerleon and the Charity School in Caerleon.
1731: When Caerleon's Bull Inn had a Bowling Green
Back in 1731, an advertisement for the Bull Inn, Caerleon mentions a bowling green being available, but where exactly was it?
Letting Newport Castle in 1797
An advertisement posted in 1797 offering to let Newport Castle. Contains information on the different buildings and their dimensions.
18th Century Miscellany — 1730-1749
Stolen horses, mentions of early pubs, houses for sale, the cattle market, the Sea Wall being breached, town and Caerleon bridges brought down by ice, cock fighting and a school in need of a headmaster.
Volume 1, Number 10
A complaint about a muddy Maindee street, Valentine's Day dying out, baptising in the river Ebbw, a complaint about those who drop orange and banana peels and sparing a thought for those who can't pronounce street names.
Newport Charter of 1711
A detailed charter of 1711 describing how food should be sold at markets, requirements for going to church on a Sunday, looking after your hedges and paths and brewing small beer for the poor.
Transporter Bridge Miscellany
Digging through the archives looking for interesting snippets such as fare for plebeians, a suggestion of putting a big Newport sign on the top, what the approaches should be called and the first suicide attempt.
When Miniature Golf Arrived in Newport
The Miniature Golf craze reached Newport in 1930 with the launch of an outdoor course and two indoor courses with the space of a few months. Here's the brief history of their arrival.
History of the 'Newport Races' at the Marshes
In the first half of the 19th century, the Marshes (Shaftesbury Park) was home to horse racing and the annual Newport Races. This is the history of those races.
Newport's Little Switzerland
For at least 160 years, Little Switzerland has been a spot in Newport known for its ’double view’ of Twmbarlwm and the Bristol Channel. Here’s a potted history of how it developed over time.
See what we’ve
written lately
written lately
Volume 1, Number 7
The Crindau Pigeon Match, a sturgeon caught in the Usk, an automatic stamp machine installed in Maindee, the noisy hot cross bun-boys, and Cambrian Road being built.
The Launch of In Shops
As part of a revamp of Kingsway Centre, the In Shops was opened in October 1986 and featured 163 retail units and a food court. Here's how the opening day went.
Newport's Little Switzerland
For at least 160 years, Little Switzerland has been a spot in Newport known for its ’double view’ of Twmbarlwm and the Bristol Channel. Here’s a potted history of how it developed over time.
When GWR Owned Station Approach
How the Great Western Railway used to ensure that Station Approach remained a private road and how the Coporation redeveloped the site.
Volume 1, Number 6
Vintage W.H. Smith adverts, stealing swedes, the Caerleon Leek, a ball at the King’s Head Inn, two wretched urchins and the 'one of handsomest smacks' ever to have launched in Newport.
The Great Circular Road
A proposal in 1911 to build a Circular Road and Main Avenue which is very similar to today's M4 and SDR roads.
