Sir,
Reading the front page of the Tenby Observer of Friday, February 1 inst. re the story of the Tin Shed and its very long slipway. In my opinion it is not a particularly attractive building; although it was functional and synonymous to the Tenby coastline, it is no longer needed by the RNLI. It has become an eyesore and would cost a considerable amount of good money to redevelop, so demolishing it would be a good idea. The same hue and cry happened when the Victoria Pier had to go - does anyone really miss it, I ask myself. Keep the memories, yes! Lavish the money on it, no!
I am sure many local people and visitors alike will in fact recall the heyday when the Caldey boat, 'The Lollipop', operated a ferrying service from Tenby to Caldey Island from that very slipway and the Harbour. A hair-raising experience as you negotiated the narrow planking walkway of the Tin Shed and slipway with the sea swirling below.
As a young lad, my parents, sister and I spent many holidays in Tenby and I became friendly with Mr. (Dinkie) Crockford and as a result I helped him collect strawberries, chocolate and perfume from Caldey Island for their shop on the mainland. The aforementioned was collected from the slipway on Caldey Island where the late Br. Thomas would be there to greet us. My task as we approached the island was to get into the bow of the boat and with rope in hand jump onto the slipway and tie off around the capstan and move swiftly away as the boat settled.
The Lollipop went out in most weathers to maintain a link for supplies to and from the island. One very inclement day Dinkie said "Shall we go across Cap'n as there are some boxes to pick up for the shop?" On the return journey, the weather getting steadily worse, we could not get close to the lifeboat station slipway due to the swell, so Dinkie tied up to a buoy.
Dinkie says "Let's have some strawberries." To me, a Catholic boy, that was like stealing from the church, a short-lived sentiment as we tucked in; our hands soaking wet and chilled against the elements made it hard to grasp the strawberries. Along with crisps and chocolate that followed, my tummy was beginning to roll as bad as the sea around us. The weather did not improve for well over an hour, then the rain stopped and we proceeded to the slipway where we were greeted by Br. Thomas who was waiting for the stock to arrive for the Caldey Shop.
Whilst Dinkie and Br. Thomas were sat chatting away, I thought to myself, what would happen if they launched the lifeboat at that moment? Br. Thomas turned to leave us, but not before he asked me if I had had a good day. "Yes, Brother, thank you!" On reflection had I lied to a monk? We then proceeded into the harbour to offload our provisions.
Roger Brabyn,
174 New Road, Rumney, Cardiff.