If you would like to purchase our books by post, please contact pembrokehistory@live.co.uk. 

Our Latest Publication - Monkton: A Hidden History

Written by Linda Asman and Keith Johnson, with contributions from many local people, the book brings to light the rich heritage of Monkton which has, until now, been much neglected by historians. Overshadowed somewhat by historic Pembroke, Monkton too can boast an impressive history, a history which dates back to the Old Stone Age.  It encompasses the rise and fall of Pembroke Priory, the Civil War when Cromwell located his cannons here, the building of the Victorian terraces of Priory Mains to house Dockyard workers and the restoration of the Priory Church. In the course of researching the book, lesser-known information emerged such as the surprising fact that Monkton was a centre of the Mormon religion in the 1850s, with one of only three Mormon chapels in Wales. And research into the village's maritime past has revealed that it once had a thriving shipbuilding yard and that timber from Canada was imported to Monkton quay. Proudly independent of its larger neighbour, Pembroke, Monkton was virtually a self-contained community for over a century with shops and tradesmen of every kind, farms and quarries, schools and pubs and regular livestock fairs in the village street. Sadly, much of the character of the village was lost in the early 1960s when the local council decided to bulldoze most of the old terraces and replace them with a modern housing estate.

We regret that demand has been so great that this publication is now out of print - However, it can be accessed on this website - the Monkton Page

'Pembroke Remembers:  a Memorial publication recalling the part

played by Pembroke and District in The Great War and recording

some of the local events marking the Centenary of the War'. 

This book was an outcome of the Society’s Heritage Lottery funded project ‘Pembroke Commemorates the Centenary of the end of WW1: in words, pictures, art and film’. Written by Society Chairman, Linda Asman and edited by Keith Johnson, the book opens with ‘a Nation’s Tribute’ November 11th 2018, when communities throughout the land took part in an act of commemoration.  It then looks back one hundred years to the outbreak of WW1 which saw the influx of thousands of troops into this area due to the strategic importance of Milford Haven and the Royal Dockyard.  “It is not the intention of this book to be a history of the War itself: there have been many books written about World War One, especially during the years of centenary 2014 -18.  My aim has been to look at the effects of that momentous conflict on our local area and its people and in this I have been fortunate for the help given by historians who are experts in their field.  A big thank you also to the many people who have participated in the project and supplied information and photographs. And, of course, the support of our hard working History Society Committee”.

'Pembroke Remembers...' , thanks to funding from Heritage Lottery, costs only £7.50 and is currently on sale in Pembroke Town Hall. 

'Ted, The 'Welsh Goat' Hero' by Ted Owens

Click here to see Ted introducing his book

 

D-Day Veteran Ted Owens – soon to return again to the Normandy beaches 75 years on – has written his own compelling war story entitled ‘Ted the Welsh Goat Hero’ .  Ted, a 94-year-old former Royal Marine Commando, is a legend in his home town of Pembroke Dock.

Pembroke and Monkton History Society is proud to have published Ted’s book in this anniversary year of the D-Day landings.  It has been produced with editorial support from family friend Shobha Edgell and local writer and historian Keith Johnson.

The chapters reflect Ted’s action-packed World War II, beginning as a 15-year-old fire brigade messenger boy during the harrowing days following the Luftwaffe attack on Pembroke Dock’s Llanreath oil tanks in August 1940.

Later Ted joined the Royal Marines and trained for the elite Commandos. Aged 19, he came ashore on Sword Beach, Normandy, on D-Day, June 6th 1944, and was seriously wounded soon after. Evacuated to England, he recovered and re-joined his unit, and was wounded twice more.

One of a sadly dwindling number of veterans, Ted will be making another visit to Normandy this June for the 75th anniversary of D-Day.

Price: £8 (£10 including P&P)

Hancock's Shipbuilding Company in Pembroke Dock

by David James   

With the aid of a wealth of archive images, many previously unpublished, the author traces the story of five generations of the Hancocks family and their association with the sea, firstly as respected Milford Haven pilots and then as trawler owners and shipbuilders in Milford Haven and, later, Pembroke Dock.

As the title of the book indicates, it is the latter part of the Hancock story that is concentrated upon - the sixty years of shipbuilding in Pembroke Dock that began with steam trawlers and went on to include wartime patrol boats, two Hobbs Point/ Neyland ferries, numerous barges, landing craft and cargo vessels and also the centre span of the Cleddau Bridge, before the yard closed in the early 1980s.

As part of his researches, the author has interviewed numerous former Hancock's employees to build up a picture of what it was like to work in the yard, and the book gives a real sense of the camaraderie that existed there and the pride that the workforce took in seeing the vessels that they built take to the water. Many of these vessels are still earning their keep all over the world, and it comes as a surprise to learn that the old paddle-driven 'Cleddau Queen' was last reported working as an oil rig diving support vessel off Nigeria just a few years ago.

With a fascinating appendix listing all the ships built in the various Front Street shipyards from the 1820s to the 1970s, this book will appeal to local and maritime historians alike, as well as to the many people who have family connections with a fondly-remembered Pembroke Dock enterprise.

Price: £8.99  (£13 including P&P)

WILLIAM HAGGAR - PIONEER OF THE CINEMA IN WALES

Written by William’s great granddaughter, Vicki Haggar, and including previously unpublished essays by her grandfather Walter and brothers Roy and Tony, the book follows the fortunes of her family through four successive generations. It spans a century in the entertainment business; from Victorian travelling theatre to fairground bioscope, through cinema’s golden age to eventual decline and the closing of Pembroke Cinema, the last of the Haggar Cinemas, in 1984.For many this will be a nostalgic walk down memory lane and a must read for anyone interested in the history of cinema in this country.

Price: £5 (£8 including P&P)

OUR COMMUNITY HISTORY DVD & BOOK A GREAT SUCCESS!

"A great example of volunteering, of people giving up so much of their time to produce something of value for the community. "

Angela Burns A.M.

A Journey Through Time

The stories have also been printed as a book, which was originally intended as a key to the DVD but, as it turns out, is fascinating read in its own right and is generously illustrated with personal photographs rather than the usual views of old Pembroke.  The book enables you to see at a glance how the DVD is arranged and how, taken in sequence, the stories take you through time. They are arranged in Sections each with an introduction to link each story to its place in Pembroke’s developing story – from stories which reflect on our prestigious historic past and traditions to personal memories which take us back to Victorian and early 20th century Pembroke to the present day.

It is thanks to a grant of £10,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund that we have been able to publish ‘Through My Eyes’.  Because of the funding we are able to sell the book at a subsidised rate of £10 and make no charge for the DVD which will be given free with the book: our heritage belongs to us all and we want to make it affordable for everyone.  We will hope to recoup the overspend on the project with the book sales, and any monies resulting will be re invested in future projects of the History Society.

Price: £5 (£8 including P&P)

Buy this book and 'From Mummers' Booth to Silver Screen' for £15 - including P&P!

Contact us

If you would like to purchase our books

Please contact - pembrokehistory@live.co.uk

or post cheque to Pembroke&Monkton Local History Society,28 Rocky Park, Pembroke SA71 4NY tel: 07584 429224

OUR 'SENSE OF PLACE' LEAFLETS

Our first publications were the Monkton and Pembroke 'Sense of Place' leaflets.  These were designed to give an oversight of the historic development of our communities and are bilingual.  Written by Linda Asman, Chairman of the Society, they are illustrated with attractive line drawings by George Lewis, Society President.

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They were funded and published by Planed and we were helped in this by Kate Lindley.  Planed have published 'Sense of Place' leaflets of many of the communities in South Pembrokeshire. While the leaflets are free, they can also be downloaded here in an English or a Welsh version.

Linda Asman, George Lewis & Kate Lindley

At the Launch of the Pembroke leaflet

Our Publications team pictured here with artist George Lewis  and Kate Lindley of Planed

 

Pictured above, artist George Lewis, Chairman Linda Asman and Kate Lindley of Planed

and below some photographs taken of the Launch at Monkton Priory Church Hall.

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