Hamble Foreshore Interpretation Board
Hamble Foreshore
Over the centuries the foreshore has been at the heart of Hamble life — a base for fishing boats and sailing vessels, boat building and maintenance, transporting goods and people, and leisure pursuits.
In 1919 Hamble River Sailing Club began here; in the early 1950s Blue Star Boats started river trips; and in 1972 Hamble Lifeboat moved to the foreshore.
The ferry has operated from the foreshore for centuries.
Henry V’s ‘Grace Dieu’, 1418
Hamble was used by Henry V's fleet, and in 1417 twelve royal ships spent the winter anchored here, protected by 40 archers. In 1418 the Grace Dieu, the largest ship built in England at that time, was brought to Hamble for fitting out.
For the next few centuries Admiralty Courts were held on the foreshore to deal with local maritime matters, and everyone of importance connected with the water was summoned to attend.
Hamble Foreshore, 1845
In 1868 Winchester College, Lord of the Manor of Hamble, purchased the foreshore from the Crown. Fishing boats and oyster beds were a common feature at this time.
Hamble Foreshore, 1930s
When a local boatman began renting the foreshore from the College, parishioners fearing the loss of their rights secured a Parish Council lease in 1934.
The Council purchased the foreshore outright in 1939 and remains its owner today.
WW2 Repair Base Pontoons, 1940s
During the Second World War the foreshore was requisitioned and infilled with rubble from bomb-damaged Southampton to build a United States Army Water Division repair depot.
Hamble Foreshore, 1950s
In the late 1940s and early 1950s the Council undertook a foreshore restoration scheme, including a small dinghy storage compound. The former US depot's concrete base became a car park.
Regatta Off Concrete Ramp, 1960s
A concrete ramp was built in 1957, and the southern foreshore was subsequently infilled to create the dinghy park, which opened in 1960.
Construction of Northern Quay Wall, 1989
The southern quay was constructed in 1988, the northern quay in 1989, and the Public Jetty in 1993.
Foreshore Map
Map drawn by Parish Clerk showing the foreshore as it was between the mid 1800s and WW2, 3 hards – Ferry Hard, Oyster Hard & Public Hard.
Aerial View in 1920s
First Decade of 1900s
© Hamble-le-Rice Parish Council and pictures Ian Underdown
