Company & trade
Archcliffe Yard
Also called the yard · Archcliffe
Not one dockyard but a cluster of private works on the western side of Dover laid against Crown ground: a stone graving dock owned by five non-shipwright interests, hauling slips, mast and sail lofts, smithies, pump shop, ropewalk and chandlers, plus the licensed timber quay.
Named with it
- Master Shipwright Elias Redd
- Rope-Maker Judith Lydden
- Joan Deal
Ties
- its repair books are consulted by the Dover room
- buys timber from House Ashcombe
- sits beside the Crown ground of the Dover garrison
At the table
Redd's refusal to sign a hull keeps it uninsured; his repair book records neglect where owners claim wear and is read by the Dover room. Redd, Lydden and Deal can each cost a master his sailing without any officer saying no. Gangs here earn a penny a tide extra for the timber. A yard surveyor who is not the builder certifies repairs. Old rituals (iron in the sternpost, the old splice in a new cable) are kept alongside exacting work.