It was the Romans who first used Lydney to ship out iron ore that had been mined in the Forest of Dean. The harbour and docks at Lydney have undergone many changes since their day. Easy access to the Severn Estuary increased Lydney's importance as a trading centre and a harbour was built to transport iron and later coal from the forest. Lydney harbour was the last port on the Severn where sea-going boats could unload. The River Lyd flows into the estuary at Lydney Pill, however silting up of the river at Lydney Pill closed the medieval harbour and a new wharf had to be built. With the charcoal, iron industry and coal production thriving and roads through the forest remaining poor, Pidcock's canal was constructed from 1790 onwards, connecting Upper and Lower Forge at the head of Lydney Pill. The current canal and basin complex was built by the Severn and Wye Railway and Canal Company between 1810 and 1813. A horse drawn tramway was laid, to move the coal and iron to the wharves after it was brought down from the pits and forges on the Pidcock's Canal. The new dock on the estuary was started in 1809 and opened in 1813. The outer harbour was finally completed in 1821. During the hey-day of the docks there was around 300,000 tons of coal being exported annually in over 2000 vessels. The final export of coal from the harbour was in 1960. Lydney harbour ceased to function in the 1970s and was finally closed in 1977 from which time it fell into disrepair. In 1985 the harbour from the swing bridge downstream was scheduled as an ‘Ancient Monument', due to the historic importance as a transport link for the Forest of Dean to the Severn; the swing bridge being designated a Grade II Listed Building in 1988 due to it being ‘a very good example of the direct and sturdy quality encountered in the functional tradition of quay-side design'.

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River Severn Lydney	Lydney lookin toward chepstow	sheep	Looking Across to Berkerley
looking Toward the Severn Bridge.jpg	Winding Gear For Lock Gates	looking over the Gates	Looking toward Sharpness
Mast	Basin	Basin 2	Basin 3
sunset	Moon	Dusk	river severn lydney
Old Barge	Out Flow	Looking In From The end of The Dock

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