History of the Wye Valley Railway

Why build a tunnel under the embankment;

and Black Morgan’s Viaduct

The Tunnel

A short distance from the northern portal of Tidenham tunnel a short tunnel passes under the embankment. It is pleasingly built all round, well over average head, about 50m long, with stone and brick lining and a cobbled floor. A track passes through it leading to the river nearby. The tunnel is not visible from the trackbed above.

The intriguing question is – ‘Why is it there?’. There have been several theories, for example:

Was it to provide access to a ferry?

Could it have been a drainage outlet for storm water running down the hillside?

A drainage outlet seems unlikely as the height of the tunnel would imply a huge volume of water which would have required stone facing reinforcement along the length of the embankment. There is no sign of this.

Route of the track under the embankment

The reason for the track through the tunnel was thought to provide the best clue and so this was investigated.

This 1918 ordnance survey map shows a jetty below Liveoaks Quarry, but today there is no sign of a jetty or slipway. There is, however, a water outfall, just visible in the photo of the river. Nor is there any visible evidence of a landing on the east river bank today or on old maps. Neither do the old maps mark a ferry although ferries are shown at Brockweir and at Tintern (the Abbey Ferry). Moreover, it is hard to imagine or make a case for a crossing between two isolated wooded areas with little or no nearby habitation or communication roads. So it is unlikely that the tunnel was for access to a ferry.

Faggot Wharf

The 1840s tithe map does show the woodland track ending at Faggot Wharf.

In this period there was a well-established trade in faggots as well as other woodland products. These were an important cash crop and the woodland would have been managed sustainably by coppicing methods. Faggots were bundles of sticks bound together used as firewood. Faggot sales continued well into the 20th century.

The faggots were often sold while lying on the woodland floor and then transported to the buyer. Large numbers were produced – 5000 were on sale in this 1826 advert.

Barges

Charles Heath wrote in the early 19th century that ‘Great quantities of hoops and poles, the produce of the surrounding woods, are shipped from thence to Bristol and other places’.The faggots were probably carried on trows from the wharf.

Trows were flat bottomed sailing vessels. Many hundreds of these barges used to sail the Wye and Severn carrying tons of cargo until the early years of the 20th century. Some were more than 25m in length. They had collapsible masts to go under bridges.

Working in the wood

The faggots and poles were gathered together and piled high onto horse drawn or ox drawn wagons. The wagons would have worked from top of the slope to the bottom so that gravity worked in their favour.

The track on the map was possibly the main artery from the B4228 Chepstow to Coleford road and there would have been many feeder paths. To prevent erosion the track would probably been metalled ie with a surface made of small pieces of stone - a practice continued today on farm tracks.

The tunnel under the embankment’s height would have provided clearance for loaded wagons. The cobbled floor would have prevented erosion and protected the foundations.

So the conclusion we have reached is that the purpose of the tunnel was to give access to the wharf to transport faggots and other woodland products.

When the landowner sold to the railway company he would likely have stipulated that a tunnel be provided for continued access to the wharf and will have set the requirements in terms of the key features of the tunnel. The conveyance of the land by the Duke of Beaufort makes no mention of this so it may have been a supplementary agreement.

Black Morgan’s Viaduct

Black Morgan’s viaduct is a three arched structure which spans a depression in the ground to allow a train to cross. It is the only brick-built viaduct on the line and takes its name from Black Morgan’s Wood in which it is built.

Some local people believe that the name is linked to Henry who became a privateer employed by the King to plunder the Spanish colonies. Admiral Sir Henry Morgan’s name lives on as a famous brand of rum.