Ports Photography

Curated by The Ports, Past and Present Team

Follow us on a photo tour of the port communities gathered by nationally and internationally recognised photographers around the Irish Sea over the last century. Each gallery captures the unique spirit of the communities at all occasions. Discover the day-to-day work of dockers in Dublin, port-construction work by a crew of Dutchmen in Rosslare Harbour, port and social life gathered around the port in Holyhead, the former grand hotel above Fishguard Bay, before finishing with the Royal Australian Airforce stationed in Pembroke Dock during the Second World War.

Dublin Dockers Through the Years

The Dublin Dockers started by collecting old photographs and are delighted to report that our collection has broken through the 4,000 mark. In addition, people have donated over 6,000 documents which we have passed on to Dublin City Council. Most of…

Willem van de Poll in Rosslare Harbour

The prolific Dutch photographer and journalist Willem van de Poll (1895-1970) visited Rosslare on at least two occasions in 1930 and 1932. During this period and leading up to the Second World War, he established his international reputation as…

Geoff Charles in Holyhead | Geoff Charles yng Nghaergybi

Geoff Charles (1909-2002) was an outstanding photojournalist from Wales. Over the course of four decades, he captured all aspects of life in Wales, particularly in the Welsh-speaking areas. In the 1930s, he worked for several Welsh newspapers. Later…

The RAAF in Pembroke Dock | Yr RAAF yn Noc Penfro

After the end of ship building in Pembroke Dock in 1926, the RAF set up an air base for flying boats in the disused dockyard in 1930. In 1938, they introduced the famous Sunderland flying boats to the fleet. During the Second World War, Pembroke Dock…