Wembury ferry port

By the late 19^th century Plymouth’s commercial port was seriously outdated – to the extent that liners of any size had to anchor in Plymouth Sound and use tenders to land or embark passengers or goods. When attempts to resolve this problem by building new port facilities in Plymouth’s Cattewater were blocked by the navy, attention switched to Wembury Bay.

In 1908 a private company published plans to build here the country’s largest port. Stretching from the River Yealm in the east to Wembury Point in the west, and protected by breakwaters stretching well out to sea, this port would have totally transformed the bay. However, despite strong support from Plymouth’s commercial and political elite, and despite a complete absence of local opposition, when the company applied in 1909 for the necessary Act of Parliament to permit the project it was firmly refused by a House of Lords vetting committee. Under-capitalisation and the lack of backing by a major railway company were its Achilles’ heels.