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"FISHGUARD (ABER-GWAIN), a market town and parish, in two divisions, the Upper and Lower, in the hundred of KEMMES, county of PEMBROKE, SOUTH WALES, 16 miles (N.) from Haverfordwest, 26 1/2 (N.) from Pembroke, and 249 (W. by N.) from London, containing 1990 inhabitants. . . In the year 1797, a French force of about eleven hundred men, under the conduct of General Tate, effected a landing on this coast, within a few miles of the town; but after committing some ravages in the neighbourhood, they were made prisoners by the troops under Lord Cawdor. This event, though generally referred to Fishguard, took place in the adjoining parish of Llanwnda. The town is beautifully situated on the river Gwayn, near its influx into St. George's channel, and is divided into the Upper and Lower town, the former crowning the summit of a hill commanding an extensive and beautiful marine view, and the latter occupying the banks of the river, over which there is a neat stone bridge of five arches. The Upper Town includes the principal portion, containing the church, market-place, and principal shops, and consists chiefly of three streets, diverging from a common centre, partially paved, and consisting of houses irregularly built and of indifferent appearance. . . The surrounding scenery is finely diversified, assuming in some parts a striking boldness of character, and in others a pleasing combination of picturesque features and romantic beauty. The situation of the town upon a small bay in St. George's channel, to which it gives name, and the shores of which are distinguished for the beauty of their scenery; the salubrity of its atmosphere; the abundance and cheapness of the commodities brought to its markets; and the facility for sea-bathing, contribute to render Fishguard desirable as a place of residence, and attract to it numerous visitors during the summer. . . Some of the largest vessels belonging to the port are engaged in the general carrying trade from Bristol, Liverpool, Milford, and London, to Ireland, &c. The Irish packets often put in here, when driven by stress of weather. The herring fishery, which formerly afforded employment to a considerable number of the inhabitants, became latterly unproductive . . . The church, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, is pleasantly situated in the Upper Town: it has recently been repaired, and is a neat small edifice, but not distinguished by any peculiarity of architecture. . . " [From A Topographical Dictionary of Wales (S. Lewis, 1833).]
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Llyfryddiaeth Abergwaun = Bibliography of Fishguard .Dyfed Cultural Services Department. 1980?,20p
Details of extant records on Archives Network Wales for the following;
- Fishguard and Goodwick Post Office records and Union of Post Office Workers papers "Papers relating to the Post Office and the Union of Post Office Workers in Fishguard and Goodwick, Pembrokeshire, 1949-1959, including correspondence, 1954-1956; miscellaneous Union papers, 1956-1959; papers relating to personnel in Fishguard, 1950-1959; payslips and receipts, 1956-1959; newspaper cuttings, [1956]; and GPO, Union and Treasury booklets, 1949-1958"
| St Mary, Fishguard (Church in Wales) |
| Hermon Baptist Chapel, Fishguard |
| Tabernacle Welsh Independent Chapel, Fishguard |
| Cemetery, Fishguard |
Indexes to the 1841 and to the 1851 census for this parish are available from the Dyfed Family History Society.
Census Returns for this parish have the following LDS Call Numbers:
- 1841 Census - 0464343
- 1851 Census - 0104238
- 1861 Census - 0543245
- 1871 Census - 0850858
- 1881 Census - 1342306
- 1891 Census - 6099650
| St Mary's Church Institute, Fishguard (Church in Wales) |
| St Mary, Fishguard (Church in Wales) |
| Baptist Mission, Lower Fishguard |
| Bethel Baptist Chapel, Fishguard |
| Hermon Baptist Chapel, Fishguard |
| Tabernacle Welsh Independent Chapel, Fishguard |
| Cemetery, Fishguard |
Some church and chapel data from The Religious census of 1851 : A Calendar of the returns relating to Wales, Vol 1, South Wales. Ed. by I.G Jones, & D. Williams. UWP, Cardiff, 1976. The names are those of the informants
Parish entry for Fishguard with Llanstinan and Llanychaer from The Welsh Church Year Book, 1929 (Cd by Archive CD Books).
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Various chapel related photographs on the People's Collection Wales site
- Interior of Bethel English Baptist Chapel, Fishguard
- Photograph of members of Capel y Cwm, Lr Fishguard (Baptist Chapel demolished in 1960's)
- interior view of Tabernacl Welsh Independent Chapel, Upper Fishguard,
Diocesan records suggest that c1790 this parish had a register going back to 1761
Parish registers; Christenings (1799-1949 but may start at 1787), Marriages (1785-1964) Banns (1902-40), Burials (1799-1854, 1934-95) at NLW with Mf copies at Pem.RO
Copy ms PR C (1783-1854) M (1785-1837) B (1799-1854) at NLW
Bishops' Transcripts, covering the period (1685, 1799-1829, 1831-47, 1863-4) are at the National Library of Wales, and have been microfilmed by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Bishops Transcripts for this parish have the LDS Call Number: 0105140.
See Bap/Mar/Bur data on FreeReg
Nonconformist Chapels:
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A pictorial and descriptive guide to South Wales: including Brecon, Newport, Cardiff, Vale of Neath, Swansea, Gower, Carmarthen, Llandovery, Tenby, Pembroke, Fishguard, Cardigan, New Quay, Aberystwyth, etc. (4th ed.), London, Ward, Lock & co., Ltd. (1925) 192, 80 p., front., ill., maps, plans, plates.
Fishguard, Goodwick, St. David's & Newport area guide. Edition Eisteddfod 86 edition. Fishguard : Preseli Printers, [1983?] Description 64p
Fishguard and Goodwick in old picture postcards. Zaltbommel : European Library, 1989.78p
John B S. The Fishguard and Pembroke Area, British Landscapes through Maps, no 16. Sheffield, 1972.
Lewis, Martin. Newport Pem and Fishguard .Chalford ,1996. 128p The archive photographs series
Morgan, G. Fishguard in old photographs, Swansea, Christopher Davies (1986) 55 p.
Morris, J P. The North Pembroke and Fishguard Railway. Lingfield, 1969.
Various landscapes/seascapes of Fishguard and surrounds on the People's Collection Wales site
Pigot & Co. South Wales Directory for 1830. Here are Extracts for Fishguard
Pigot & Co. South Wales Directory for 1844. Here are Extracts for Fishguard
The transcription of the section for Fishguard from The National Gazetteer (1868) provided by Colin Hinson.
Transcript of complete entry in Lewis' Topographical Dictionary of Wales of 1833.
- Ask for a calculation of the distance from Fishguard to another place.
Details of extant records on Archives Network Wales for the following;
- Williams, D. J., Abergwaun, papurau (papers) 1793-1969 (gyda bylchau) (crynhowyd 1908-1969) "Personal, public and literary papers of D. J. Williams, Fishguard, 1810-1969, including a great number of family letters and letters from friends and fellow literary figures; diaries; and college notebooks. ............................. "
- Morgan Family of Fishguard, Papers 1871-1969 "The Morgan family were builders, at West Street, Fishguard, Pembrokeshire, at the beginning of the 20th century, and they also owned Fishguard Sawmills and Joinery Works, and were builders' merchants and undertakers. John Morgan (d. 1950) was a leading member of Pentour Calvinistic Methodist Church, Fishguard, and of the North Pembrokeshire Presbytery, and .............................."
Held at the NLW ;
- Papers of David John Williams, Abergwaun (1885-1970), writer, including records of his ancestors in Carmarthenshire, 1793-1882.
Hughes, Clive. Focus on Fishguard and district : a selection of documents of interest to the family historian and available at the Pembrokeshire Record Office . In Dyfed Family History Journal 2/4 (1986), p. 90-92
Phillips, Nan. The diary of the Reverend John Phillips, Trefasser, near Fishguard, 1885. In Dyfed Family History Journal 3/6 (1990), p. 148-53
There are historical snippets about this parish on Not everyone knows this..
Carradice, P. The Last Invasion: The story of the French landing in Wales, Pontypool Torfaen, Village Publishing (1997). [A very readable and well-illustrated detailed account - complete with extensive references to primary sources and bibliography.]
Horn, P. The last invasion of Britain: Fishguard, 1797, Fishguard, Preseli (1980) 24 p
Horn, Pamela. The building of Fishguard Fort. Fishguard : Preseli Printers, 1982. 12p
Kinross, J S. Fishguard Fiasco. Tenby, 1974
Knox, Thomas. Some account of the proceedings that took place on the landing of the French near Fishguard, in Pembrokeshire, on the 22d February 1797, and of the inquiry afterwards had into Lieut.-Col. Knox's conduct on that occasion ... : together with the official correspondance and other documents . Publisher London : Printed by A. Wilson, 1800
Phillips, W D. The French Invasion of Fishguard as told me by 'Grannie'. Dyfed FHS journal, Vol 5/9 Apr 1997.
Stuart Jones, E.H. The Last Invasion of Britain, Cardiff, Univ. of Wales Press (1950) 324 p.
Details of extant records on Archives Network Wales for the following;
- Alderman W. J. Phillips Williams estate papers "Papers deposited by Alderman W. J. Phillips, 1784-1926, including deeds and papers of the Fishguard estates of Captain William Gwynne Evans, 1786-1883; deeds relating to land in Portfield, Haverfordwest, 1838-1839; deed relating to land in Llandilo and Llangolman, 1799; deeds relating to the Hazelhill estate, Llanstadwell, 1815-1912; deeds relating to Prendergast, 1810; deeds relating to the Bullford estate, Steynton, 1784-1918; records relating to the Fishguard Harbour Improvement Co., 1906-1926; and miscellaneous papers, 1816-1837"
- Johns and Pepper, Solicitors, records relating to Fishguard and Goodwick "Records accumulated by of Johns and Pepper, Solicitors, Fishguard, 1699-1954, including deeds and papers of the Bowen family of Goodwick, 1699-1938; papers relating to Trevinnert estate, 1749-1911; Llanwnda Farm and Glasfryn papers, 1805-1951; Hescwm Issa estate papers, 1826-1869; papers of the Trenewydd estate and the Johns family, 1797-1948;..................................."
See the parish map
You can see maps centred on OS grid reference SM966363 (Lat/Lon: 51.987411, -4.963417), Fishguard which are provided by:
- OpenStreetMap
- Google Maps
- StreetMap (Current Ordnance Survey maps)
- OpenStreetMap Cymru (Welsh counties only)
- Bing (was Multimap)
- Old Maps Online
- National Library of Scotland (Old Ordnance Survey maps)
- Vision of Britain (Click "Historical units & statistics" for administrative areas.)
- Magic (Geographic information) (Click + on map if it doesn't show)
- GeoHack (Links to on-line maps and location specific services.)
- All places within the same township/parish shown on an Openstreetmap map.
- Nearby townships/parishes shown on an Openstreetmap map.
- Nearby places shown on an Openstreetmap map.
Details of extant records on Archives Network Wales for the following;
- Fishguard Harbour Improvement Company Records 1857-1897 "Abortive attempts were made to improve the harbour at Lower Fishguard, Pembrokeshire, from the late 18th century onwards. However in 1859 the Fishguard Harbour Improvement Company was formed by Act of Parliament in order to build a pier and quay at Lower Fishguard Harbour. ......... "
- Pembrokeshire Museums Service papers Including " ........... deeds relating to Fishguard, 1804-1812; ............. papers relating to William Morris, mariner, of Fishguard, 1832-1839 ..........."
Scott, Richard S. L. The port of Fishguard . The Journal of the Pembrokeshire Historical Society, No.2, 1986-7 Welsh Journals Online
Spence, Graeme. Some account of the bay and harbour of Fishguard, in Pembrokeshire, and of the proposed pier to be constructed there for the safety of vessels navigating the Irish Channel. [1790?-Signed on p. 31: Graeme Spence. Fishguard Harbour, May 6, 1790] 36p
Fishguard War Memorial - on the Roll of Honour site
Details of extant records on Archives Network Wales for the following;
- Papers of Fishguard Branch, Royal British Legion (Women's Section) 1935-1977
Places, villages, farms etc within Fishguard as shown on the online parish map from the CD of Historic Parishes of England and Wales: an Electronic Map of Boundaries before 1850 with a Gazetteer and Metadata [computer file]. (Kain, R.J.P., Oliver, R.R.). (Extracted by Tony Morris)
- Fishguard (Abergwaun) (31); Avon Cleddau; Carn Fran; Carn Madog; Carn Stanney; Castell cornwynt; Castell Draenen; Castle Point; Cefn-y-dre; Citsnafe; Criney Brook; Cronllwyn; Cwm Brandy; Efail; Esgyrn; Fishguard; FISHGUARD NORTH; FISHGUARD SOUTH; Llaneast; Lower Town; Old Fort; Penrhyn; Penrhyn Erw-goch; Penrhyn Ychain; Tre-boeth; Tre-groes; Tre-groes Maur; Tre-wrach; Trebover; Ty newydd
Fishguard Today - County Echo
Bennett, Tom. Fishguard lifeboats : a short history .Fishguard and Goodwick Ladies' Lifeboat Guild, 1984.28p
Details of extant records on Archives Network Wales for the following;
- Fishguard and Goodwick Urban District Council Records 1879-1983
- T. G. V. Johns, Fishguard, Papers "Papers of T. G. V. Johns, 1834-1949, comprising Acts of Parliament relating to Fishguard, Pembrokeshire, 1834-1861; Manorowen poor rate book, 1851; legal papers relating to the Fishguard Improvement Co., 1949 ................................."
Held at Pem Archives
- Fishguard and Goodwick parish/community council minute books 1974-1976
Boys class of the National School, Hamilton Street, Fishguard together with their teachers - on the People's Collection Wales site
Celebrations at Fishguard on Mauretania Day on the People's Collection Wales site
(Procession of local people many dressed in traditional costume, walking from Fishguard to the harbour at Goodwick to welcome the arrival of the Cunard Liner, SS Mauretania on her inaugral visit to the port.)