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Gathering the Jewels features over 30,000 images of objects, books, letters, aerial photographs and other items from museums, archives and libraries throughout Wales.
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Photographs and tools from the National Shipyards, Chepstow
As so many merchant ships were sunk during the First World War, in 1917 the government decided to establish a number of national shipyards. In accordance with the Protection of the Realm Act, all Chepstow shipbuilding companies came under government control. They were expanded to form National Shipyard Number 1 (Chepstow). Over 6,000 men from the Royal Engineers built the shipyard, and men from Tyneside and the Clyde came to work at the yard. Garden cities were built for the workers in Hardwick, Bulwark and Pennsylvania. The concrete blocks used to construct the houses were produced by German prisoners of war. Camps were built for the workers, along with workshops, a power station and hospital.
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