Digital Ark: St. Florence, Wales: Anecdotes original

Anecdotes    Last Update: 2026-09-04

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Old St. Florence saying

Tenby will fall.
Penally will drown.
St. Florence will be the next market town.

The background to this saying is concerned with the river Ritec. In the 1960/70's it was usually barely more than a brook.
However it was a bit bigger a few hundred years ago.

original
Source: 1818 map found on Facebook:Tenby through time .

Note how there is a large inlet from Tenby leading in to the River Ritec.

Apparently the River Ritec was tidal and could support small ships up the river to St. Florence
There are two physical remnants of these days, mooring points on High Street either side of the river

simplified
Source: ~1957 A postcard from Squibbs Studio, probably in the Squibbs Archive but not yet digitised/online.

The stone bollard is still in front of the Ark. But the stone block seems to be gone (?).

simplified
Source: ~1960 Extract of a postcard from Squibbs Studio, probably in the Squibbs Archive but not yet digitised/online.

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Sheep Dipping

original
Source: found on Facebook:Tenby through time .

Has a wonderful sketch of the Old Mill.

Illustrations by Geoff Scott

Personal memory: George Salisbury

My elder sister Kathleen says that around 1955 she went down to the Old Mill to watch the farmers dipping sheep.

They corralled the sheep into the mill. Damned the river. Then threw the sheep, out of the mill, in to the water.