<p>The Underfall Yard is a historic boatyard on Spike Island serving Bristol Harbour, the harbour in the city of Bristol, England. Underfall Yard was commonly referred to as "The Underfalls" and takes its name from the underfall sluices. The original construction (designed by William Jessop) was in the early 19th century with revisions by Isambard Kingdom Brunel in the 1830s. Following restoration in the 1990s, this Victorian work yard is now a Scheduled Monument that includes several listed buildings. The harbour and its equipment are still actively maintained, and host a cooperative of boat builders.
</p><p>The original slipway was built by John Ward Girdlestone in 1890 which had replaced a predecessor built in the 1850s by boatbuilders Ross and Sage. It used a system in which the ship is floated onto the cradle and secured. The cradle is then drawn out of the water with a steam-driven winch. The device was a low-cost alternative to dry docks for maintenance and repair work. This became known as the Patent slipway or 'Heave-up Slip' and was patented in 1819 by shipbuilder Thomas Morton of Leith in Scotland.
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[Source: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/en:Underfall_Yard" class="extiw" title="w:en:Underfall Yard">en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underfall_Yard</a>]
<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.flickr.com/people/83763404@N07">Gillett's Crossing</a> from Bristol, United Kingdom
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<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/83763404@N07/10876899786/">Slipway, Underfall Yard, Bristol 10.9.1994 Scans003</a>