Chesil Coast Protection Works 1962-1967. Unique film and images. Civil Engineering, Portland

[@stevegray5263]

An amazing film about an amazing man who took pride in his work, something that isn't often observed nowadays. Thank you !

[@ItsMe-io5bl]

Too true, at 40 years old i started and saw the back of the last truely capable people. Now i`m watching the younger generations starting. All i can say is smartphones and social media have a hell of a lot to answer for. You get the odd one that can keep their minds on subject.... so thats good I suppose😂😂

[@RayHogarth]

This is 100 percent excellent 👍

[@StuartMorris7]

Thanks!. I'm pleased you enjoyed it

[@jerrydavies3784]

Fascinating- thank you for taking the time to record yours and Portlands legacy.

[@RobertWatson-w2w]

Excellent. Like civil engineering was. You and the whole team should be praised for a professional job well done

[@thetek2006]

I'm not sure why this video popped up in my feed but I'm really glad it did. This is a superb historic document of an important piece of civil engineering which I have walked on myself without ever considering its genesis or realisation. The old cine footage and the fact that you were one of the designers and the site engineer makes this especially authoritative and important.

[@StuartMorris7]

Thanks for your kind comment!

[@illumencouk]

I'm guessing tens, possibly hundreds of thousands of pounds were spent on these coastal defences and yet they couldn't afford colour photography?

[@StuartMorris7]

@@illumencouk The black and white photographs were taken professionally on a large format camera. They were taken for technical purposes, and little would have been gained by having them in colour. (Colour 1/2 plate fim was expensive anyway). They show what was needed. Did you not notice the colour photos, which are scans from my 35mm slides? Not forgetting the colour film I took with my 8mm cine camera! I take it your comment was tongue in cheek?

[@andrewmogg591]

Brilliant, thanks for sharing. Great works carried out with basic machinery and local people, just skill, judgment and hard graft.

[@cesiumalloy]

I was there before the seawall, I was there during construction and 10 years later met Joanne at the wooden shed that used to be the seawall shop (obviously replaced) Sally and Vicky lived at the shop on high street, all but Joanne left Portland...such memories...Now 70 I miss my old friends, so thanks for the rekindling of memories and thank you for the upload.

[@StuartMorris7]

Good memories!

[@grahamfisher5436]

Its great to see how things are built and by whom Thank you

[@michaelhorton9583]

Hi Stuart and sincere thanks for putting this and all your others videos together. Brought back fond memories of Percy Boutelle and others at PUDC. That seawall profie is a classic and just diverts the wave energy rather than absorbing it, as long as the foundations are deep enough. As you note, the videos and photos certainly highlight how much safety has improved over the years, and saved countless lives and serious injuries. Scary top see how things were in the 60s. I recall that many of the transient labourers would work all week and get paid on Saturday, get cleaned up and buy a Hepworths cheap suit to head to the pub for the weekend and then turn up for work on Monday without a penny to their name and work in that same suit all week!! Although our time at PUDC was our first job after leaving school, we were both involved in projects normally handled by engineers way beyond our years. It was a great start to long careers for both of us, although I have to wonder where you have managed to keep all of this irreplaceable information over all these years. Michael.

[@StuartMorris7]

Yes, Michael. I've often pondered why we were given so much responsibility, but I think I know. The old Portland council was responsible for housing, water supply, sewerage, public health, parks etc. I think poor Eric Cullin was overwhelmed, so was happy to delegate, and he did take time off with 'nerves' . He was also given a hard time by some councillors, which is why he eventually left for a lower job (at Bridport I think), Having said that I remain eternally grateful for being entrusted with so much, I found your recollection about the workers hilarious! I've always seen the value in recording events and saving records which I value as 'corporate memories'. I was upset when a huge lot of Weymouth's archive documents dating back to the 19th century were ditched after I retired - because they needed the shelf space! Anyway, enjoy the new Trump era. I do worry about the future with such a blustring, low-intellect, smug man in charge. Stuart

[@mcmullen7143]

Thank you Stuart. I’m old enough to remember a lot of this and the storms! My parents visited regularly from Bournemouth and I subsequently worked across west Dorset until 2000.

[@BerlietGBC]

A very excellent presentation, thank you

[@StuartMorris7]

Thank you!

[@davidjones9838]

Thanks Stuart - very informative and enjoyable.

[@markgodden4544]

Extremely interesting. Thanks for producing this interesting record of the protection works' construction Stuart.

[@enjay53]

Brilliant and historically very important documentary, thank you Stuart. Another name to add to the list of A E Farr personnel is my late father in law, Albert Cook who we believe worked with the piling/general gang.

[@StuartMorris7]

Thanks for that. I've added Albert Cook's name to the list in the description.

[@tonyb83]

Ahhh... another good one. Well done Stuart👍 The successful in-house design, which time and many repelled storms tell us has worked well, just goes to show how much money is wasted on Consultants. All the best Tony B

[@StuartMorris7]

Thanks Tony!. Yes, but they can be useful sometimes, selectively!

[@Beaver-b1v]

This is fascinating! I always find it funny that the workmen were wearing suits, shirts. And yes the lack of safety gear Thank you for the brilliant film

[@philtucker1224]

Yes none of that had been invented back then!

[@wykecastlewelding]

Great video ,lots of names mentioned that I have knowen and in some cases worked with . The old cinie footage is timeless.

[@PeterMackett]

Always great to see the old plant, the International BTD 6 Drott loader and the Aveling-Barford DG roller and a couple of old compressors too.

[@StuartMorris7]

Thanks for the info. I suppose not all of the plant was old at the time, although I did record several breakdowns.

[@Nick-ye5kk]

Excellent video

[@stretch4666]

Well she’s certainly standing up very well to the elements! Spent many an hour sat on top of there watching the world go by. Very interesting watch

[@markrobinson1458]

Excellent presentation 👏 and very well done, explained and executed, I've a feeling these days it'll be considered too costly and left to crumble into the sea.

[@StuartMorris7]

Thanks for your kind comment. It took me years to get around to putting it together!

[@JohnnyMotel99]

Super interesting coastal works near me, I'd be curious to know if you followed the Dawlish coastal works? That wall used huge steel piles to anchor the wall.

[@StuartMorris7]

Yes, that's a massive scheme, costing some £80m I believe!

[@dorsetdumpling5387]

Great, informative video! I wonder, with all that Kimmeridge clay being dug and sea washed, did any major fossils come to light? (Or were you too busy fighting the elements to notice?)

[@StuartMorris7]

I'm sure I or someone would have spotted any fossils, but sadly no. We did find a few to include in the rock revetment and the back wall, not as many as I would have liked.

[@jeaniebottle6758]

Chesil Engineering by Civil Engineers in 1960s. TY all involved.

[@philtucker1224]

Nicely narrated Stuart, if you had attained higher status in that department at the time I’m sure you could have better influenced the quality and ultimate longevity of some of the critical repairs that have been undertaken since then. Do you still live in the area?

[@StuartMorris7]

I didn't have any direct involvement with this scheme after 1966. I have pressed for essential repairs and maintenance over the years, but apart from the 2011 work, little has been done. Much of my later career was based in Weymouth, and I do still live in the area.

[@philtucker1224]

Did your mates from the café talk you into doing this Stuart? - and subsequently (if your anything like me) you probably got one of your grandchildren to do the production and editing for you ha ha! Stay well my friend 🖖

[@StuartMorris7]

Ha ha! Nobudy needed to lalk me into doing this. I've ben planning to do it for years and only just got around to it. I did everything myself. compiling the images and film, and the narration, and editing. The same with my 450 other videos on KZbin. My grandchildren are too busy with their own stuff.

[@philtucker1224]

@ Bless you mate, very impressive. Live long and prosper! 🖖

[@tonyrobinson362]

Its amazing what can be done in Dorset but not in North Yorks.

[@philtucker1224]

Yes in this example it slightly contradicts the Yorkshireman’s normal opinion of the “southern softies” ..

[@markholroyde9412]

I hope you look back with pride on this. Fantastic vid. I live next to J22 on the M62, I use to go up with my Dad when the first steps were took to dig out the Valley of 11millions tons of peat bog. Where the Motorway splits in two for the Farm. I was 6 years old and still have a bit of C8 film he took, to the first drive down it when opened. The project Manager was 28 IIRC...to build a Motorway in the highest place in England, fkn unbelievable, much like you were doing. I look at how work is done (not) today and despair, that 96K spent on doing that end bit would be 30million today and would take 5 years....when the cost would be 60million by then....World is fkd, snowflakes born before 1990 have no common sense on how to do anything...ugh.

[@philtucker1224]

“Any risky practices were quickly resolved” ( funerals were block booked) 😂🤣

[@StuartMorris7]

We didn't lose too many men, I recal!

[@philtucker1224]

@ Thank goodness! (We didn’t have many left after WW2!)

[@derek6579]

When GB had money for such infrastructure projects!