Stonar Cut 1900 to 2006


		Modern 1901AD-
Return to Introduction Display Contents Road Bridge Modern Sluice Gates Brick Retaining Walls Timber Line 1 Timber Line 2 Timber Line 3 &4 German Torpedo Boat
		Stonar Cut - 1900 to 2006
		Features at Stonar Cut Road Bridge The Stonar Cut is spanned by a modern steel and concrete road bridge currently carrying the two lane A256 Ramsgate Road. A second steel bridge east of the road bridge carries a large water main over the cut

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		Modern sluice gates The flow of water through the Stonar cut is controlled by a set of steel sluice gates operated by an array of electric motors The gates remain closed until required to relieve flood waters built up in the upper reaches of the Stour west of the cut.

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		Base of the Sluice The recent flushing of the sluice by the Environment Agency scoured away the silt in the base of the cut exposing a concrete lining. The concrete lining appears to be made of precast units with cobbles set in the surface.

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		Brick retaining walls The sluice gates are contained between two curvilinear retaining walls built of brick; these appear originally to have flared out from the sluice in a sinuous curve terminating on the northern side with a sharp curved pier.

		These walls have been damaged by the pressure of the unstable adjacent banks and considerable portions of each of the structures have been lost. The southern wall has been repaired recently with steel mesh gabions filled with stone.

		On the north bank a large portion of the centre of the wall has been lost.

		On the southern bank almost all the brick structure has been lost although a remnant can perhaps be seen within the box platform formed by Timber line 2.

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		Timber Line 1 Within the silted channel of the cut a row of rectangular section timber piles formed an irregular line extending approximately 1m from the mud.

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		Timber Line 2 Timber line 2 was composed of 26 close set rectangular section timber piles forming a right angled structure.

		Other structural members present included horizontal lacings that may have extended into the bank. Two of the horizontal beams had been chamfered to form a rough octagonal shape. Each of these timbers had a half lap joint on the north end which may originally have been attached to a mortise at the top of an upright. The timber right angle apparently encompasses a platform or structure built of bricks, possibly an extension of the southern brick wall of the cut.

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		Timber line 3 and 4 A row of rectangular section piles was located behind a large breach in the brick wall facing the north bank of the cut. This row of piles had at one time been continuous but the central section has been lost creating two separate units. Timber line 3 consisted of eleven piles with a horizontal rail bolted to the upper part of the face.

		Timber line 4 was a better preserved stretch of piles with the continuation of the rails seen on the shorter remnant. Seven piles had become detached from the structure and had been thrust forward by the weight of material on the bank gradually sliding toward the channel from behind the structure.

		The bolts and square washer plates used to fix the rails to both structures were visible attached to the north face of the structures. It was clear that originally the row of piles and its rail had been secured behind the retaining wall of the cut. Both wall and timber structures had been damaged by the weight of collapsing of material from the north bank.
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		German Torpedo Boat The wreck of a steel hulled vessel, reputed to be a WWII German torpedo boat, lies in the silt on the northern side of the channel. This boat was originally salvaged in the post war period and stored in Ramsgate harbour. It was towed to its present location and abandoned. Some unsuccessful attempts have been made to salvage the vessel; in November 2005 it lay firmly fixed in the silt of the cut.

		The recent flushing of the Sluice by the Environment Agency has scoured away some of the mud exposing the remains of the vessel at low tide.

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		References and Further Reading Butler, R. 1999. Richborough Port. Pfizer Ltd, Sandwich. Chamberlain, D. M. 198?. The Ancient Town and Port of Stonar. East Kent Maritime Trust. Hardman, F. W. and Stebbing, W. P. D. 1940. Stonar and the Wantsum Channel. Part I – Physiographical. In Archaeologia Cantiana Volume LIII pp 62-80.
		Emma Boast and Ges Moody Version 1. Posted 28.02.06




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