Newport’s ever-changing riverfront

Where once the riverfront was a bustling hive of industry, now it is home to apartments on one side and the university, Riverfront Theatre and a bingo hall on the other.

We've delved into our archive to bring you a selection of pictures to show how the area has changed over the years.

This picture, supplied by Jan Preece, is taken from the Shaftesbury side of the Old Green shows this bustling area before the current roundabout and interchange was dug out.

The picture must have been taken sometime between 1966, when George Street bridge was opened and 1970, when this whole area was completely re-modelled.

The shot gives a tantalising glimpse of a remnant of the Monmouthshire canal beneath the road bridge.

The canal ran down to where the Wave and University of South Wales campus stands now.

Also visible is the power station on the east side of the Usk.

This was built in 1902 off Corporation Road and eventually produced electricity for the South West England as well as South Wales.

This power station was replaced by one built further down the river at Uskmouth.

The cranes belong to the sand wharves which would unload dredgers hauling sand to be used for building from the beds of the Usk and the Severn.

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This view is where today you would find Friars Walk.

It shows the bus station which used to stand on this site being built in the late 1960s.

On the riverside is British Dredging, where ships would unload their cargoes of sand and silt scooped from the Severn Estuary.

Where the cranes, hoppers and conveyors are in this shot now is the west side of the footbridge and the University of South Wales campus.

This shot shows the bus station with shops along the bottom-right and Kingsway running parallel to the river.

The only parts still standing are the building on the old Moderator Wharf at the top right, now used by the Alacrity Foundation and the Potters, the gable end of which can be seen at the bottom left.

Day-trippers join the Cardiff Queen at Davis Wharf in Newport with the town bridge visible in the background.

This is close to where The Pod is situated today.

The Cardiff Queen was one of several paddlers which would ply their trade between Newport and the West Country ports of Clevedon, Weston and Minehead.

The paddle steamers were well-adapted to work in the Usk and the Severn with their huge tidal range. Their flat-bottoms meant they could carry on sailing at lower tides when a conventional ship could not.

This picture shows the west side of the river again, now before British Dredging took over the site on the bank.

Visible to the left of the castle is Jays Furniture shop, which was formerly the Shaftsbury Cafe, standing sentinel-like on the bridge.

Their large mirror was well-known, with kids stopping to do 'Harry Worth' impressions in front of it.

They would stand in front of the mirror with half of their body reflected and wave their arms up and down, creating the illusion they were jumping up and down.

This stunning aerial view from the 1930s shows how much has changed on the east bank of the Usk, but also how much is still recognisable.

The long-gone power station is visible between the river and Corporation Road and along the edge of Rodney Parade.

The cricket pitch to the north of the power station was sold off almost 30 years ago.

The stadium remains, although over the years it has been redeveloped, and beyond that is what we now call the 'Cabbage patch' - formerly home to tennis courts and a bowling green.

On the river bank the clutch of terraced houses remain, but now they are surrounded by more houses as flats have been built along the riverside up to the old art college.

The point where the footbridge now meets the east bank is recognisable as the end of the path between the Rodney Parade stand and the river bank.