Inside Master Ropemaker's

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Inside Master Ropemaker's This page has been created to show you an insight into an average day being a Ropemaker. Hopefully you'll find it as fun as we do.

Master Ropemaker's is a rope making company that runs from The Historic Dockyard in Chatham. There has been rope making on this site since 1618 and the buildings that are on site now have been here since 1729. We still use a lot of the original machinery dating from the mid 1800s including an original Henry Maudslay strand forming machine from 1811. It may amaze people but we are still a fully commercial business! We produce and sell rope Monday to Friday, 8am-4:30pm all year around. We also make products out of rope. This page was created to show you the side that you don't normally get to see as a visitor to the museum. This is where we will show you; the ins and outs of splicing, interesting jobs, repairing of the machines and mechanisms and even the upper levels of the Ropery that are completely out of bounds to visitors (and even some employees). We hope you enjoy this page and if there is anything specific you want to see or ask, don't hesitate!

Lovely photo of Dave working hard 😊
05/10/2026

Lovely photo of Dave working hard 😊

Where else can you see 400 years of rope-making heritage in action?

As the only one of the original four Royal Navy Ropeyards to remain in operation, join us and watch the Master Ropemakers at work in Chatham's Victorian Ropery.

This is your sign to explore the ¼-mile ropewalk and try your hand at ropemaking on one of the Ropery experience tours.

All set up and ready to see visitors at Armed Forces Day! 🇬🇧
27/06/2026

All set up and ready to see visitors at Armed Forces Day! 🇬🇧

Did anyone see the episode of Repair shop on the road? This was such a fun episode to film and Will was a really lovely ...
09/03/2026

Did anyone see the episode of Repair shop on the road?
This was such a fun episode to film and Will was a really lovely guy to chat to, I think my genuine love for what I do shines through on camera 😊
I hope you all enjoy the episode if you watch it, its very interesting, especially the restoration of the War Memorial Plaques which were stolen from a local church in Chatham

The podcast by Phoenix History has been uploaded, it was really lovely to sit down and chat with the guys and their YouT...
25/01/2026

The podcast by Phoenix History has been uploaded, it was really lovely to sit down and chat with the guys and their YouTube channel is full of interesting interviews and history so if thats what you like, head over and check them out!

Phoenix History Podcast EP27: Ropemaker of the Historic DockyardCome sit with us in the ropery of the Historic Dockyard Chatham to talk with Leanne Clark, th...

We had a lovely visit from Phoenix History today to record a podcast for their page which will be coming out soon!If you...
20/01/2026

We had a lovely visit from Phoenix History today to record a podcast for their page which will be coming out soon!

If you like history and interviews with interesting people, check out their page, its definitely worth the visit

Address

The Historic Dockyard Chatham
Chatham
ME44TG

Telephone

01634 823890

Website

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