BLACK SOCIAL HISTORY: BLACK PEOPLE IN CARDIFF TIGER BAY:

Few places in Britain show such cultural diversity as Cardiff Tiger Bay. This region in a veritable potpourri of colours and nationalities and it has been so for many years now. For much of the 19th and 20th centuries the Welsh Capital served as one of the greatest global coal producers. Naturally this industrial boom was some thing of a beacon for immigrants, who found work aboard ships and on the docks. Immigrants poured in from the Middle East, Africa, Greece, Spain, Portugal, the Caribbean and China. Norwegians, Italians and Irish soon joined the mix. They began to settle down in and around Cardiff Docks and Bute Town in the early 1900s bringing with them their own unique culture, heritages and traditions.

By the 1950s the mile long streach of dock land commonly known as Tiger Bay boast some 57 nationalities and over 50 languages throughout its 10,000 inhabitants. This area became a melting pot were cultures blended and even mixed intermarriages became quite common.  Despit its rough reputations, Cardiff Tiger Bay remains one of the most fascinating melting pots in UK History. Tiger Bay produced a number of celebrities, singer Shirley Bassey was born in Tiger Bay. Rugby league stars like Frank Whitcombe, Billy Boston and Colin Dixon were all born in Tiger Bay.