Hakin
| Hakin | |
|---|---|
 View of Hakin Point from Milford Docks |
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 Hakin
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| Hakin shown within Pembrokeshire | |
| Population | 2,313 |
| OS grid reference | SM899061 |
| Principal area | |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | MILFORD HAVEN |
| Postcode district | SA73 |
| Dialling code | 01646 |
| Police | Dyfed-Powys |
| Fire | Mid and West Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| EU Parliament | Wales |
Hakin is a small coastal town in Pembrokeshire, Wales. It belongs to the parish and community of Hubberston in the historical hundred of Roose. It is located directly to the west of the larger town of Milford Haven, and is often considered a district of the latter. It had a population of 2,313 inhabitants in 2001 and is mainly residential.
The name Hakin is derived from the Old English Hecke, meaning "corner in the bend of the stream", and the German Ecken, meaning "a point of land". The word was used as a geographical term to describe the location of an area, as late as 1794. The term Haking to describe the current boundary was first recorded in 1861, in the British Postal Guide, provided as a sub-office under Milford. Prior to this, the area had been referred to as Hubberston, or Hubberston-Haking.
Hakin has been a settlement since at least the 13th century. It has variously be known as Haking, and later as Old Milford, to distinguish it from the newer settlement across the tidal estuary. A ferry service to Ireland operated from Hakin towards the end of the 18th century, although this ceased in the early 19th century. Between 1801 and 1803, the town and waterway were protected by temporary batteries at Hakin Point, in response to the perceived threat following the Fishguard Invasion.
At a site on high ground in Hakin, Charles Francis Greville planned to build The College of King George the Third to study mathematics and navigation, whose centrepiece would be an observatory. Although the observatory was built, and scientific instruments delivered, the college never functioned as such as after the death of Greville in 1809 the whole project was abandoned. The remains of the observatory still stand and are grade II* listed.
By 1849, the district of Hakin was described as a considerable centre of boat building, with approximately 200 "shipwrights residing at that place". However until the construction of a bridge linking the populations of Hakin and Milford, access to the district was via a plank across Hubberston Pill, and Hakin was considered something of a poor relation to the main town. Point Street, formerly Store Street, was the busy hub of the community, characterized by numerous public houses, stores to service the maritime trade, and prostitution. The completion of the Milford Docks in 1888 radically altered the Hakin landscape.
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Wikipedia