Kirjahaku

This collection of over 200 photographs draws on the archives of North Tyneside Libraries which have been built up through the donations of local people. The majority of the old scenes are from within living memory, but before the redevelopments of the 1960s and '70s, which cleared away much that people had come to think of as permanent. North Shields has done well to survive eight centuries, for a 'town where no town ought to be', and a great deal of its visible past is now lost. A definition of the boundaries of North Shields has always proved elusive. For the purpose of this book it has been taken to include the riverside between the Fish Quaay and Smith's Dock, and the streets south of the road to Tynemouth. Some of the photographs show only subtle changes to the present day, while others will help jog fading memories and a few may surprise even long term residents. The author has not attempted to include every significant building in the town, but the pictures have been chosen because they have given pleasure to the library users and others down the years. The book will pass on their pleasure to a wider audience and remind readers of just how much has disappeared.

This fascinating collection of over 200 photographs beautifully depicts Whitley Bay over the years. This ‘Dream Village by the Sea’ was grafted onto the farming and failed colliery hamlet of Whitley, developing from the 1860s onwards.The pictures are taken from the collections of North Tyneside Libraries. The accompanying notes cover the original village, the Victorian extensions, and the attractions provided along the Promenade and Links. They will help trace the development of an unplanned dormitory town into a major seaside resort. Many and varied aspects of Whitley Bay’s history are pictured; delivery carts that were a familiar sight in the early 1900s, family run shops and businesses, concert parties and parades and of course the beach – from the early bathing machines to sandcastle competitions.The suitability of the town for a retirement area has, in the past, created a population without roots in the area. And yet – how many thousands all over the country must remember the excitement of childhood holidays by the sea. The dances, cinemas and entertainment laid on by hotels will have brought countless sweethearts together. This book is for all those who chose to make their lives in Whitley Bay, and those who carry golden memories from even the shortest of visits.

In less than a century North Shields spread out to engulf a number of surrounding communities which once had separate identities. The greater part of this intriguing new compilation covers those parts of the townships of Chirton, Murton and Preston which lay outside the built-up area of North Shields at the beginning of the twentieth century.Along the banks of the River Tyne ever-branching railways wound between piles of timber, exporting huge tonnages of coal through the Albert Edward and Northumberland Docks. The colliery village of Percy Main was saved from oblivion by the railways. As the early industries declined, alternatives arrived, taking over much of the agricultural land at West Chirton. Housing estates at the Meadow Well and Balk Well farms provided healthy living for the people of North Shields, who once lived cramped upon the banksides in the old town.This fascinating second selection of pictures of the North Shields area complements and extends the coverage of the author’s first book on the town. Once again, it draws upon the collection of the Local Studies Centre of North Tyneside Libraries. Many of the images were created as part of the work of the old County Borough of Tynemouth. Others have been brought to the library by private individuals wishing to share them with a wider public.