South Shields, Tyne & Wear - Steam train, minature railway, park - Dennis 1970s

Postcard
• Picture / Image:  Steam Train, South Shields Park, Tyne & Wear [formerly Co. Durham]
• Publisher:  Dennis (S.014014L)
• Postally used:  no
• Stamp:  n/a
• Postmark(s): n/a
• Sent to:  n/a
• Notes / condition: 

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Text from the free encyclopedia WIKIPEDIA may appear below to give a little background information (internal links may not  work) :

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South Shields (or locally known just as Shields) is a coastal town in Tyne and Wear, England, located at the mouth of the River Tyne to Tyne Dock, and about 4.84 miles (7.79 km) downstream from Newcastle upon Tyne. Historically within County Durham, the town has a population of 82,854,^[1] the second largest population centre in the Tyneside conurbation after Newcastle. It is part of the metropolitan borough of South Tyneside, which includes the riverside towns of Jarrow and Hebburn and the villages of Boldon, Cleadon and Whitburn. South Shields is represented in parliament by Labour party MP Emma Lewell-Buck.

The first evidence of a settlement within what is now the town of South Shields dates from pre-historic times. Stone Age arrow heads and an Iron Age round house have been discovered on the site of Arbeia Roman Fort. The Romans built a fort here around AD 160 and expanded it around AD 208 to help supply their soldiers along Hadrian's Wall. Divisions living at the fort included Tigris bargemen (from Persia / modern day Iraq), Spanish / French soldiers and Syrian archers / spearmen. The fort was abandoned as the Roman Empire declined in the 4th century AD. Many ruins still exist today and some structures have been rebuilt as part of a modern museum and popular tourist attraction.

There is evidence that the site was used in the early post-Roman period as a British settlement. It is believed it became a royal residence of King Oswald of Northumbria; records show that his son Oswin was born within 'Caer Urfa', by which name the fort is thought to be known after the Romans left. Furthermore, Bede records Oswin giving a parcel of land to St Hilda for the foundation of a monastery here in c.647; the present-day church of St Hilda, by the Market Place, is said to stand on the monastic site.

In the 9th century, Scandinavian peoples made Viking raids on monasteries and settlements all along the coast, and later conquered the Saxon Kingdoms of Northumbria, Mercia and East Anglia. It is said in local folklore that a Viking ship was wrecked at Herd Sands in South Shields in its attempts to disembark at a cove nearby.

The current town was founded in 1245 and developed as a fishing port. The name South Shields developed from the 'Schele' or 'Shield', which was a small dwelling used by fishermen. Salt-panning expanded as an industry in the 15th century, polluting the air and surrounding land. In 1644 during the English Civil War, Parliament's Scottish Covenanter allies captured the town and its small fortification close to the site of the original Roman fort to aid their ongoing siege of Newcastle. This was in a bid to control the mouth of the River Tyne and caused the Royalist force to flee south, leading to the Battle of Boldon Hill.

In the 19th century, coal mining, alkaline production and glass making led to a boom in the town. The population increased from 12,000 in 1801 to 75,000 by the 1860s, bolstered by economic migration from Ireland, Scotland and other parts of England. These industries played a fundamental part in creating wealth both regionally and nationally. In 1832, with the Great Reform Act, South Shields and Gateshead were each given their own Member of Parliament and became boroughs, resulting in taxes being paid to the Government instead of the Bishops of Durham. However, the rapid growth in population brought on by the expansion of industry made sanitation a problem, as evident by Cholera outbreaks and the building of the now-listed Cleadon Water Tower to combat the problem. In the 1850s 'The Tyne Improvement Commission' began to develop the river, dredging it to make it deeper and building the large, impressive North and South Piers to help prevent silt build up within the channel. Shipbuilding (along with coal mining), previously a monopoly of the Freemen of Newcastle, became another prominent industry in the town, with John Readhead & Sons Shipyard the largest.

During World War I, German Zeppelin airships bombed South Shields in 1915. Later during World War II, the German Luftwaffe repeatedly attacked the town and caused massive damage to industry and killed many residents. Gradually throughout the 20th century, coal and shipbuilding industries ceased, due to competitive pressures from more cost effective sources of energy and more efficient shipbuilding elsewhere in Europe and in Asia. In the 21st century, the local economy primarily includes port-related, ship repair and offshore industries, manufacturing, retail, the public sector and the ever increasing role of tourism.

South Shields is situated in a peninsula setting, where the River Tyne meets the North Sea. It has six miles of coastline and three miles of river frontage, dominated by the massive North and South Piers at the mouth of the Tyne. These are best viewed from the Lawe Top, which also houses two replicas of cannon captured from the Russians during the Crimean War (the originals having been melted during World War II).

The town slopes gently from Cleadon Hills down to the river. Cleadon Hills are made conspicuous by the Victorian Cleadon Water Tower and pumping station (opened in 1860 to improve sanitation) and a now derelict windmill, both of which are listed and can be seen from many miles away and also out at sea.

South Shields boasts extensive beaches, sand dunes and coves, as well as dramatic Magnesian Limestone cliffs with grassy areas above known as The Leas, which cover three miles of the coastline and are a National Trust protected area. Marsden Bay, with its famous Marsden Rock and historic Grotto public house and restaurant set in the cliffs, is home to one of the largest seabird colonies in Britain.

One of the most historic parts of the town is the quaint and beautiful Westoe village, which consists of a quiet street of 1st grade and 2nd grade Georgian and Victorian houses, many of which had been built by business leaders from the coal and shipping industries in the town. Given its beautiful setting, parks and trees, this street was often the setting for a number of books by the novelist Catherine Cookson.^[2] Westoe village was once a separate village about a mile from South Shields, but urban sprawl has now consumed it, along with the village of Harton to the south on the main route towards Cleadon and Sunderland.

Before 1820, South Shields was a predominantly sparse hamlet and village based rural economy with some small-scale shipbuilding, glass making and salt processing along the riverside. Beyond 1820 and into the Industrial Revolution, South Shields expanded into an urban settlement built around shipbuilding and coal mining. Migration came from up the River Tyne, with other migrants from rural County Durham, Northumberland, Scotland and Ireland. The majority of the people living in South Shields are descendants of those who migrated and settled in the area during the Industrial Revolution in order to work in expanding coalmines and shipyards. Towards the end of the 19th century, with the British Navy needing seamen, Yemeni British sailors settled in the town, this resulted in the first roots of the Yemeni British community in the town.

South Shields has been home to a Yemeni British community since the 1890s. The main reason for the Yemeni arrival was the supply of seamen, such as engine room firemen, to British merchant vessels. Similar communities were founded in Hull, Liverpool and Cardiff.^[3] In 1909, the first Arab Seamen's Boarding House opened in the Holborn riverside district of the town. At the time of the First World War there was a shortage of crews due to the demands of the fighting and many Yemenis were recruited to serve on British ships at the port of Aden, then under British protection. At the end of the war, the Yemeni population of South Shields had swelled to well over 3,000. Shields lost one of the largest proportions of Merchant Navy sailors. Approximately 1 in 4 of these men was of Yemeni background.

Disputes over jobs led to race riots - also called the Arab Riots - in 1919 and 1930. However, over time, attitudes to Yemenis in the town were softened and there was no significant recurrence of this violence.^[4]

After World War II, the Yemeni population declined, partly due to migrations to other industrial areas such as Birmingham, Liverpool and Sheffield.^[5] However, the main reason for the reduction in numbers was the end of the shipping industry and the need for sailors as coal burning ships decreased in numbers. Today, the Yemeni population of South Shields numbers around 1,000.^[6] Many Yemeni sailors married local women and became integrated with the wider community, resulting with a migrant population less distinct than in other mixed communities across the UK. The Yemeni are the first, settled Muslim community in Britain and have been used to justify multi-culturalism.

There is a mosque at Laygate, including the Yemeni School, which was visited by American boxer Muhammed Ali in 1977. He had his marriage blessed at the Al-Ahzar Mosque, the first purpose-built in the UK. This story is covered in a documentary film, The King of South Shields film website. Throughout April and early May 2008, the BALTIC Arts Centre in Gateshead chronicled the Yemeni community of South Shields, including interviews with the last remaining survivors of the first Yemeni generation. The exhibition depicted the Yemeni story as an example of early successful multi-cultural integration in Britain, as well as showcasing the high-profile 1977 visit by Muhammed Ali.

In 2005 the Customs House commissioned author Peter Mortimer to write a play on the subject of the 1930 Yemeni Riot. The resultant play RIOT was staged at the venue in 2005 and 2008.^[7]

In 2008, South Shields resident and filmmaker Tina Gharavi unveiled plans for a plaque to mark Ali's visit.^[8]

In 2008, a critically acclaimed exhibition about the South Shields Yemeni community was held entitled The Last of the Dictionary Men – Stories from South Shields’Yemeni Sailors, was held at the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead.^[9]

In 2009, the detective series George Gently, based on the novels by Alan Hunter, portrayed the Yemeni integration in a 1960s setting.^[10]

type=printed postcards

theme=topographical: british

sub-theme=england

county/ country=durham

number of items=single

period=1945 - present

postage condition=unposted