Busy road’s modern look is an Ocean apart from its earliest days
GENERATIONS of folk have made their way up South Shields ‘ Ocean Road on their way to the seaside.
By the end of the 19th century a trip to the coast was often accompanied by a venture into the town centre, only a five-minute stroll inland from the town’s fine parks.
Ocean Road provided plentiful shops for browsing if one was tired of the sands. These days, the lively street is well known for its popular bars, clubs and curry houses.
This wonderful juxtaposition of old and new Ocean Road in one image has been created by photographer and local historian Mick Ray.
Showing the road in both 1936 and 2021, it merges past and present to give us a deeper understanding of the physical location.
Here, in his own words, Mick outlines the back story of South Shields’ most famous thoroughfare...
“Ocean Road and its surrounding areas were the last parts of the town centre to be developed.
“Up until the 1860s the road itself was little more than a rutted cart track running from the Fowler Street junction to the sand dunes on the shore.
“It was called German Street in those days, as it led to the German Ocean - the original name of the North Sea.
“It was surrounded by open fields, with ugly ballast hills dominating the far end. A few buildings were scattered along its length, the work house and a few pubs, as well as a couple of industrial rail lines, but no housing.
“In 1863, the council authorised a whole revamp of the road, which included laying a proper surface along with pedestrian paving.
“At the same time the road was renamed Ocean Road, losing its former German Street name (a full 50 years before the outbreak of World War I, which is sometimes mistakenly attributed as the cause of the name change).
“Another story exists about a river running along the length of the road. Many years ago, a small tributary of the Tyne ran through the town.
“Called the River Branin, it diverged at the Mill Dam and ran along the low points of the town.
“These low points have not changed and are still there today.
“Leaving the Mill Dam, it flowed (in modern terms) through the ASDA park and across Waterloo Vale below the gas holder.
“Continuing on, it crossed Fowler Street and through the library car park before finally entering the path of Ocean Road around the bottom of Baring Street/Flagg Court area.
“Flowing on, it ran between the parks, and entered the sea roughly where the pier begins. So technically only half of the road was on the route of the river.
“Returning to the image - just look at that wonderful row of buildings.
“Unfortunately, all privately owned and privately demolished. Woods outfitters has also disappeared.
“Morrison’s supermarket now stands on the site of my old school Ocean Road Seniors and what a location for a school - smack bang in the middle of town - but that is another story.”