Quay role is played by ‘Costa del Shields’
NOW lockdown is over and the pubs and restaurants have reopened, people are flocking to North Shields Fish Quay.
For generations it has been the beating heart of the town’s vibrant maritime and fishing way of life – but these days you can also find a host of trendy bars and eateries down there.
No wonder local folk have nicknamed it the ‘Costa del Shields’!
Our three photographs from nearly five decades ago recall the Fish Quay busy at work, long before it became a popular leisure destination.
We see trawlers moored, back from one trip to sea and ready for the next, while our striking main image shows the Fish Market, North Pier and mouth of the River Tyne as it enters the North Sea.
The images were captured in 1973 and kindly shared by David Dunn from the Armstrong Railway Photographic Trust.
North Shields is now – and for centuries has been - inextricably linked to the fishing industry.
The story of the town began on the banks of the River Tyne in the 13th century when Prior Germanus and the monks from nearby Tynemouth Priory drained a large area of marshy ground.
Later, at the mouth of the Pow Burn where the Fish Quay stands today, three turf huts called “shiels” were built by fishermen and these proved to be the origins of the town and its name.
As the new settlement grew to include mills, a brewery, bakehouses and a fish quay, it attracted the attention of the bigger and richer Newcastle up-river.
What followed was an extended period of hostility between the new North Shields and powerful men in Newcastle who realised the commercial value of land so close to the mouth of the Tyne.
Locals who played a big part in the town’s history include Ralph Gardner, who opposed Newcastle when it tried to stop ships from docking in North Shields to deliver and receive coal.
By the 1500s, the land had been acquired by the Earl of Northumberland and by the 17th century Clifford’s Fort, located on the Fish Quay, was built to repel the Dutch.
Come the mid-1700s, press gangs would descend here to enforce the services of local men who refused to
willingly serve in Royal Navy. Meanwhile, the family of Admiral Lord Collingwood – one of the heroes of the Battle of Trafalgar – owned a mansion and estate in North Shields.
The well-known High and Low lights were built at the turn of the 19th century as an aid for returning ships, while the famous Fish Quay itself dates from around 1870.
Meanwhile, the tradition of “wooden dollies” in the town is another link to its sea-faring history.
There have been six of these lifesized figures in North Shields since 1814 and they have been prized by seamen who would carve off small chunks of wood and take them on voyages as good luck charms.
Away from seafaring, the middle of the 19th century saw the arrival of the railways – and a quick, accessible link to Newcastle.
Today, North Shields is a town where retail, tourism – and fishing – are important to its prosperity.
Shields folk retain a strong sense of local identity and, from its humble fishing origins, North Shields has expanded to include nearby villages such as Billy Mill, Chirton and Preston.