South Tyneside

The Charles Dickens Room (1st floor),
The Word,
Market Place,
SOUTH SHIELDS,
South Tyneside, NE33 1JF
Contact: Ann Franklin
Email: southtynesidebranch@ndfhs.org.uk

BRANCH MEETINGS

Meetings on 3rd Wednesday in the month at 1.30 p.m.
(No meeting in July & August)
Visitors are always welcome

Branch Reports

April 2025

The meeting held on the 16th April 2025 was attended by 9 members and with 2 apologies. The speaker was Tony Stephenson who gave a presentation entitled ‘Tyneside on Film’.

There have been over 200 films made which include Tyneside locations, albeit some are glimpses or superimposed shots of local landscapes. Tony’s presentation was made up by showing a selection of excerpts from films, starting with the ‘Night of the Fire’ filmed in 1939 through to ‘The Duke’ filmed in 2020 which starred Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren. Whilst the latter was not actually made on Tyneside, it did include a shot of the Tyne Bridge.

We saw clips from iconic films made in the 1960s and early 1970s such as ‘Get Carter’, ‘Women in Love’, and ‘The Likely Lads’, as well as a documentary on Bob Dylan where he can be seen in Pudding Chare and The City Hall, Newcastle.

Many more films were made over the preceding years, some have been made by local companies, others have internationally known characters from the acting world in the casts. This was a presentation with a difference which the members present at the meeting thoroughly enjoyed.

March 2025

The meeting held on the 19th March was a Members Forum, the purpose of which was to discuss ideas for the Branch display at the forthcoming NDFHS Conference. 10 Members were in attendance at the meeting plus 1 apology.

Consideration was given to a number of suggestions which were put forward, the outcome of which is that several Members volunteered to research collieries and pit disasters, which have occurred in mines located in the wider area of South Tyneside.

February 2025

The meeting held on the 19th February was attended by 15 members who enjoyed a talk by Hilton Dawson on the subject of the Newbiggin by the Sea genealogy project. On the premise that ‘everybody in Newbiggin is related to everybody else’, the aim is to research and record those who have ever lived in the town and it is believed this is the largest project of this kind in the world.

The east coast ‘herring boom’ in the 19th century resulted in the relatively small population of Newbiggin being reliant on fishing for a living, with families such as Robinson, Dawson, Armstrong and Stanton being names among the fisherfolk. There was also a colliery in Newbiggin; two perils industries which came with several losses of life, which had a profound effect on such a small community. It is believed the majority of the population descend from Robert Robinson who married Catherine Milburn in 1627.

The project is run entirely by community volunteers, members pay a small subscription each year and meetings are held each month either in person or on-line. As well as a Website, there is a Facebook page advertising the meetings. In building up the Newbiggin Family Tree, which can be viewed via their website, the volunteers have received help from ‘My Heritage’ as well as receiving a Lottery Heritage grant.

Hilton concluded his talk by mentioning that during the 1950s and 1960s there was an artistic vibe in the town. Some well-known folk who descend from Newbiggin were Harold Lloyd, silent film actor, and Sir Phillip Watts, the chief designer for Armstrongs and who was responsible for designing the dreadnaught battleships.

January 2025

Our invited Speaker at the meeting held on Wednesday 15th January 2025 was Chris Killen who gave a very enjoyable talk on local author Catherine Cookson. We had 9 Members present at the meeting and 3 apologies.

Born 1906 in Leam Lane, and registered as Catherine Ann Davies, Catherine was brought up by her McMullen grandparents, with the belief her mother was her elder sister. School was St Peter & Paul’s in Tyne Dock. At the age of 14, Catherine went into service but told people she worked in a chemist. Catherine then worked in the laundry at Harton Workhouse before moving to the Essex Workhouse at the age of 29.

Catherine was a good saver and with the help of a mortgage, bought her first house in Hastings where she took in lodgers. One such boarder was Thomas Cookson, a teacher at the local high school. They married on the 1st June 1940, but although desperate to have a family, Catherine suffered several miscarriages which had a detrimental effect on her mental health over the years.

Inspired by the 4th Earl of Chesterfield, Catherine had started writing at an early age, but initially without success. Her first novel ‘Kate Hannigan’ was published in 1950 and this was followed by many other novels such as ‘The Mallen Streak’ and ‘The 15 Streets’. Always thrifty she amassed a fortune through her works and she became a patriot of many charities, including large donations to Newcastle University Medical School. She was awarded an Honorary Degree at Newcastle University as well as becoming a Dame in 1993.

In later years, Catherine and Tom returned to her native North East, finally settling in Jesmond as due to her declining health, she needed to be nearer medical facilities. Catherine died on the 11 June 1998 followed 17 days later by the death of her husband Tom. A personal touch to this talk is one of our Branch members told how she had nursed Catherine in hospital during the latter days of her life.

October 2024

The meeting held on the 16th October was attended by 11 members plus one apology. The Speaker was Ann Clouston who spoke on the Tyne Pilots. Ann is both Chair of the ‘Friends of Westoe Cemetery’ and a Newcastle City Guide and her talk was based around a walk she had devised on behalf of the City Guides.

Dating back to Roman times, a Pilot is a master mariner, an occupation which historically was handed down from father to son. The Tyne Pilotage was originally under the control of Trinity House in Newcastle but in 1856 this was transferred to the Tyne Pilotage, the old Pilot Office being located in Greens Place, overlooking the River Tyne.

Starting at the South Shields transport hub the walk continues up Mile End Road to St Stephen’s church, built in the 1840s and which has always been known as the ‘Pilots church’. Inside the church is a brass plaque which commemorates two lifeboat disasters; the first in memory of 20 pilots from a crew of 24 who were lost on the 4th December 1849 when the pilot cutter ‘Providence’ upturned going to the aid of the brig “Betsey”. Also, the loss of the pilot crew aboard the “Protector” which hit a mine in the mouth of the Tyne on the 31st December 1916. Only one body was ever found being that of 71 year old Robert Phillips. Many of the South Shields pilots were buried in the grounds of St Stephens but sadly a number of graves were destroyed in bombing raids during WW2.

The Lawe in South Shields is synonymous with mariners and many of the Pilots lived in this area, which commands views over the mouth of the Tyne. As well as the Pilot office, there were beacons to aid navigation, Lawe House which was a meeting place for the Pilots as well as Trinity Towers, a watch house for the Pilots and which later became a training station for the Marine College. All of these buildings have now been demolished.

September 2024

The first Branch Meeting after the summer break was held in the Charles Dickens Room at The Word on the 16th September 2024. 9 members were in attendance plus 4 apologies.

The meeting commenced with the Branch AGM when the current Chairman expressed a wish to standdown and one of the NDFHS longstanding members volunteered to take over the role. The Secretary and Treasurer agreed to stand for another year.

Following the formalities a Members Forum was held, the main purpose of which was to put forward ideas and discuss options the Branch could contribute to the 50th Anniversary Conference to be held in June 2025; the theme of which is ‘Mining’. South Tyneside was once home to several coalmines and notable disasters, as well as housing a Cokeworks in Hebburn and of course South Shields, being a seaport, saw many a ship transporting coal, not only to ports in the UK but also Europe and further afield. Therefore, a number of options for further research.

The meeting concluded with a general discussion and help with ‘brickwalls’.

June 2024

The talk at the meeting held on the 19th June 2024 was by Blyth Branch member Chris Killen on the subject of ‘Herring Lasses’. 12 members were in attendance and with one apology.

Chris began by explaining how the trade in pickling herring began with the Danes in the 12th century but in the 18th and 19th centuries the industry was dominated by the growing fishing industry in the UK. The population of Blyth increased and it became a thriving town due to the development of the coal industry and shipbuilding was well as fishing. The ‘herring lasses’ tended to follow the fleet, with many of them coming from the Scottish Iles down to the east coast of England.

Work was seasonal, highly skilled and demanding, the lasses having to work until all of the day’s catch had been gutted and salted. They travelled with a ‘kist’ which held their clothes, knives and bandages etc. used to protect their hands. They worked in teams of three – two gutters and one packer. For all of their hard work they received an allowance and somewhat basic accommodation. Herring lasses loved to sing and to knit.

After reaching it’s peak around 1907, the herring industry began to decline after the end of WW1 and by the 1950s overfishing began to take it’s toll. In the 1970s the Government placed a ban on herring fishing in the North Sea to allow stocks to recover. These days there are strict quotas on all North Sea fishing which resulted in many fishermen opting to de-commission their boats.

In 2023 a statue by Ray Lonsdale was unveiled at North Shields Fish Quay in tribute to the ‘herring lasses’.

May 2024

The Speaker at the meeting on the 15th May was David Hastings whose talk “The Real Heroes of the Sea” was enjoyed by 12 members and 1 apology.

David is a prolific fund raiser for the RNLI and he started by giving us an insight into how the RNLI came into being with the first lifeboat station believed to be at Bamburgh Castle, where they made use of a coble. Following a tragedy in the mouth of the Tyne, the first lifeboat was designed and built by Messrs Henry Greathead and William Woodhave in 1790.

The talk highlighted acts of bravery such as the well-known tale of Grace Darling who rescued passengers and crew from the s.s. Forfarshire off Bamburgh in 1838, and Henry Freeman who was the only lifeboat crew member who survived a storm off Whitby in 1861; his life being accredited to the fact he was wearing a cork lifejacket. Other heroic events mentioned were in 1907 when 456 lives were saved in Cornwall, 1962 saw 17 lives lost in Seaham attempting to rescue a fishing coble and the Solomon Browne, the Penlee lifeboat, where 16 crew were lost in 60ft breakers. Henry Blogg was the most decorated lifeboat man who received his third gold medal in 1941 and who saved some 873 lives. The presentation ended with a short video showing how the lives of residents on the Orkney Isles had been affected by the loss of the Longhope lifeboat and its crew in 1969.

As always a very well presented talk by David which is recommended to other Branches and organisations.

Last updated: 25th April 2025