Newbiggin-by-the-Sea
Encyclopedia
Newbiggin-by-the-Sea is a small town
in Northumberland
, England
, lying on the North Sea
coast. Once an important port
for shipping grain
and a coal mining
town, it is still a small fishing port
making use of traditional coble
boats.
As early as 1828, Newbiggin was a popular beach resort, with facilities to cater for visitors. There were five public houses, one of which had bathing facilities, several shops, and lodging houses.
In 1869, there were 142 coble
s (fishing boats) in Newbiggin-by-the-sea.
Newbiggin Colliery was sunk in 1908. The colliery closed in 1967, but at its peak in 1940, 1400 men were employed there. The former Newbiggin Colliery Band is now the Jayess Newbiggin Brass Band, named for its president and former member, cornet legend James Shepherd.
cable from Scandinavia
in 1868, and was laid from Jutland
, Denmark
. Attractions in Newbiggin today include the fourteenth century parish church
, and a small heritage centre
.
The Lifeboat Station, opened in 1851, is the oldest operational boathouse in the British Isles. Celebrating over 150 years as a lifeboat station, Newbiggin has had 12 different station lifeboats over the years; today it operates an inshore Atlantic 75 lifeboat. The crews have been presented with 16 awards for gallantry.
Now complete is a £10,000,000 renovation to rebuild and improve Newbiggin's rapidly eroding beach. This involved importing 500,000 tonnes of sand from Skegness
, delivered by the Trailing Suction Hopper Dredger (TSHD) Oranje and deposited on the beach through a pipe approximately 1 metres (39.4 in) in diameter. A new offshore breakwater was installed to accompany the matching breakwater on the opposite side of the bay. Also installed is a brass statue by sculptor Sean Henry named Couple, anchored in the centre of the bay.
Newbiggin is one of the area's prime locations for watching the North Sea seabird passage during spring and autumn.
, Leo Sayer
and TV show Gladiators star Michael Van Wijk
along with many others.
Starting in 2010, the annual Old Ship Music Festival is attempting to bring back a summer event to the village. It invite bands from the region and worldwide to play as well as local comedians and raises money for charity with the help of local business. In 2010 it raised £700 for Help for Heroes, the chosen charity of 2011 was The Sir Bobby Robson Foundation, the total raised was £1,100
was working at the library in Newbiggin (1954–56) when he wrote his best-selling Room at the Top
.
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
in Northumberland
Northumberland
Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, lying on the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
coast. Once an important port
Port
A port is a location on a coast or shore containing one or more harbors where ships can dock and transfer people or cargo to or from land....
for shipping grain
Cereal
Cereals are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their grain , composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran...
and a coal mining
Coal mining
The goal of coal mining is to obtain coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United States,...
town, it is still a small fishing port
Port
A port is a location on a coast or shore containing one or more harbors where ships can dock and transfer people or cargo to or from land....
making use of traditional coble
Coble
The coble is a type of open traditional fishing boat which developed on the North East coast of England. The southern-most examples occur around Hull The coble is a type of open traditional fishing boat which developed on the North East coast of England. The southern-most examples occur around Hull...
boats.
History
The town was originally called South Wallerick. After the Danish invasion in AD875 the town was renamed Neubegang or Newbegining, with several different spellings until we have the present Newbiggin. In the 14th century, Newbiggin was a very important maritime centre, called upon to support Edward III in his campaigns against the Scots. At one time Newbiggin was a major port for the shipping of grain. It is said that it was third only in importance after London and Hull.As early as 1828, Newbiggin was a popular beach resort, with facilities to cater for visitors. There were five public houses, one of which had bathing facilities, several shops, and lodging houses.
Economy
Fishing has always been associated with Newbiggin, although later many inhabitants were employed in coal mining. By Victorian times, Newbiggin was Northumberland's favourite seaside town, attracting hundreds of visitors every day in the summer months.In 1869, there were 142 coble
Coble
The coble is a type of open traditional fishing boat which developed on the North East coast of England. The southern-most examples occur around Hull The coble is a type of open traditional fishing boat which developed on the North East coast of England. The southern-most examples occur around Hull...
s (fishing boats) in Newbiggin-by-the-sea.
Newbiggin Colliery was sunk in 1908. The colliery closed in 1967, but at its peak in 1940, 1400 men were employed there. The former Newbiggin Colliery Band is now the Jayess Newbiggin Brass Band, named for its president and former member, cornet legend James Shepherd.
Landmarks
The town was at the end of the first telegraphTelegraphy
Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages via some form of signalling technology. Telegraphy requires messages to be converted to a code which is known to both sender and receiver...
cable from Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
in 1868, and was laid from Jutland
Jutland
Jutland , historically also called Cimbria, is the name of the peninsula that juts out in Northern Europe toward the rest of Scandinavia, forming the mainland part of Denmark. It has the North Sea to its west, Kattegat and Skagerrak to its north, the Baltic Sea to its east, and the Danish–German...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
. Attractions in Newbiggin today include the fourteenth century parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
, and a small heritage centre
Heritage centre
A heritage centre is a museum facility primarily dedicated to the presentation of historical and cultural information about a place and its people, including, to some degree, natural features...
.
The Lifeboat Station, opened in 1851, is the oldest operational boathouse in the British Isles. Celebrating over 150 years as a lifeboat station, Newbiggin has had 12 different station lifeboats over the years; today it operates an inshore Atlantic 75 lifeboat. The crews have been presented with 16 awards for gallantry.
Now complete is a £10,000,000 renovation to rebuild and improve Newbiggin's rapidly eroding beach. This involved importing 500,000 tonnes of sand from Skegness
Skegness
Skegness is a seaside town and civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. Located on the Lincolnshire coast of the North Sea, east of the city of Lincoln it has a total resident population of 18,910....
, delivered by the Trailing Suction Hopper Dredger (TSHD) Oranje and deposited on the beach through a pipe approximately 1 metres (39.4 in) in diameter. A new offshore breakwater was installed to accompany the matching breakwater on the opposite side of the bay. Also installed is a brass statue by sculptor Sean Henry named Couple, anchored in the centre of the bay.
Newbiggin is one of the area's prime locations for watching the North Sea seabird passage during spring and autumn.
Religious sites
The Parish Church of St. Bartholomew contains the finest collection of medieval gravestones in Northumberland. Woodhorn Church is the oldest building in Wansbeck, with parts dating back to the 11th century.Summer Fair
Until 2004 Newbiggin was host to a street fair that attracted thousands of people every year; a huge fair that expanded over many years. In its final years, the fair was set out in the following format: starting at the beginning of the shopping area of Front Street, up to the Cresswell Arms public house flowing into Church Point car park and continuing along the seafront promenade. The lifeboat house and boat yard became the music venue. A stage replaced the boats and the lifeboat house opened its doors, serving food and afternoon tea. Over the years, appearances were made by SladeSlade
Slade are an English rock band from Wolverhampton, who rose to prominence during the glam rock era of the early 1970s. With 17 consecutive Top 20 hits and six number ones, the British Hit Singles & Albums names them as the most successful British group of the 1970s based on sales of singles...
, Leo Sayer
Leo Sayer
Leo Sayer is a British singer-songwriter, musician, and entertainer whose singing career has spanned four decades. Sayer became a naturalised Australian citizen in 2009. Sayer was a top singles and album act on both sides of the Atlantic in the 1970s...
and TV show Gladiators star Michael Van Wijk
Michael Van Wijk
Michael van Wijk , is a professional sportsman, bodybuilder, actor and TV presenter in the United Kingdom. van Wijk is most well known for his role as Wolf on British TV endurance sports game show Gladiators, a role he held for seven years, eight series...
along with many others.
Starting in 2010, the annual Old Ship Music Festival is attempting to bring back a summer event to the village. It invite bands from the region and worldwide to play as well as local comedians and raises money for charity with the help of local business. In 2010 it raised £700 for Help for Heroes, the chosen charity of 2011 was The Sir Bobby Robson Foundation, the total raised was £1,100
Notable people
John BraineJohn Braine
John Gerard Braine was an English novelist. Braine is usually associated with the Angry Young Men movement.-Biography:...
was working at the library in Newbiggin (1954–56) when he wrote his best-selling Room at the Top
Room at the Top (novel)
Room at the Top , by John Braine, tells the rise of an ambitious young man of humble origin, and the socio-economic struggles undergone in realising his social ambitions in post-war Britain...
.