Westoe
Encyclopedia
South Shields
South Shields is a coastal town in Tyne and Wear, England, located at the mouth of the River Tyne to Tyne Dock, and about downstream from Newcastle upon Tyne...
, Tyne & Wear, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
.
History
Urban sprawl
Urban sprawl, also known as suburban sprawl, is a multifaceted concept, which includes the spreading outwards of a city and its suburbs to its outskirts to low-density and auto-dependent development on rural land, high segregation of uses Urban sprawl, also known as suburban sprawl, is a...
extending from the centre of Shields at the end of the niineteenth century.
In contemporary usage the term "Westoe Village" refers to a specific quiet suburban East-West road in the Westoe area. It consists of Georgian
Georgian era
The Georgian era is a period of British history which takes its name from, and is normally defined as spanning the reigns of, the first four Hanoverian kings of Great Britain : George I, George II, George III and George IV...
and Victorian houses, many being built by Victorian business leaders in South Shields, including those who owned mines and shipyards. It is considered the most exclusive area in South Shields.
A number of houses which were once part of the historical village of Westoe are not considered to be part of Westoe Village. The paired early nineteenth century houses of Westoe Terrace have been absorbed into the late Victorian terrace of Dean Road.
Politics
Westoe is an electoral wardWards of the United Kingdom
A ward in the United Kingdom is an electoral district at sub-national level represented by one or more councillors. It is the primary unit of British administrative and electoral geography .-England:...
of South Tyneside
South Tyneside
South Tyneside is a metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear in North East England.It is bordered by four other boroughs - Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead to the west, Sunderland in the south, and North Tyneside to the north. The border county of Northumberland lies further north...
Council, bordered to the north by Beacon and Bents ward, to the east by Horsley Hill ward, to the south by Harton ward, and to the west by Simonside and Rekendyke, and West Park, wards. In the 2007 local elections
United Kingdom local elections, 2007
The 2007 UK local government elections were held on 3 May 2007. These elections took place in most of England and all of Scotland. There were no local government elections in Wales though the Welsh Assembly had a general election on the same day. There were no local government elections in Northern...
the ward returned three independent candidates.
Transport
The Westoe Road forms part of the A1018 roadA1018 road
The A1018 is a road in North East England. It runs between South Shields, at the mouth of the River Tyne, and the A19 near Seaham, County Durham. Most of the route it follows is the old alignment of the A19, before it by-passed Sunderland to meet the Tyne Tunnel.-South Tyneside section:The road...
from South Shields
South Shields
South Shields is a coastal town in Tyne and Wear, England, located at the mouth of the River Tyne to Tyne Dock, and about downstream from Newcastle upon Tyne...
to Seaham
Seaham
Seaham, formerly Seaham Harbour, is a small town in County Durham, situated south of Sunderland and east of Durham. It has a small parish church, St Mary the Virgin, with a late 7th century Anglo Saxon nave resembling the church at Escomb in many respects. St Mary the Virgin is regarded as one of...
.
Westoe is served by the Chichester Metro station, the penultimate stop on the South Shields branch of the Tyne and Wear Metro
Tyne and Wear Metro
The Tyne and Wear Metro, also known as the Metro, is a light rail system in North East England, serving Newcastle upon Tyne, Gateshead, South Tyneside, North Tyneside and Sunderland. It opened in 1980 and in 2007–2008 provided 40 million public journeys on its network of nearly...
rapid transit system.
Education
The South Shields campus of South Tyneside CollegeSouth Tyneside College
South Tyneside College is a large further education college in South Tyneside in North East England, with its main sites in the towns of South Shields and Hebburn. The college offers part-time and full-time courses for both young students and adults alike...
is located immediately to the southern side of the road named Westoe Village.
Brewing
Jarrow Brewing Company
-History:The brewery was established at The Robin Hood Public House, Primrose, Jarrow in 2002 by owners Jess and Alison McConnell. The brewery at first supplied two pubs, The Robin Hood itself, and The Albion Inn, Bill Quay, also owned by Jess and Alison....
of nearby Jarrow
Jarrow
Jarrow is a town in Tyne and Wear, England, located on the River Tyne, with a population of 27,526. From the middle of the 19th century until 1935, Jarrow was a centre for shipbuilding, and was the starting point of the Jarrow March against unemployment in 1936.-Foundation:The Angles re-occupied...
purchased the former Chameleon pub
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
in Westoe, opening it as The Maltings. From 2006 they expanded their microbrewery output by installing a facility below this pub, producing 100 barrels a week. The company includes in its beers, Westoe IPA and Westoe Netty Special.
The Westoe Netty
Westoe became locally famous as the inspiration for a popular picture, the Westoe NettyWestoe Netty
The Westoe Netty is a painting by Robert Olley. It depicts a historical scene inside a public toilet . Painted in 1972, it has become a cultural symbol of North East England working class history....
, illustrating a local public toilet
Washroom
A public toilet is a room or small building containing one or more toilets and possibly also urinals which is available for use by the general public, or in a broader meaning of "public", by customers of other...
.. Netty
Netty
Netty may refer to:* Netty Kim , Canadian figure skater* Netty Witziers-Timmer , Dutch athlete* North East England dialect for toilet or public convenience* JBoss Netty a Java project for asynchronous I/OSee also...
is a Geordie
Geordie
Geordie is a regional nickname for a person from the Tyneside region of the north east of England, or the name of the English-language dialect spoken by its inhabitants...
dialect word for toilet. The original toilet was built in 1890 near the railway bridge. To allow for regeneration, it was dismantled and put into storage in 1996. In 2008 the toilet was rebuilt as a permanent exhibit at the Beamish Museum
Beamish Museum
Beamish, The North of England Open Air Museum is an open-air museum located at Beamish, near the town of Stanley, County Durham, England. The museum's guiding principle is to preserve an example of everyday life in urban and rural North East England at the climax of industrialisation in the early...
.
Former residents
- Catherine CooksonCatherine CooksonDame Catherine Cookson DBE was a British author. She became the United Kingdom's most widely read novelist, with sales topping 100 million, while retaining a relatively low profile in the world of celebrity writers...
, author, spent time in Westoe in her youth. Westoe was the backdrop for a number of her romance novels - Dame Flora RobsonFlora RobsonDame Flora McKenzie Robson DBE was an English actress, renowned as a character actress, who played roles ranging from queens to villainesses.-Early life:...
, actress. Nominated for an Oscar for her role in Saratoga Trunk. - William FoxWilliam Fox (New Zealand)Sir William Fox, KCMG was the second Premier of New Zealand on four occasions in the 19th century, while New Zealand was still a colony. He was known for his eventual support of Māori land rights, his contributions to the education system , and his work to increase New Zealand's autonomy from...
Three time Prime Minister of New ZealandNew ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. - Elinor Brent-DyerElinor Brent-DyerElinor M. Brent-Dyer was a children’s author who wrote over 100 books during her lifetime, the most famous being the Chalet School series.-Short Biography :...
, author of the Chalet School books. She was born in South Shields and attended school in Westoe. - Joe McElderryJoe McElderryJoseph "Joe" McElderry is an English singer and model. He won the sixth series of the ITV show The X Factor in 2009. His first single "The Climb" reached number one on the UK Singles Chart and Irish Singles Charts. He was also crowned the winner of the second series of Popstar to Operastar, two...
Winner of X Factor 2009. Pop/Classical Crossover singer and model. He was born and grew up in Westoe, still lives nearby and returns there often to visit family and friends.
External links
- Westoe Colliery page at the Durham Mining Museum website