New Book Article: The Tide Stone

My latest book, The Great North-East: An English History Tour, vol.4, was released recently, and I thought it a good idea to try to tempt you into buying it by releasing a few articles from the same. Here's instalment No.2, being a short piece on the River Tyne's 'Tide Stone' ....

On the northern bank of the River Tyne, midway between Newburn and Wylam, can be found the Tide Stone. It bears the fading remains of Newcastle’s ‘three castles’ emblem, as well as the date of its placement, 1783. It is not difficult to work out its purpose, being to simply mark the tidal limit of the river. It was also the boundary of the old Tyne Improvement Commission’s jurisdiction on the river. The spot is (or at least was) known as Hedwin Streams.

The river was, however, dredged in the 1870s, and the tidal limit shifted upriver to Wylam, rendering the stone redundant. It’s a wonder the little landmark has survived at all.

Formerly, on Ascension Day, the Lord Mayor and his cronies would sail the length of this tidal stretch from Tynemouth to the Tide Stone, whereupon the mayor would disembark amid great ceremony and kiss the prettiest girl in Heddon and present her with a sovereign. Hence the marker was also known as the Kissing Stone. Allegedly, the ritual was stopped when it was realised that the mayor was picking out his own relatives from the assembled ‘beauty parade’.

It is also said that the famous engraver, Thomas Bewick, appealed to Newcastle Corporation on behalf of the illiterate stonemason who had not been paid for the carving.

New Book Article: Market Keeper's House

In an unashamed attempt to persuade you all to purchase (for Xmas?) my latest book The Great North-East: An English History Tour, vol.4, I will, over the next two or three weeks, reproduce a handful of the articles contained therein. But, as this blog is primarily concerned with the history of Newcastle, I will keep the material Tyneside-based. The articles throughout the book are generally short, sweet and to-the-point, enabling me to squeeze over 130 separate pieces into the 200 page tome.

The first effort concerns a somewhat fortunate survival in a recently radically-redeveloped quarter of the city centre, thus:

The beautifully-proportioned Market Keeper’s House sits in splendid isolation in Newcastle’s Times Square, enveloped by the modern-day creation that is the Centre for Life. It once stood at the heart of – yes, you’ve guessed it – a thriving cattle, sheep and pig market that turned over around 10,000 animals a week until, well, pretty much within living memory.

The former ‘market’ area used to sprawl over a large portion of this corner of the city, before gradually falling into disuse during the twentieth century. Nearby, Marlborough Crescent Bus Station was built on part of the land in the 1920s (demolished 1990s); and around the turn of the millennium, the Centre for Life popped up on the site. But for all the dramatic changes, the old Market Keeper’s House remains intact.

Though the little heritage plaque tells us otherwise, the building is thought to date to around 1842, and was the handiwork of uber-famous architect, John Dobson. The ground floor originally comprised of two offices: one for the market keeper, and the other for the toll-collector; and upstairs could be found accommodation for their families. It fell out of use in the 1960s as the market itself fell into decline. Fortunately, it hung on, somewhat grimly, until the area’s redevelopment in the late 1990s, at which point it was itself spruced up.

It has since been used by a variety of small businesses.

Useful Websites/Blogs

A couple of useful and interesting websites have crossed my path of late, so I thought I'd pass them onto you.

Penbal.uk I have perhaps mentioned in passing before, and I have certainly flagged several of their posts and articles on Twitter/X. It is primarily a repository of bits and pieces relating to Tynemouth and North Shields, but increasingly of late has started branching out into more general North-East stuff. Many of the pieces featured on their website are speculative, which makes it particularly interesting and thought provoking, and unlike most other local history efforts. The chap behind Penbal is Luan Hanratty, who is often posting interesting videos and the like - follow him on X at https://x.com/LuanHanratty 

My second recommendation is a general local history website called Local History Videos - which features videos and photos from England, Scotland, Wales and the USA. Obviously, some areas are better covered than others, but it is definitely worth a look. And if the 'About Me' page is anything to go by, it is run by 'Debbie' who seems, I think, to be North-East based. So do give her your support.

If anyone has any similar websites to recommend then do get in touch with me at micksouthwick @ blueyonder.co.uk (without the gaps!).