I’ve been meaning to do a blog about our postcard collection and after taking one of the albums along to a Girl Guide outreach session it seemed the right time. I am always intrigued by some of the subjects that feature on them – from important historical events; Rohilla Funeral of victims to a car in a river!
In this particular postcard we see the ‘Walking Men’, during the east and west Pier Extensions which began in 1909, having a rough time.
The ‘Walking Men’ were used in the construction. Sand and stone were removed from the sea bottom by divers in order to lay the foundations and frames were placed to receive the concrete foundations. When the divers were working at night the sea was being illuminated by four powerful electric lamps. They had also constructed a light railway down the pier for the transportation of the mixed concrete. (Whitby Gazette 24th September 1909)
The postcard showing the Herring Fleet leaving Whitby Harbour shows what a spectacular sight it was in its day, particularly from West Cliff. I use the chapter, North Sea Nocturne from the Dora Walker’s Freemen of the Sea when I do my Herring Fishing talks and enjoy reading the sea shanty that features at the beginning of the chapter. In case you were not aware, a ‘joskin’ is a man who works on the land most of the year, but goes to sea when the herring season comes; you will always find them among the regular fishers. If you are interested in reading this book, it is in our library along with numerous other books about the Herring Fishing industry. There are also various articles over the years on the digital Whitby Gazette.
These postcards of the WWI Bombardment that happened on December 16th 1914 show how much destruction Whitby suffered – 2 enemy vessels: 7 minutes: 200 shells! Interesting that on one of the postcards showing a scene of Whitby – it was decided to add bomb explosions!
Other unusual postcards – a netball team and a bedroom inside St Hilda’s Priory, Sneaton Castle! We have hundreds of beautiful historical images depicted on the good old postcard – next time it’s a rainy day or you are at a loose end pop in and ask to look at them. The library is open Tuesday to Friday 10am to 4pm.
by Claire Marris
Archive Development Officer
#HeritageFund #archivesforall
