History & Heritage

MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: THE SEARCH FOR THE LOST DUDES Geoff Holland goes in search of one of North Shields’ most intriguing pieces of public art — more than 25 years after thirteen colourful figures appeared beside the Royal Quays.

John Ellis has spent almost 70 years working around North Shields Fish Quay. Now, in his own words, he shares memories of its fishing industry, people, characters and a way of life that has changed beyond recognition.

his in-depth feature traces the story of Robert “Mouseman” Thompson — the Yorkshire craftsman famous for his carved mice — and uncovers his unexpected footprint in North Shields, from Mouseman furniture in St Columba’s church to the 1958 Wooden Dolly in Northumberland Square.

by Rachel Hammersley Huge skies cast darkness over this brave headland,The sandstone crags ravaged by wind and waves.Atop the cliff sit ruins, wrecks and graves;Below,...

Adapted from the memoirs of Alan Linkleter and research by James Linkleter James Linkleter came from an enterprising family whose deep connection to the sea...

By David Scholey  The Wooden Dollies are fairly well known to most visitors to North Shields but not so many people know their history. To trace...

For much of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, North Shields was one of the most important herring ports on the east coast...

As part of the North Shields 800 celebrations, a long-overlooked piece of local maritime heritage was brought back into the spotlight today with the unveiling of a newly restored oil painting titled The Royal Visit to the Tyne, August 1884, by North Shields-born artist John Davison Liddell (1859–1942).

Mary Ann Macham was an enslaved woman who escaped from a plantation in Virginia, USA, and endured a treacherous sea journey, eventually arriving in North Shields on Christmas Day 1831, marking the start of 60 years of freedom in the town.

Two new exhibitions at the Beacon Centre are set to showcase the stories, memories and spirit of North Shields as part of the town’s...