By Mark Tavender
History is the foundation for strong, vibrant communities and shows us who we are as a collective group. Knowing about the history of the place you live helps encourage a sense of belonging.
Luan Hanratty, the man behind local history website penbal.uk, is on a mission to teach us all about the history of our community and the place we live. He is fascinated about the story of North Shields and the North East and wants to share his vast knowledge and for us all to know about the history in our own back yard.
Luan has deep connections with this area. He is originally from Tynemouth but his roots go further back to when his ancestor left Ireland to escape famine and ended up in North Shields via Liverpool. His fourth great grandfather had to scavenge on the Black Middens retrieving any scrap so he could sell it on.
Over the years and through the generations his family prospered and were part of the Industrial Revolution in the 18th and 19th centuries – the North East forged a strong reputation for being the centre of coal, shipbuilding, engineering (steam and locomotion) and here on the coast, fishing.
After a spell abroad in China teaching English, Luan returned to the North East in 2020 and set up his website with a vision to highlight the history of North Shields and the surrounding areas.
The articles he (and his colleague Gary Holland) write are engaging and down to earth as are the videos on Youtube, there is something for everyone and Luan believes that history should not be thought of as a school subject as if to be revised for an exam but as part of our everyday lives. History has many layers – for example, one of the many fascinating articles talks about a once famous landmark of Tynemouth called The Plaza which I’m sure older readers may remember.
It opened in 1878 and was sadly destroyed by fire in 1996 – a piece of history in itself but when the Plaza was being built a beautifully decorated Roman bowl dating back to the 2nd century was found. It’s currently housed in the Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum – maybe we should ask for it back!
Next year, 2025, marks an important date in North Shields history; it is the 800th anniversary of our town. Imagine that what’s around you now, the buildings, the roads, the parks are all part of those 8 centuries and only exist because of the people that have come together over that time.
I hope that next year’s celebrations are the start of another 800 years of something to celebrate and be proud of. Luan firmly believes that North Shields is becoming a thriving, bustling community full of creative and innovative people and businesses which future generations will look back on with pride like we do on our past generations.
Check out penbal.uk (‘penbal,’ if you’re wondering, means ‘headland’)
Luan’s Youtube channel can be found here – youtube.com/@LuanHanratty
He also organises fascinating tours via tynemouthtours.co.uk
