On 24 November 1864 the English Brig 'Ardwell' was forced onto the Black Middens after being badly damaged when grounding on the Herd Sand while inbound to the Tyne to seek shelter from a storm. The local lifeboat (Constance) could not reach the ship due to the high seas. After this event the Tynemouth Volunteer Life Brigade (HER 2214) was formed, the oldest organisation of its kind in the world. She was lost in the same storm as the FRIENDSHIP (1364859), the STANLEY (HER 12972) and the ESCORT (1548412).

Peggy's Hole is named after a naval ship 'The Peggy' which was moored near the entrance of 'the Gut' where the fishing boats landed their catch. During the French Wars at the end of the 18th century, North and South Shields were victims of Press Gang raids. In 1796, 250 mechanics and seamen from North Shields were pressed into service in a single raid. The town was cordoned off by troops. Many Tyneside sailors were pressed into service in the Battle of Trafalgar.

Bedford Street followed the course of the Dogger Letch, long since culverted. The stream emerged under a wooden bridge (HER 4559) at the junction of Liddell Street and Clive Street. The Seven Stars public house stood at No. 1 Wooden Bridge. Further up Bedford Street was the Tiger Inn and the Tiger Stairs.

Borough Road did not exist until 1839. When the Newcastle and North Shields Railway (HER 1186) opened that year there was no obvious link to the ferry terminal. So the 'New Cut' was excavated through the Ropery Banks and a ticket office was built at the bottom. A timber bridge (HER 12099) was built over the Cut to restore a right of way across the bank top.

Small rowing boats ferried passengers across the River Tyne from at least the 14th century. The boats were known as 'comfortables'! Steam ships known as 'penny ferries' operated the route in the 1830s. The Tyne Direct Ferry Company was established in 1847 and operated a service between North Shields New Quay to Kirton's Quay west of Mile End Road in South Shields. This was the most easterly of all the Tyne ferries and had the shortest crossing of the three Shields ferries. When the fare was reduced to one halfpenny the ferry acquired the name of The Ha'penny Dodger. The company operating the Market Place ferry sought to halt the new ferry and amalgamation soon took place (in 1849) with the older company. The ferryboats were much smaller than the Market Place boats and like the Whitehill Point ferry the Direct Ferry was taken over by the TIC in 1863. It ceased running in August 1954.
The Whitehill point ferry began operating in 1856 between Whitehill Point just west of the Tyne Commission Quay and West Holborn and was run by the same company, the Shields Ferry Company that operated the Market Place ferry, but was taken over by the Tyne Improvement Commission (TIC) in 1863, becoming the North and South Shields Ferry Company. New boats and landings were introduced. The precise route of this ferry varied frequently until by the 1920s it ran to the Tyne Commission Quay. It carried fewer passengers than the other two Shields ferries and was discontinued in 1941 after air raid damage but recommenced in 1951 but lasted only until September 1952 when it finally stopped running.
The Newcastle and Shields Steam Packet Company operated regular services from Newcastle to North Shields using three vessels in 1838. The Port Of Tyne Steam navigation Company was soon running services in competition and frequency improvements were introduced by the original Company for a time and fare reductions followed. Some thirty years later, a service from Jarrow to South Shields began and the Red Star Line introduced a service from Newcastle to Tynemouth serving intermediate points by crossing diagonally from bank to bank. There were also ferry landings on the two Tyne piers, part of the North landing can still be seen. This prompted opposition from the Shields Ferry Company and a Parliamentary Bill became law in 1862 to set up the Tyne General Ferry Company incorporating Red Star line. This service was very successful and ran from as far up river as Dunston and Elswick from the two Shields. The boats were known as 'Ladies Of The Tyne' having girl's names. The spread of railways and trams reduced passenger numbers and the intensive service up and down the river serving seventeen places was threatened with closure, despite many voices calling for its retention. Efforts to raise money to save it failed and services ended in 1908, the Company being wound up in 1909. Two hundred employees lost their jobs and sixteen boats were laid up. No further river service has operated since then although there have been proposals for its re-introduction.
Until the Tyne Tunnel was completed in 1967 the ferry was the only way to cross the river here, otherwise there was a long journey via Newcastle. There is now only one ferry operating between North and South Shields. The 'Collingwood' worked this route until the 1950s. The River Tyne was frozen in 1963 but the ferry still managed to sail. 'Tynemouth' was in service for 1968 until 1968. The last vehicular ferry was 'Northumbrian'. The present ferry is the 'Pride of the Tyne'.

pre 1856 house.

Pre 1856 house. There is an early to mid 19th century building to the rear attached to the 1920-1939 depot.

1920-1939 detached house.

Pre 1856 house.

Pre 1856 house, now part of the 20th century club.