| Description | Originally deposited as a DVD-ROM.
Contains video of Hornsea and its key attractions.
Timing: Action on film.
(0:27) South Beach promenade looking to Bridlington with a view of the sea and sand
(01:08) Looking from the bowling green to the South Cliff caravan park
(01:36) Victoria Avenue with its row of boarding houses built on what would have been farmland up until the 1860's. The railway was then built and people came from Hull to enjoy the fresh air of the seaside
(02:36) The drinking fountain built to commemorate the opening of the seawall promenade in 1907
(03:25) The Promenade Bowling Club with the Floral Hall in the background; used for dances and concerts. Hornsea has two bowling greens; there is another one at Attic? Road where there is an indoor club
(03:57) Typical seaside views; sea, beach, people paddling, buildings and shops along the front
(05:54) The railway station, where trains would arrive packed with holiday makers during the summer, it would cost half a crown from Hull to Hornsea in the 1940's. The railway was closed in the 1960s under Dr Beeching's rail line cuts. It has been sympathetically converted into living accommodation, keeping the imposing entrance that went through to the platforms. The Station Master's house is at the end of the row. The railway was originally built for Hull and Hornsea Railway Company by Joseph Armytage Wade and Company. In addition to the railway he built the brick works and the pier
(08:00) The Station Master's house; he was an important member of staff, responsible for passengers and freight. Looking at the station, the platform and railway lines would have been where the cars are driving.
(09:09) 'These almshouses were erected and endowed by Mr Christopher Pickering of the Hall…..for the use of the poor…' The Hall was in the market place and Pickering was a local trawler owner and philanthropist. He also built Pickering Park in Hull and endowed some almshouses similar to those in Hornsea
(10:01) The Guildhall is now divided into six houses. The original building was given a Georgian frontage in the early 1800's. It was occupied by Mr Bettison in the 1840's, when it was a single house with servant's quarters and acres of land. Mr Bettison built the folly at the back of the house, supposedly to enable his son to see him coming down the road from Hull and ring the bell to warn the servants that the master was nearly home
(11:00) Looking down Newbegin to the church at the bottom. This is a shopping area, but also includes, chapels, churches and the Methodist church hall
(11:50) The Folk Museum, opened by Dr and Mrs Walker in the 1980's, contains a large collection of memorabilia. The building was the home of the Burns family from about 1630 to 1640. The original building was the small cobble cottage at the end, the rest was added later
(12:44) Inside the museum; the farmhouse kitchen with a large inglenook fireplace dating back to the 1700's. There is a single handed grandfather clock
(14:30) The Victorian parlour. Elizabeth Hulme, the daughter of a sea captain, married Martin Burn. The room would have been very warm in the summer, with the heat from the fire, the oil lamps and tobacco smoke. Upstairs there is the figure of Rose Carr, an expert horse woman. On the wall there is a short history of Rose (1843-1913) which includes a picture of the house during her time
(16:54) An exhibition room full of artefacts found in a Victorian home: toys, a dolls house, stuffed animals, iron bed stead, wash stand with a jug and basin, dressing table and a set of brushes, tall boys and a four poster bed with a canopy
(19:20) A display room with a painting, from 1981, showing the Sopwith Baby aircraft built by Blackburn Aircraft Company at Brough. It flew on reconnaissance sorties from Hornsea Mere. There is also a painting of Brandesburton Hall, which in the early 1900's was owned by Colonel Harrison. He was an explorer in the Congo and in 1905 he brought back six pygmies, who stayed for two years before returning to their tribe. They performed tribal dances and toured throughout the country, appearing at the Hippodrome in London, the Houses of Parliament and a Buckingham Palace garden party
(21:20) Another display room containing fishing equipment, including a life jacket. The Burns family were decorated for saving lives at sea
(22:00) A painting of Hornsea House, the home of Joseph Armytage Wade, which he inherited in 1850. It later became the site of Hornsea School. Joseph Wade (1817-1896) became the chairman of Hull and Hornsea Railway Company which opened in 1864.He was an entrepreneur, businessman and inventor. He formed the Hornsea Gaslight and Coke Company in 1864, established the Hornsea Brick and Tile Company and was chairman of the Hornsea Pier Company in 1874. He was not a very popular man
(23:11) A painting of William Bettison, the builder of the folly behind the Guildhall
(23:33) The dairy where the cream, butter and cheese were made. Nicky Burn ran the dairy in the 1880's
(24:00) Workshops with a display of tools used by wheelwrights and carpenters
(25:50) The blacksmith's shop including an anvil, hand operated bellows and whetstone. On the wall there is a collection of cart nameplates. A water pump was in use until about the 1940s
(29:06) Railway memorabilia, including a railway clock made by Potts of Leeds and several station signs. The Hull to Hornsea Railway ran from 1864 until 1964. A local police display; handcuffs and whistles. Examples of interlocking roof tiles used on a house in Westbourne Road
(33:25) The barn has a weather vane on the roof and houses farm tools and machinery. The photos of farm life show how work was done by hand and power provided by horses. Labourers slept in haylofts
(38:05) Wagons and a milk float are kept outside, where you can look across to Burns Farm
(36:42) The Victorian school room with desks and slates. Present day children dress up in Victorian costume and have a Victorian school experience
(41:25) The interior of St Nicholas Church. St Nicholas is the patron saint of sailors. The church is built with cobblestones brought up from the beach by pack mule. A view looking down from the nave to the chancel and the East window. There are steep stairs to the belfry. The church was built around the twelfth century and has been added to and modernised over the years. Some of the St Quintin family are buried in the church. The family ruled over parts of Yorkshire after they came over in 1066. The Manor House is at Harpham where the family still live. There are also two effigies from the Priory at Nunkeeling. William Falkenberg, another Norman, claimed parts of Yorkshire. The stained glass of the East window. Seats are carved into the side of the chancel. The organ was built by Foster and Andrews from Hull, famous organ makers in the East Riding. The alabaster tomb is for the St Quintin family and the fine brass lectern is surmounted by an eagle
(51:42) The Old Hall in the Market Place was built in 1687 by Peter Acklam and is commemorated by a plaque. The Methodist Chapel was built in1864. There are cobblestone cottages round the corner on Back Westgate
(53:57) A close up of the cobblestone cottages on Back Westgate. This type of cottage is a feature of East Riding coastal villages and towns. Cobblestones were a cheap material at the time, before the brick works was established. The Friends Meeting House (Quakers) is further down the row
(55:00) Walking back up New Begin, passed St Nicholas Church you can see the stone cross that used to stand in Market Square. It was removed when traffic began to drive through Hornsea
(55:30) The Folly behind the museum was built by Mr Bettison at the back of his house, but much of the land has been built on since then. It was built from reject bricks from the brickworks and is about 140 years old. He was such a mean man that he didn't pay the bricklayer. On open days you can climb the spiral staircase to the top
(57:40) Looking down Southgate towards Hull, with more cobblestone cottages. The old town is around this area. Old farmhouses have been swallowed up by extensive building. The road to the town centre can be very busy, especially at weekends and holiday time
(59:15) Hornsea Mere is about a mile long and covers about 400 acres. It used to belong to the Constable family. Wassend Hall, the property of the Constables, is at the end of the Mere and is open to the public
(1:00:50) As it is sheltered the Mere provides a habitat for many birds. The town centre and St Nicholas's tower can be seen across the Mere
(1:01:30) Yachts race in the stiff breeze. Trips can be taken round the Mere by both rowing and motor boat. It is a popular place for recreation, the biggest freshwater lake in Yorkshire,
(1:02:50) Visitors take pictures of swimming ducks and geese flying over head
(1:04:00) Hornsea Pottery was started by two West Riding brothers, Desmond and Colin Rawson. At the time of the film the pottery was part of a retail and leisure park, including birds of prey and a vintage car museum. Ther is a great deal of noise inside the pottery and someone can be seen decorating pots with transfers. A long inside view shows shelves of fired pots
(1:06:30) Old fashioned penny arcade games are kept in the foyer of the pottery
(1:07:05) A tour of the model village created to scale and built on old clay pits that were used for brick and tile making. The water was pumped out by a centrifugal pump invented by Armytage Wade and John Cherry. After the success of the pumps in Hornsea, Cherry went on to establish the pump works in Beverley
(1:08:28) The model village includes all the features of a coastal village - a church, sea walls, a lighthouse, cottages and the harbour. There is the Castle Hotel, the Folly and a watermill by a bridge and river. A bit further on is the Old Smithy garage, the school, a caravan site, a row of cobblestone cottages and boats on the river
(1:16:33) The shrubs have to be maintained and replanted as they grow too large for the miniature landscape
(1:23:15) The Birds of Prey Centre houses eagles, owls and various cockerels and chickens
(1:27:44) The Motor Museum exhibits a variety of vintage cars - a 1906 Ford, a Mini covered in coins, a Jowett Jupiter Standard Vanguard and a Lamborghini
(1:39:57) A final view of Horsea promenade and the sea as the film ends
Film and Sound Archive access copy available onsite in the Audio-Visual Room |