Quayside To Cultural Heritage In Whitby

Nestling on the east coast of England, Whitby is undoubtedly one of the most attractive ports in the country

. Its buildings and harbour are located in a ravine of the River Esk, as it leads out into the sea. It is a fascinating town with a rich cultural heritage and much to see and do.

There is a maze of narrow backstreets and alleys leading up from the bustling quayside, packed with a range of attractive cottages and many small independent shops selling antiques and craft items along with plenty of eating and drinking opportunities.

Visitors can wend their way up through the streets to find a set of 199 stone steps which lead up to an example of one of the best Anglo Saxon churches in England, the parish Church of St Mary. Its distinctive enclosed pews were made by marine carpenters as a sideline from their usual work of constructing boats.

St Mary's graveyard provided the inspiration for Bram Stoker's gothic Victorian novel Dracula and the town claims further literary links. Both Charles Dickens and Alfred Lord Tennyson were visitors here.

Close to the church are the ruins of Whitby Abbey, the origins of which can be traced back as far as AD 657 when King Oswy of Northumbria founded a monastery on the site. In later years it was attacked and destroyed by Danish Vikings and following the Norman Conquest in 1066 the land was given to William de Percy so that a new monastery could be founded.

Perhaps Whitby's most famous inhabitant was Captain James Cook, whose voyages of exploration and discovery changed understanding of world geography. His epic journeys took place during the 18th century and his former home in Grape Lane is now the Captain Cook Memorial Museum and is authentically furnished in period style. Whitby Museum also contains a great deal of information about Cook's life and work.

The Victorians flocked to Whitby to buy jet, the hard black mineral excavated from nearby cliffs. It was made into jewellery and ornaments and its popularity continues today with a host of specialist shops in the town selling jet artefacts.

Shipbuilding was an important industry in the town and by the 1790s Whitby was ranked third after London and Newcastle in terms of the amount of production taking place. In the decades before this, the whaling industry was growing rapidly and by the end of the 18th century Whitby had become a major centre for the trade. Whale oil was used for street lighting and the bones were used as stays in women's corsets.

During the 1800s, Whitby developed as a fashionable spa town, the waters from its spring being much sought after for their medicinal and tonic qualities. Upmarket lodging houses and hotels were constructed on the West Cliff for the visitors, whose numbers swelled considerably when the railway opened in 1839.

Whitby is still very much a working port and the sights and sounds of the boats unloading are a daily feature of life here. Pleasure trips are a popular attraction and you can sail around the bay in a replica of Captain Cook's Endeavour.

by: David Fisher

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