North Shields

This collection of over 200 photographs draws on the archives of North Tyneside Libraries which have been built up through the donations of local people. The majority of the old scenes are from within living memory, but before the redevelopments of the 1960s and '70s, which cleared away much that people had come to think of as permanent.

North Shields has done well to survive eight centuries, for a 'town where no town ought to be', and a great deal of its visible past is now lost. A definition of the boundaries of North Shields has always proved elusive. For the purpose of this book it has been taken to include the riverside between the Fish Quaay and Smith's Dock, and the streets south of the road to Tynemouth.

Some of the photographs show only subtle changes to the present day, while others will help jog fading memories and a few may surprise even long term residents. The author has not attempted to include every significant building in the town, but the pictures have been chosen because they have given pleasure to the library users and others down the years. The book will pass on their pleasure to a wider audience and remind readers of just how much has disappeared.