St.Mary's Island,Whitley Bay by carolmw

St.Mary's Island,Whitley Bay

St Mary's Island, sometimes referred to as Bait Island is a small sandstone island near the seaside resort of Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear, England. It is a Local Nature Reserve.

St Mary's Island was originally called Bates Island, Hartley Bates or Bates Hill as it was originally owned by the Bates family who were prominent locally, and the area of coastal mainland lying between the Brierdene Burn and Seaton Burn formed the township of Hartley. It is sometimes known as Bait Island, probably due to a misunderstanding of the meaning of the name. The island is opposite Curry's Point on the mainland and is connected to the coast at low tide by a rocky causeway for about 16 hours a day.The main feature of the island is St Mary's Lighthouse which was built in 1898.

In medieval times there was a chapel on the island dedicated to St Helen. Within the chapel was the Lady Light, also known as St Katherine's Light. The light was later, wrongly, ascribed to St Mary and, as a result, the island became known as St Mary's Island. It is debatable whether the light was used as a warning to shipping or was purely religious.Next to the chapel was a burial ground where monks and local people were interred. Traces of St. Helen's Chapel were destroyed when the lighthouse was built in 1898.

During the 19th century there was an inn, known as the 'Square and Compass', on the island, run by a Mr George Ewen. In 1895, after complaints about rowdy customers trespassing on nearby land, the landlord, Lord Hastings, had Mr Ewen and his family evicted from the island.

The lighthouse continued to function until 1984, when it was taken out of service. The lighthouse is now open to visitors who can climb the steps to the lantern room, if they wish, or see the visitors centre.
Many thanks for all your views,comments and favs,always much appreciated.
totally could be a postcard
May 23rd, 2024  
Such a stunning, vivid shot. Love all the people - they bring it to life.
May 23rd, 2024  
Looks like a postcard, and a popular place.
May 23rd, 2024  
Such interesting information to accompany this beautiful picture
May 23rd, 2024  
It does look like a postcard. Lovely shot.
May 23rd, 2024  
Beautiful lighthouse and lovely shot. Nice information.
May 23rd, 2024  
Fabulous
May 23rd, 2024  
Beautiful
May 23rd, 2024  
My old childhood stomping ground!!
May 23rd, 2024  
@happypat. Mine too.
May 23rd, 2024  
A fantastic image!
May 23rd, 2024  
A beautiful capture of the lighthouse and the surrounding beach and walkway! What a wonderful part of the world to grow up in, Carol! Fav
May 23rd, 2024  
So lovely! FAV
May 24th, 2024  
It looks popular judging by the people there. Looks great. Lovely image.
May 24th, 2024  
Postcard image. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
May 24th, 2024  
Very lovely image!
May 24th, 2024  
Fantastic pov and colours - I’ve not heard of the island before, thanks for the background
May 24th, 2024  
Fav. Beautiful capture of a marvellous scene. Seems you were'nt alone to visit on this day. I like all the activity around this small island.
May 24th, 2024  
A beautiful shot of this lovely place - fav! We used to enjoy seeing the causeway when the sea was rising. There was almost always someone who got their feet wet by leaving the island slightly too late.

Ian
May 24th, 2024  
Beautiful scene
May 24th, 2024  
Beautiful photo and very interesting history.
May 24th, 2024  
What an amazing story. I've been here several times and I used to go ice-skating as a girl, at the rink in Whiley Bay.
May 29th, 2024  
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