WEATHER – Whitsuntide 1875

Accreditation Redcar and Saltburn News 20/05/1875

WHITSUNTIDE HOLIDAY 1875

            The holiday at Whitsuntide is very ancient, and has been kept up with vigour for many generations. It is a season when both young and old throw aside the cares and toils of life, and enter the merry circle of fun and frolic. Since opening the railways new fields of pleasure have been thrown open to the industrious classes, and with the advantage of cheap travelling, long and pleasant excursions can be accomplished in one day, and thousands of our hardy sons of toil, together with their families, can enjoy the exhilarating breezes of the mountain, or wander in the pleasant shades of the woody grove. On Monday last (15/05) the Cleveland district was alive with excursionists from the various parts of the country – thousands having left the busy and crowded towns to ramble by the side of the restless ocean, and gaze with wonder upon the “golden hills” which border the two sea side resorts (Redcar and Saltburn) on the south. It was a happy lovely day, and the sun’s rays beaming upon the happy throng, and casting his cheerful influence upon those who were bent on pleasure.

REDCAR

            Everything had been done to make excursionists comfortable, and as the town is much improved as well as enlarged, there was no lack of the “good things” required on such occasions. A little after nine o’ clock in the morning the trains began to pour into the station, heavily laden with men, women, and children, and soon hundreds were seen wending their way to the sands. By noon the number of people in the town far exceeded anything ever seen here before. The “lions” of the town were visited, and various places of interest were not overlooked. The boatmen on the sands had a profitable day, while the bathing machines were kept fully employed during tide time. The donkey tribe, perhaps had the heaviest share of work, and were kept in motion from morn to night. The Redcar and Coatham Piers had their full share of patronage, and no doubt the finances of both were greatly increased. A steamboat trip to Hartlepool from Hartlepool to Redcar was very successful, and as the sea was comparatively calm, the passengers enjoyed a pleasant and refreshing sail. Peace and contentment seemed to be the ruling feature of the strangers, and everything passed off without a single instance requiring police interference. At the railway station all the trains stopped at the excursion platform, and through the excellent arrangements of railway officials nothing occurred to mar the pleasures of the day. On Tuesday (16/05) a special train from Darlington brought a large number of people, and return tickets from other places, induced a few to leave home, but the change of weather from a bright genial atmosphere on Monday to a chill and showery morning no doubt cast gloom over a large number of intending visitors.