South Gare

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South Gare
Harbour at South Gare Breakwater, Tees Mouth (geograph 7379783).jpg
Paddy's Hole
North Yorkshire UK location map (2023).svg
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South Gare
Location within North Yorkshire
Population0 
OS grid reference NZ551274
•  London 220 mi (350 km)  SSE
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town Redcar
Postcode district TS10
Dialling code 01642
Police Cleveland
Fire Cleveland
Ambulance North East
List of places
UK
England
Yorkshire
54°38′25″N1°08′21″W / 54.640342°N 1.139145°W / 54.640342; -1.139145

South Gare is an area of reclaimed land and breakwater on the southern side of the mouth of the River Tees in Redcar and Cleveland, England. It is accessed by taking the South Gare Road (private road) from Fisherman's Crossing at the western end of Tod Point Road in Warrenby.

Contents

Before the building of South Gare, permanent dry land stopped at Tod Point, at the western end of Warrenby, and there was only Coatham Sands and the mudflats of Bran Sands. The creation of South Gare extends this by a further 2.5 miles (4.0 km). [1] [2]

The fishing community South Gare fishermen's huts (geograph 7407843).jpg
The fishing community

The building of South Gare offers a safe harbour in stormy weather to ships off the coast and allowed for the dredging of the River Tees entrance. [3] South Gare itself was a settlement but the houses there were demolished many years ago.

History

Construction

Building the 22 miles (35 km) of slag training walls in the Tees was started in 1859. [4] Blocks of solid blast furnace slag were cast and moved into position along the banks of the River Tees, then back filled using 70,000 tons of material dredged from river bed. [4] This canalised the river allowing it to keep itself clean by the action of flow and tides.

The Gare was constructed from January 1861 to 1884 [4] [5] [6] using 5 million tonnes of blast furnace slag and 18,000 tons of cement [2] [7] at a total cost of £219,393. [4] [8] The slag was supplied free from Tees-side blast furnaces by ironmasters who paid for its removal. [4] The north end of the breakwater carrying the lighthouse uses blocks of concrete weighing from 40 to 300 tons. [8]

Work was planned and supervised by John Fowler, engineer to the Tees Commissioners. [8] With construction complete, the breakwater was formally opened by the Right Hon W. H. Smith, First Lord of the Treasury on 25 October 1888. [8]

Railway

To construct South Gare a rail line was built from the Warrenby iron works to carry men and materials. When construction was complete the rail line was used, wind permitting, with a sail bogey to move visitors, servicemen, lifeboatmen and lighthouse crew out to the lighthouse and gun installations close to the end of South Gare. [9] The rail line still exists in places and is easiest to see near the remains of the coastal battery.

Defences

Former gun emplacement the breakwater Former gun emplacement on the South Gare Breakwater (geograph 6080602).jpg
Former gun emplacement the breakwater

The original South Gare battery was built from 1890 to 1892 and fitted with a two gun battery. [10] New guns were fitted to the battery in 1907 but removed in 1920, and in 1938 the battery was reconstructed and fitted with two larger guns. [10] The anti-aircraft batteries, and mortar emplacements have been partially demolished. [11] There are a number of defensive concrete pill boxes still scattered around the area in the dunes and on the beach. [12]

What is now the South Gare Marine Club is the site of a maintenance base for electrically fired submarine mines defending the mouth of the River Tees. [13]

Right Hand of Friendship

A giant sculpture of the Right Hand of Friendship was proposed for Redcar and Cleveland, at South Gare, as one of series of artworks called Tees Valley Giants. [14] In 2012, however, this series of artworks was discontinued. [15]

Geography

River entrance

LPG Tanker leaving Teesmouth LPG Tanker leaving Teesport - geograph.org.uk - 1571382.jpg
LPG Tanker leaving Teesmouth

The River Tees entrance created between South Gare, and the North Gare to the west is 2,400 feet (732 m) wide. [8] The water depth at the mouth of the Tees at low tide has altered over the years. In 1863 it was 3 ft 6 inches but today stands at 50 feet (15 m). [2] Two suction dredgers and occasionally a grab dredger are used to keep the shipping channel clear. [2]

Harbours

Guy's Hole Guy's Hole (geograph 7406958).jpg
Guy's Hole

Paddy's Hole is a small harbour constructed from slag in the lagoon on the Teesmouth side of South Gare. It is named Paddy's Hole because of the many Irishmen who helped build the South Gare. [16]

There are also two smaller harbours south of Paddy's Hole named Guy's Hole and Powder Hole (or Sand Hole). Between Guy's Hole and Powder Hole is the remains of the Powder Jetty (or Powder Wharf) dating from the First World War or earlier. [17]

Sands

Remains of a wooden ship embedded in Bran Sands Skeleton of Old Wooden Ship, Bran Sands - geograph.org.uk - 624478.jpg
Remains of a wooden ship embedded in Bran Sands
Teesside Derelict Steelworks and Wooden Wreck Teesside Steelworks and Wooden Wreck in Foreground.jpg
Teesside Derelict Steelworks and Wooden Wreck

South Gare & Coatham Sands is a Site of Special Scientific Interest. The dunes on the eastern flank are protected by three slag banks close to the breakwater, known as the German Charlies that are partly exposed at low tide. [18] The name German Charlies was applied after a First World War incident involving a German ship that ran aground on them. [19] There is a gas pipeline through the SSSI sand dunes. [20]

On the inner side of the breakwater is Bran Sands known for its bird life and the wooden wreck of a ship in the sands. A number of underwater wrecks lie off South Gare. [21]

Land-formation and wildlife

The land is made from thousands of tons of basic slag from blast furnaces. The high limestone content of the slag produces a base rich soil that is attractive to lime loving plants. The area consists of tidal mudflats, scrub, grassland, sand dunes, rocks and freshwater and saltwater pools, and attracts a very wide range of birds. [22] Seals can also be spotted.

Industry

Fishermen's huts and part of SSI Steel Plant Fishermen's huts on South Gare - geograph.org.uk - 662913.jpg
Fishermen's huts and part of SSI Steel Plant

Built on the reclaimed land of Bran Sands is the ore terminal, sinter plant, coke plant, and blast furnace of SSI's Teesside Steelworks. The plant was mothballed in 2010, reopening in April 2012, only to be mothballed again on 28 September 2015, and finally closed on 12 October 2015. Next to that is Bran Sands Water Treatment Works. [23]

Activities

Fishing at the tip of South Gare breakwater Fishing at the tip of South Gare - geograph.org.uk - 372987.jpg
Fishing at the tip of South Gare breakwater

As well as those out for a stroll other activities indulged in include sea fishing from small boats and angling from the concrete breakwater, photography of wildlife and shipping etc., also birdwatching, [24] sailing, kite surfing, windsurfing, jet-skiing, diving and motorcycling. [25]

Services

Lifeboat station

There has been a lifeboat at Teesmouth since 1829 [26] when the RNLI was founded. The present Teesmouth Lifeboat Station was founded in 1911 and in 1914 a boathouse and slipway was built to launch the lifeboat. [26] The lifeboat station has had a Tyne class lifeboat since 1986 and in 2003 new lifeboat crew facilities were built however the lifeboat station was closed a few years later with coverage being supplied by Hartlepool lifeboat. [26]

Tees pilots

The pilot's pier in Teesmouth South Gare Breakwater, Teesmouth - geograph.org.uk - 1591.jpg
The pilot's pier in Teesmouth

Since 1988 Tees and Hartlepool Port Authority's pilot services for Hartlepool, Teesport and the River Tees have been based at the pilot station at South Gare. [27]

South Gare Lighthouse

South Gare lighthouse on the breakwater South Gare (geograph 6340751).jpg
South Gare lighthouse on the breakwater

The South Gare Lighthouse was built in 1884 at the end of South Gare breakwater [5] and is owned and operated by PD Ports. [28]

Coastguard station

A coastguard station is located south of South Gare Lighthouse. To the immediate south of the coastguard station is a short steel frame tower. This tower houses a radar antenna, an automatic fog detector and a vertical set of four sectored red and white leading lights for navigation purposes. There is second fog detector system mounted on the Fairway Buoy in Tees Bay outside the river entrance. [29]

Wind speed detection masts

Near the end of the breakwater, in the fenced compound, there is a tall steel framed mast, housing air speed measurement devices. These devices gather data on wind speeds at various heights for a planned offshore wind farm proposed by Northern Offshore Wind Limited. [30] The mast is 164 feet (50 m) tall and 15.3 feet (4.7 m) wide at the base. Plans for the offshore wind farm include thirty 200 feet (61 m) windmills over 1 mile (1.6 km) offshore. AMEC Wind plans to build 19 wind turbines inside Corus steelworks generating 47.5 MW of electricity. [30]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Tees</span> East coast river of Northern England

The River Tees, in England, rises on the eastern slope of Cross Fell in the North Pennines and flows eastwards for 85 miles (137 km) to reach the North Sea between Hartlepool and Redcar near Middlesbrough. The modern day history of the river has been tied with the industries on Teesside in its lower reaches, where it has provided the means of import and export of goods to and from the North East England. The need for water further downstream also meant that reservoirs were built in the extreme upper reaches, such as Cow Green.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Redcar and Cleveland</span> Borough in North Yorkshire, England

Redcar and Cleveland is a unitary authority area with borough status in North Yorkshire, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Redcar</span> Town in North Yorkshire, England

Redcar is a seaside town on the Yorkshire Coast in the Redcar and Cleveland unitary authority in the county of North Yorkshire, England. It is located 7 miles (11 km) east of Middlesbrough.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teesside</span> Conurbation in England

Teesside is a built-up area around the River Tees in North East England, split between County Durham and North Yorkshire. The area contains the towns of Middlesbrough, Stockton-on-Tees, Billingham, Redcar, Thornaby-on-Tees, and Ingleby Barwick. Teesside's economy was once dominated by heavy manufacturing until deindustrialisation in the latter half of the 20th Century, alongside chemical production which continues to contribute significantly to Teesside's economy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tees Valley</span> Mayoral combined authority area in North East England

The Tees Valley is a combined authority area in North East England, around the lower River Tees. The area is not a geographical valley; the local term for the valley is Teesdale. The combined authority covers five council areas: Darlington, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland and Stockton-on-Tees.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seaton Carew</span> Seaside resort in County Durham, England

Seaton Carew is a seaside resort in the Borough of Hartlepool in County Durham, England. It had an estimated population of 6,018. The area is named after a Norman French family called Carou who owned lands in the area and settled there, while 'Seaton' means farmstead or settlement by the sea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Redcar (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1974 onwards

Redcar is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Jacob Young, a Conservative.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teesdale Way</span> Long-distance walking route in England

Tees and Hartlepool Foreshore and Wetlands SSSI is a 255.62-hectare (631.7-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in County Durham, England notified in 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cleveland (county)</span> Former county of North East England

Cleveland was a non-metropolitan county located in North East England which existed between 1974 and 1996. Cleveland was a two-tier county and had four boroughs: Hartlepool, Stockton-on-Tees, Middlesbrough and Langbaurgh-on-Tees. The county town was Middlesbrough, where Cleveland County Council met. The county was named after the historic area of Cleveland, Yorkshire. Its area is now split between the counties of North Yorkshire and County Durham.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central Area Transmission System</span> Gas terminal in Seal Sands, Middlesbrough

The Central Area Transmission System is a natural gas transportation and processing system that transports natural gas through a 404 kilometre pipeline from the Central North Sea to a reception and processing terminal at Teesside in the North East of England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teesside Steelworks</span>

The Teesside Steelworks was a large steelworks that formed a continuous stretch along the south bank of the River Tees from the towns of Middlesbrough to Redcar in North Yorkshire, England. At its height there were 91 blast furnaces within a 10-mile radius of the area. By the end of the 1970s there was only one left on Teesside. Opened in 1979 and located near the mouth of the River Tees, the Redcar blast furnace was the second largest in Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teesside EfW</span> Power station in Billingham, UK

Teesside Energy from Waste plant is a municipal waste incinerator and waste-to-energy power station, which provides 29.2 megawatts (MW) of electricity for the National Grid by burning 390,000 tonnes of household and commercial waste a year. It is located on the River Tees at Haverton Hill, east of Billingham in North East England. Developed and built by NEM, a subsidiary of Northumbrian Water, the initial plant replaced the Portrack Incinerator and opened in 1998. Subsequently, the facility became part of SITA, now Suez.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maze Park Nature Reserve</span>

Maze Park is a 42-acre (17 ha) urban nature reserve in Middlesbrough, England on the south bank of the Tees on part of the former Tees Marshalling Yard. It was created by the Teesside Development Corporation and is owned and run by the Tees Valley Wildlife Trust. The reserve is a narrow triangle of land bounded by the River Tees, the old River Tees, and the Thornaby rail marshalling yards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teesside Wind Farm</span> British offshore wind farm

Teesside Wind Farm, or alternatively referred to as Redcar Wind Farm, is a 27 turbine 62 MW capacity offshore wind farm constructed just to the east of the mouth of the River Tees and 1.5 km north of Redcar off the North Yorkshire coast, in the North Sea, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seaton Carew Lighthouse</span> Lighthouse in North-East England

The Seaton Carew lighthouses were a pair of leading light towers built in Seaton Carew to guide ships into the River Tees. The low light was demolished over a century ago and what remained of the high light has been rebuilt in Hartlepool Marina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Gare Lighthouse</span> Lighthouse

South Gare Lighthouse was built in 1884 at the end of the breakwater at South Gare north west of Redcar in North Yorkshire and in north eastern England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yorkshire Coast</span> Coastline of Yorkshire, England

The Yorkshire Coast runs from the Tees estuary to the Humber estuary, on the east coast of England. The cliffs at Boulby are the highest on the east coast of England, rising to 660 feet (200 m) above the sea level.

Gare is the word for "station" in French and related languages, commonly meaning railway station

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teesmouth Lifeboat Station</span> Former lifeboat station in Yorkshire, England

Teesmouth Lifeboat Station was a Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) lifeboat station, situated on the mouth of the River Tees, South Gare, North Yorkshire, England. The lifeboat station had been operating at Teesmouth for 177 years when it was closed by the RNLI in 2006. The withdrawal of the lifeboat capability from Teesmouth was subject to much criticism from the local council and the volunteers who crewed the boat, but the RNLI stated that there was an over-provision of lifeboat cover on the north-east coast.

References

  1. ↑ Simpson, David (2008). "Middlesbrough and surrounds". England's North East. Retrieved 27 December 2009.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Barlow, Rob (30 October 2008). "Take a look around South Gare". BBC Tees. Archived from the original on 8 December 2008. Retrieved 27 December 2009.
  3. ↑ "South Gare Lighthouse". British Listed Buildings. Archived from the original on 21 March 2012. Retrieved 17 August 2010.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "Teesmouth Field Centre". Archived from the original on 22 June 2006. Retrieved 31 December 2009.
  5. 1 2 "South Gare Lighthouse Hydrogen Fuel Cell Beams Brightly". New England Lighthouse Treasures. Archived from the original on 8 May 2009. Retrieved 27 December 2009.
  6. ↑ "North East England: Leading the way in developing a Low Carbon Economy" (PDF). energynortheast.net. Retrieved 28 December 2009.[ dead link ]
  7. ↑ "Dave Barlow's Natural History of Teesside". Archived from the original on 4 December 2008. Retrieved 31 December 2009.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 Hinson, Colin (1 September 2008). "Kirkleatham Parish information from Bulmers' 1890". Genuki. Archived from the original on 22 November 2008. Retrieved 27 December 2009.
  9. ↑ Munro, Mike. "Sails on Rails". Copsewood.Org. Archived from the original on 25 July 2011. Retrieved 27 December 2009.
  10. 1 2 Moore, David. "South Gare Battery" (PDF). victorianforts.co.uk: 2. Retrieved 31 January 2019.
  11. ↑ "Wartime Relics". Hidden Teesside. Archived from the original on 3 March 2012. Retrieved 13 August 2010.
  12. ↑ Crown, Steve. "Paddy's Hole, South Gare Location Guide". ePHOTOzine. Archived from the original on 30 April 2009. Retrieved 27 December 2009.; Cartmel, Hilary (19 January 2007). "Hidden Teesside". Hidden Teesside. Archived from the original on 11 December 2009. Retrieved 27 December 2009.
  13. ↑ "England's Historic Seascapes: Scarborough to Hartlepool". Archaeology Data Service. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
  14. ↑ McKenzie, Sandy (19 August 2008). "'Big hand' bid points to proud river links". Gazette Live. Evening Gazette. Archived from the original on 30 March 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2010.
  15. ↑ "Teesside art 'giants' plan axed". BBC News. 19 June 2012. Archived from the original on 31 January 2016. Retrieved 11 July 2012.
  16. ↑ "Welcome to Redcar.org". Redcar.org. Archived from the original on 24 December 2009. Retrieved 31 December 2009.
  17. ↑ "Powder Hole, Powder Wharf, South Gare". Hidden Teesside. 15 January 2010. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 17 August 2010.
  18. ↑ "South Gare and Coatham Sands" (PDF). English Nature. 19 October 1988. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 March 2009. Retrieved 27 December 2009.
  19. ↑ "A Cleveland Naturalists' Field Club Bulletin – The Cleveland Coast Flora and History" (PDF). 1994. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 August 2011. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
  20. ↑ Houlton, Sarah (March 2003). "At one with nature". Royal Society for Chemistry. Archived from the original on 8 June 2011. Retrieved 27 December 2009.
  21. ↑ "Wrecks at South Gare". Dive Norway. Archived from the original on 10 November 2014. Retrieved 10 November 2014.
  22. ↑ "Places to see birds". Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. 2009. Archived from the original on 17 October 2012. Retrieved 31 December 2009.
  23. ↑ "Waste Water Management" (PDF). Tees Valley Regeneration. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 August 2011.
  24. ↑ "Birdwatching at South Gare". NTLWorld. Archived from the original on 13 May 2008. Retrieved 31 December 2009.; Barlow, Dave. "Birdwatching at South Gare". Dave Barlow's Natural History of Teesside. Archived from the original on 4 December 2008. Retrieved 31 December 2009.
  25. ↑ "The Best Windsurfing Locations" (PDF). RYA North East. Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 27 December 2009.
  26. 1 2 3 "Teesmouth Lifeboat Supporters Association". teesmouthlifeboat.org.uk. Archived from the original on 21 October 2009. Retrieved 27 December 2009.
  27. ↑ "Hartlepool pilots". Portcities Hartlepool. Archived from the original on 11 May 2006. Retrieved 28 December 2009.
  28. ↑ Barlow, Dave. "End of the South Gare". Dave Barlow's Natural History site. Archived from the original on 12 August 2011. Retrieved 27 December 2009.
  29. ↑ "Automatic Fog Detection" (PDF). pelangi.co.uk. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 January 2009. Retrieved 27 December 2009.
  30. 1 2 Robson, Dave (19 March 2002). "A wind farm mast-er plan". Gazette Live. Teesside: Evening Gazette. Archived from the original on 15 March 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2010.
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