Cleethorpes Seafront from the Cliff near Albert Road and Folly Hole, late nineteenth century.
This delightful panoramic view captures Cleethorpes during its Victorian heyday, looking from the cliff near Albert Road and Folly Hole towards the beach and the elegant iron pier stretching into the Humber Estuary. Carefully colourised from an original monochrome print, the image offers a sympathetic impression of the resort as it would have appeared to visitors over 130 years ago.
The broad sandy beach is lined with traditional bathing machines—portable wooden changing cabins mounted on wheels—which were a familiar sight at British seaside resorts throughout the nineteenth century. Horses would draw the machines into the shallow water, allowing bathers to enter the sea in privacy, in keeping with the customs of the day.
On the cliff top, visitors enjoy the promenade while, below, families gather on the beach beneath three flags flying from the beach shelter. The scene reflects the growing popularity of Cleethorpes as a fashionable holiday destination, attracting thousands of visitors who arrived by rail to enjoy the fresh sea air and expanding seaside attractions.
A handwritten inscription on the reverse of the print identifies the two ladies standing together on the cliff as the Misses Moody, daughters of Walker Moody and sisters of Sir George Moody. It further records that Walker Moody was the first Chairman of the Cleethorpes Rural District Council, while Sir George Moody became the first Mayor of Cleethorpes. The inscription also identifies the location as “Cliff near Albert Road and Folly Hole” and notes that the path descending the cliff to the beach was from Albert Road.
Although the photograph is undated, the style of dress, the bathing machines and the appearance of the pier indicate that it was taken during the late nineteenth century, at a time when Cleethorpes was firmly establishing itself as one of Lincolnshire’s leading seaside resorts.
Sympathetically colourised from an original historic print in The Trevitt Collection.
