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Des Does Bungee

Des Consitt went ahead with his Bungee jump from the Tees Transporter Bridge on Sunday 30th March.  The weather was bright but cold and a bit windy, not enough to prevent the jump going ahead though.  The money raised is to go towards payment for transport for the members of the Kingfisher Angling Club.  See Previous article.

 

The club is being formed, primarily, to help give the kids of Seaham something to do and an interest.  Gladly received but minimal funding and resources have been obtained from Seaham Town Council and Easington District Council so events like this are needed to raise the necessary cash.  Last week Des raised £70 from a collection in Church Street.  If you can make a donation please do, its for a very worthy cause.  Donations can be made at Dawdon Community Centre.

Hi there,

I have been in touch with the lady from Canada and have given her all the information on the Mileham Clan. It was a pleasant surprise when my niece Helen contacted me to say she had been in touch with her. I am, at the moment, trying to find out about both sides of the family. My side Nicholson and Wilkinson and the early years of Chris's grandfather and grandmother Mileham. May I say what a wonderful site Seaham Scenes is, it is a while since I have been on but tonight I decided to have a look at the updates and as you know it is only too easy to be still sitting at the computer looking at this site two hours later. Keep up the good work.

Regards

Betty Mileham nee Nicholson

Hello, I found your website while seeking further information about a "sound mirror" which is reported to have existed at Seaham. Do you know anything about, or know someone who does? I'm afraid I've never been to the area.

 

The sound mirror was one of a number built as a form of pre-Radar early warning system. It would have been built circa 1916, it still existed in 1947, and would have looked something like this: Sound Mirror - that is, a big concrete thing, with a "dish" shape in a wall facing towards the coast. It would almost certainly have had a clear view towards the sea when it was built, but could have been up to a couple of miles or so in land.

 

The person who told me about it writes:

I left home (Seaham) in 1947 and have rarely been back. I do remember as a child, however, playing around an acoustic mirror (complete with metal rod for supporting the microphone) situated on the high ground (Kinley or Kilney Hill) to the south west of Dawdon, Seaham Harbour. Having looked at the photographs, I can report that it was similar to the Sunderland example in terms of shape and size. I have no idea what state it might be in now, or even if it still exists.

 

I'd love to know more - does anyone else remember it, can they pin-point where was it, and does it still exist? There are a number of these things, at Sunderland, Redcar, Boulby and quite possibly elsewhere. One at Hartlepool has been demolished . There are some pictures of others at http://www.ajg41.clara.co.uk/mirrors/

 

Thanks for any help you can give!

Andrew Grantham

 

Andrew, thanks for the interesting email. I know quite well the area you are talking about, Kinley Hill. There still exists an underground structure at the top of Kinley Hill, which was an early warning / lookout post. I believe it was manned by the Civil Defence. This was during the 2nd world war and after that during the cold war. This is the period when it was thought that nuclear war was a genuine possibility.

There is also another hill, maybe a mile from Kinley Hill, which is known as "False Hill". It was named such because I believe its exactly that, a false hill. That is a huge mound which is man made and houses more underground passages and rooms. It used to have small structures on it meant to look like dwellings but which house machinery and there was always a radio / radar mast there. Now its home to mobile phone masts etc.

However, I can't remember ever seeing a sound mirror on either hill? I've been visiting both locations from when I was a kid, 30 + years ago now.... They were fascinating places for kids to explore, even if they were dangerous.

 

Maybe somebody else can shed some light on this ..... Email Me Please

Just thought that you might be interested in a water-colour sketch that I did from memory of the 'sound mirror' that stood above Dalton-le-Dale. I also played around this structure as a kid and I understand my great uncle Wilf manned this Zeppelin Sounding device at some point in WW1.

I think that it was removed to make way for the B1287
Graham Way road.

The view is from the east looking towards George Weightman's 'West Farm,' Waring Terrace, the garage on Stockton Road.

Kind regards

Les

 

Hi,

It was located above and to the north of Dalton le dale a little north east of the Overdene Estate but demolished. Put Sunderland Sound Mirror into Google for more.

Cheers for now

Raymond

 

Dear Webmaster,

Unless I am mistaken the sound mirror was situated behind the garage at the top of Deneside where the housing estate at the top of The Graham Way now stands. The area used to be used as pick nick area accessed from a path near the side of the garage. We used to play there and throw balls into the mirror, it was not until a TV program in the last year or so about coastal early warning systems that I found out what it was.

Hope this is of some help

Tom Westwick.

 

I've lived in Seaham all my life and can remember the mirror very well though didn’t know what it was at the time myself family and friends played on and around it for years through the 60's and early 70's it was about 200 yards behind Padgets garage at the top of the Deneside the site was accessed through the so called farm cut on the avenue opposite the top of Ryton cut about.....about 20 yards in front of the mirror was a large 10 ft deep hole lined with thick concrete about 20 yards by 30 yards must have been an operations room for the mirror the field was called the bully because us kids thought the hole was a bull ring the exact location is where the top of Weymouth drive is now every year the hole was used as the biggest hay jump in Seaham .......hope this helps to jog some memories ........

Tony Snaith

Kingfisher Freshwater Angling Club

If you haven’t already heard of the Kingfisher Freshwater Angling Club, it’s a group who’s aim is to get kids of the area interested in fishing rather than drugs, drinking or just hanging around being a nuisance.

This can only be a good thing from all perspectives, right? I mean, none of us want groups of youngsters hanging about our streets, “antisocial behaviour” is the current favoured term. From this kids can ‘advance’ to petty crime, to drinking and drugs.

 

It all starts with them not having anything to do. I know it all sounds very familiar but its true. There’s nothing to very little in the way of amenities for kids in Seaham.

 

Kingfisher Freshwater Angling Club offers kids the chance to get into fishing by teaching them freshwater fishing skills. The group will loan or be able to offer discounts on the price of all the equipment needed to get the kids started in the sport of freshwater angling.

 

They are hoping to have a membership for Families, adults, juniors, O.A.P. and disabled but priority will be given to children as equipment will be limited. There will also be fly tying days at Dawdon community centre and fishing competition prizes for children at the end of year.

They will show them how to keep records of their fishing days and hopefully have transport to the fishing sites. This is being paid for partly with money donated by Seaham Town Council and Easington District Council and by money raised by the group themselves.

Des Consitt, one of the founder members of the group will be performing a bungee jump to raise money to help pay for transport to the fishing ponds, for the group. The event is to take place on 30th March, from the Teesside Transporter Bridge.

Obviously he’s looking for sponsorship money, so if you can, please sponsor him, any amount large or small will be gratefully received. You can make your donation at Dawdon Community Centre, please make a donation, it’s a very worthy cause which will benefit all the Seaham community.

 

Thank you.

 

Film Studio Development - Seaham

Regarding your recent enquiry about the film studio the latest information we have received is that the application for planning permission is to be considered by Easington District Council, who are the Planning Authority, sometime during April. We have been led to believe that there are some further bits of research being done on answering some green/environmental issues which have to be addressed as part of the consideration of all the planning matters. The project itself is very much still alive. All things being equal, the formal planning application will be discussed at a special meeting of Easington District Council sometime next month. As yet we have no definite information as to the date when the application will be considered. However, because of the massive amount of interest the proposal has created, we envisage that there will be a lot of advanced publicity in the press of the arrangements for the meeting at Easington when the application is up for determination.

 

I hope this information is of help to you.

 

Stan Cudlip

Town Clerk

 

 

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Here's a picture I got recently. Its of an old steam loco that used to work around the dock area. It was known as the "Coffee Pot" because of its unusual upright design. It was built about 1873 and worked at the docks hauling wagons etc. until the 1960's. It can still be seen today, as part of the Beamish Museum collection of engines.

As promised here's a copy of two maps that I recently bought. The first one is from around 1956, Ordnance Survey, 1:25,000 scale.

The second is from around 1971, again Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 scale. Sheet NZ 44 if you're interested.

I hope they are of interest.